Independent stores doing just fine
Owner-operators continue to stay profitable
By Tom Edmonds -- Furniture Today, June 24, 2002
HIGH POINT — HIGH POINT — Looking back on 2001, one might be tempted to say that it was a tough year for furniture retailers. After all, the headlines in Furniture/Today were dominated by high-profile failures, and the economy was difficult at first and then worse after Sept. 11.
Some of this certainly trickled down to the mid-size retailers featured in our third annual Beyond the Top 100. Given the ragged state of the economy last year, many of the companies listed here said they were pleased to have matched or come close to their 2000 sales, and others were delighted to have posted small gains. And, sadly, another handful of companies, respected in their markets after many years of selling and serving, opted to close their doors.
And yet, after perusing this installment of Beyond the Top 100, one cannot help but be impressed by the resiliency of so many independent retailers. In this age of national chains and category killers, it's remarkable to see so many smaller companies doing just fine, thank you. As this list shows, the furniture industry seems to have $5-million-plus retail companies taking care of business in towns and cities across the country.
We've said it before, and we continue to take pride in the fact that furniture is the last bastion of the independent retailer. The reasons for that can be counted, like so many dollars — profit dollars that many national chains never realized.
Yes, there certainly are some national or near-national players out there doing a nice job with furniture — Ikea, Crate & Barrel, Ethan Allen, Rooms To Go, Havertys and others. These companies treat furniture as a style category and back it up with attention to operational details. Furniture retailing demands that attention. Apparently, family owner-operators can give furniture the TLC it requires to be profitable.
Analysts and experts say that independent retailers still have a foothold in furniture, like they don't in so many other retail categories, because there isn't enough money to be made. The returns are too meager, they say, and the costs are too high. Perhaps they are right. On occasion, some small retailers have been known to say the same thing.
And yet, this list shows that an efficiently managed furniture store with a strong marketing message can throw off enough money to keep a staff employed, pay the bills and support an owner's family in a comfortable lifestyle.
Some of the stores on this list are less than 100 years removed from an immigrant peddler's pushcart, while others are strong and growing in the first generation. Several of these companies say they intend to expand this year. They don't intend to conquer the world, although a few do have their eyes on the Top 100.
In writing about this group, it's difficult to generalize and say that they are all doing one thing or another. They are, after all, independent retailers.
