Furniture Manufacturers NAICS 3371, 3372

May 27, 2025 - Cooler Growth Forecast

• Sales for the US furniture manufacturers industry are projected to grow at a CAGR of 1.12% between 2025 and 2029, slower than the overall economy's projected growth, according to a forecast from Inforum and the Interindustry Economic Research Fund, Inc. The durable goods manufacturing sector forecast indicates that the labor force is expected to diminish, barring immigration reform that allows greater numbers. However, new technologies could support labor productivity for the industry. According to the forecast, investment in manufacturing facilities could stem from a range of factors, including the need to shorten supply chains after disruptions to domestic and foreign production and freight transportation during the pandemic. Consumer sentiment is expected to improve in the forecast period, which bodes well for the sector. A factor that may curb consumer spending is higher tariffs on consumer goods.
• According to Furniture Today, furniture and related products were one of six manufacturing categories reporting contraction in April’s Manufacturing ISM Report on Business. The furniture and related products segment reported decreases in production and employment, slower supplier deliveries, a decline in new orders, lower inventories, and higher prices for raw materials. Industries reporting growth in April included Apparel, Leather & Allied Products; Petroleum & Coal Products; Plastics & Rubber Products; Electrical Equipment, Appliances & Components; Computer & Electronic Products; Nonmetallic Mineral Products; Miscellaneous Manufacturing; Machinery; Chemical Products; Textile Mills, and Primary Metals. In addition to the furniture products category, manufacturing industries reporting contraction during the period included Wood Products; Paper Products; Food, Beverage & Tobacco Products; Transportation Equipment; and Fabricated Metal Products. Overall, economic activity in the manufacturing sector contracted for the second consecutive month in April, with the Manufacturing PMI registering 48.7%.

• Consumers may adjust their furniture spending as consumer sentiment, an indicator of discretionary spending, continues to fall in large part due to tariff uncertainty and an expectation of higher prices, according to two major indicators. The final index of consumer sentiment from the University of Michigan dropped 8% in April 2025 from the previous month, according to CFO Dive. An index measuring consumers’ expectations for the future fell nearly a third since January, the steepest three-month percentage decline since the 1990 recession. According to survey director Joanne Hsu, “Consumers perceived risks to multiple aspects of the economy, in large part due to ongoing uncertainty around trade policy and the potential for a resurgence of inflation looming ahead.” The Consumer Confidence Index declined by 7.9 points in April 2024, compared to the previous month. Consumer confidence levels have fallen for five consecutive months, reaching levels not seen since the beginning of the COVID pandemic, according to The Conference Board, which publishes the monthly index.
• US case goods manufacturers are seeing an uptick in orders as more businesses look to mitigate risks related to new tariffs imposed by the Trump administration, according to Furniture Today. Doug Bassett, president of Vaughan-Bassett, said its products are 100% made in the USA. He said some of the company’s larger customers, who typically also buy containers from Asia, have increased their orders with the company. Sherrill Furniture has minimized exposure by keeping its supply chain almost exclusively within a 30-mile radius of its factories in Hickory, North Carolina. Officials say their largest exposure has been imported fabrics, which it has shifted to domestically woven fabrics in the past few seasons. Domestic manufacturers say they are seeing more retailers seek stable US solutions as a hedge against tariff volatility.