Furniture Stores
Industry Profile Report
Dive Deep into the industry with a 25+ page industry report (pdf format) including the following chapters
Industry Overview Current Conditions, Industry Structure, How Firms Operate, Industry Trends, Credit Underwriting & Risks, and Industry Forecast.
Call Preparation Call Prep Questions, Industry Terms, and Weblinks.
Financial Insights Working Capital, Capital Financing, Business Valuation, and Financial Benchmarks.
Industry Profile Excerpts
Industry Overview
The 12,800 furniture retailers in the US sell new furniture and furniture-related goods, such as appliances, home electronics, home furnishings, and floor coverings. Major product categories include living room, dining room, and bedroom furniture; upholstered furniture; sleep equipment (mattresses, waterbeds); kitchen/dinette furniture; office furniture; and sleeper sofas, daybeds, and futons. Companies may specialize in a particular type of product (sofas, beds), style (contemporary, traditional), or price tier.
Dependence On Credit
Furniture is a large ticket purchase and many consumers depend on credit for funding.
Competition From Alternative Retailers
Furniture stores compete with a variety of alternative retailers, including department stores, retail arms of furniture manufacturers, mass merchandisers, warehouse clubs, home furnishings stores, and Internet and catalog retailers.
Industry size & Structure
The average furniture store operates out of a single location, employs 16 workers, and generates about $5.8 million annually.
- The furniture store industry consists of about 12,800 companies that employ about 212,000 workers and generate about $75 billion annually.
- Some companies are vertically-integrated - large retailers, such as Ethan Allen, may produce proprietary lines of furnishings.
- The industry is fragmented; the top 50 firms account for 51% of industry sales.
- Large companies include Ashley Furniture, Rooms to Go, Mattress Firm, and Haverty's.
Industry Forecast
Furniture Stores Industry Growth
Recent Developments
Sep 25, 2024 - Sales, Employment Down
- Sales for furniture stores declined 8.8% in June 2024 compared to a year ago and fell 2.1% from the previous month, according to the Census Bureau. Producer inflation for furniture stores fell 2.3% in July 2024 compared to a year ago, according to producer price data released by the US Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS). Employment at furniture stores fell year to date through July 2024 year over year and remains below pre-pandemic levels. Average wages for nonsupervisory employees in the industry were up 6.5% in July 2024 compared to a year ago, reaching $27.28, per the BLS.
- Consumer confidence levels increased in August 2024, according to data from The Conference Board. The Conference Board’s consumer confidence index was 103.3 in August 2024 from 101.9 in July 2024. Dana Peterson, chief economist at The Conference Board, noted that confidence was the highest among those over age 35 and those in the income category of over $100,000. Plans for large appliances and smart phone purchases rose on a six-month average basis. Plans to buy a home dropped to a 12-year low while plans for car purchases improved on a six-month average basis.
- A $4 billion acquisition by mattress manufacturer Tempur Sealy of retailer Mattress Firm has been blocked by the Federal Trade Commission, due to competition and pricing concerns, according to the Wall Street Journal. In July, the FTC issued an administrative complaint and authorized a lawsuit in federal court to stop the deal. According to the FTC, “The proposed vertical acquisition would merge Tempur Sealy’s manufacturing and supply operations with Mattress Firm’s vast retail footprint, giving the combined company enormous power at multiple parts of the mattress supply chain.” Tempur Sealy expressed confidence in the deal and noted that Mattress Firm holds only a small percentage of US storefronts selling bedding products. In addition, the company said in a statement that it is open to divesting stores to complete the deal if necessary. Tempur Sealy expects it could still complete the deal by the end of the year or early 2025 if it pursues a successful litigation process, per the report. A hearing on the matter has been scheduled by the FTC for December 4, 2024, according to Furniture Today.
- The National Federation of Independent Business (NFIB) monthly jobs report shows that unfilled job openings grew in August 2024, with a seasonally adjusted 40% of small business owners reporting jobs they could not fill. The reading is up two points from July 2024. A seasonally adjusted net 13% of small business owners plan to create new jobs over the next three months, down two points from July. About 21% of owners reported labor quality as the most important problem facing the business. According to NFIB Chief Economist Bill Dunkelberg, “Job openings on Main Street remain historically high as small business owners continue to lament the lack of qualified applicants for their open positions. Owners have grown understandably frustrated as attempts to fill their workforce repeatedly stall and cost pressures continue to rise.”
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