The Changing Face of Furniture Retailing

(AKA How To Shop The Right Places For Furniture)

Part 1 of 2 Articles

The objective of these articles is to ensure that the furniture customer is aware of the many resources for buying furniture and the advantages and disadvantages of various types.

In this first of two articles, an analysis of furniture retailers will be discussed. A specific review of Internet furniture retailers will also be provided.
 
Like most businesses, furniture retailing has undergone rapid change over the past decade. Careful consumers who desire to make the right decision on a furniture purchase should be aware of the wide range of potential sources.

Furniture was initially produced on a piece by piece basis by craftsmen who sold it direct to the consumer. Then the retailing of furniture moved into general merchandise stores that sold a wide range of products. The next step in the evolution of furniture retailing was the advent of the “Furniture Store” whose primary business was furniture. Some also sold appliances and electronics, a practice that still exists in less populated areas where large merchants like Best Buy and Circuit City do not dominate those categories.

Following these developments, the furniture “specialty stores” were next, stores that specialize in one product category such as mattresses or leather furniture or a particular style of furniture such as Scandinavian. The next step was the advent of the Internet furniture retailer.

Furniture is different from many other product categories such as electronics where a few major manufacturers and a few large volume retailers (Best Buy and Circuit City as the best examples) dominate the business. Furniture is much more segmented. There are hundreds of furniture manufacturers and thousands of furniture retailers. Add to that list the thousands of stores that are not primarily furniture retailers but also sell these products (i.e. Pier One, Pottery Barn, department stores, etc.). Add  further to the list the vast number of Internet furniture retailers, the fastest growing segment of the business. The point is that a huge array of furniture shopping options are available which is beneficial in many ways but can also be somewhat confusing. This article will provide information on the upside and downside of the various types of furniture resources.

The fastest growing segment of furniture retailing, the Internet retailer has many advantages as well as some disadvantages. Most Internet retailers have a lower overhead structure than typical retail stores. Their rents are low, they don’t have commissioned salespeople, they have lower staffing requirements, etc. This gives most Internet retailers a major pricing advantage over retail furniture stores. Consumers also like the idea that they don’t physically have to go from store to store to shop and that overly-aggressive and unknowledgeable salespeople are eliminated from the process.

Over the Internet an extensive selection of shopping options can be viewed quickly and easily from the comfort of your home. Generally speaking, Internet retailers offer a much larger selection of products because they don’t have to deal with the limitation of how much display space is available as the typical furniture retailer must.

On the flip side, the consumer must obviously be careful with who they deal with over the Internet. There are a number of questions that can be asked to confirm whether the Internet retailer is a viable and honest merchant. How long has the company been in business? Is there enough product information on the site to make a good decision? Is the site (and your data) protected by outside services such as “Hacker Safe” and “Verisign”? Does the Internet retailer charge additional money for shipping? Better Internet furniture retailers include shipping in their prices. Many on-line merchants also have price guarantees of various sorts that can be helpful.
 
Most importantly, consumers should make sure that the Internet retailer is a member of the Better Business Bureau (BBB) and that any complaints have been properly resolved. Every furniture retailer will have had some complaints. That’s just part of the business. The important issue is have they all been resolved satisfactorily. That’s where the BBB Online program can ensure that an Internet retailer operates a viable and trustworthy business.

On-line furniture retailers can best be located by searching for a specific product term through any major search engine. It is recommended that a number of sites be viewed not just the paid advertisers (at the top and sides of the search result pages) but also the sites that actually come up as a result of the search.

There are many advantages to buying furniture on the Internet and consumers should explore this option before making a final decision on their furniture purchase.

In Part Two of this series, an analysis of other resources for purchasing furniture will be provided.