Loveseats take backseat in many markets
Accent chairs, other seating becoming more popular
By Gary Evans -- Furniture Today, March 9, 2009
In this story:
New types of options
A matter of geography
HIGH POINT — Once the mate to sofas in many households, the loveseat is not feeling the love it once did.
Loveseats haven't vanished from the scene by any means. The sofa, loveseat, chair combo, with optional ottoman, still is a staple at the lower price points, often merchandised as a package. Loveseats also are often marketed as a replacement for full-sized sofas. And they're in most every manufacturer's catalog — you just have to search to find them.
But for many middle to upper-end retailers, the loveseat is not nearly as visible these days — if it's seen at all.
“We always show a sofa and a pair of chairs — a matching chair and a contrasting chair,” said Heidi Jewell, upholstery buyer at Star Furniture in Houston. “For me, the loveseat is not terribly important. If we look at our chair business as compared to our loveseat business, we just sell a lot more chairs and accent pieces than we do loveseats.”
Star's lineup runs from Corinthian to Thomasville to Huntington House, which covers a wide range of price points.
“If you look at it and break it down, the more value-priced customer probably is going to buy a loveseat,” she said. “But I think the more sophisticated customer probably will not.”
At Nebraska Furniture Mart in Omaha, upholstery buyer Cathy Urbanik said that 30% of sofa sales are accompanied by a loveseat. But that's mostly on the promotional end, where sofas, loveseats and chairs are merchandised as a package.
When a sofa moves into a higher price range, add-on sales more often include chairs, chair-and-a-halfs, and recliners, Urbanik said.
“Years ago, we had this thought in our head (as consumers) that if you bought a sofa you bought a loveseat, where today there's so much out there to chose from that you can get anything you want,” she said.
Moreover, a chair and ottoman may be the same price as a loveseat so the sale of a second chair may lead to a bigger ticket sale, Urbanik said.
New types of options
Manufacturers are answering the call for new sofa companions.
Norwalk Custom Furniture has seen sales of 70-inch to 73-inch, condo-sized sofas overtake the 10-inch smaller loveseat, and is moving to offering sofa, condo sofa, chair and ottoman with most new groups.
“What is interesting is that we sell one-and-a-half condo sofas for every loveseat,” said Reyna Moore, director of marketing. “And we now sell two chairs for every love seat.” She said the trend began in 2001.
Not only are chairs leading to bigger ticket sales, Moore said, but margins on chairs are better than sofas and loveseats so the profit to the store usually is higher.
Stefanie Lucas, president and CEO of Rowe Fine Furniture, said the company, which includes Clayton Marcus and Robin Bruce, has “been watching as unit sales (of loveseats) have gone down.”
“We used to sell a lot of sofas, loveseats and chairs as a group,” she said. “The reason for it is the consumers' ability to customize their rooms to their own unique style. It used to be, 'I'll take this set' as it is, and now we're seeing a bigger increase in accent chairs.”
Consumers like accent chairs because they give them the ability to have a little more fun and to be more playful and dramatic with fabric, she said. Pieces also are easier to change because consumers don't have the long-term commitment they would with a larger purchase.
Lucas said that when consumers buy accent chairs, they generally are buying a higher grade of fabric and spending more overall.
“But what I'm hoping is that the retailer sees some repeat business,” she said. “It's a lot easier when you're feeling blue or want to freshen up your room to go in and buy a new accent chair.”
Lucas anticipates the category to be a strong growth area, particularly in today's economic climate. “People are more deliberately contemplating a large purchase,” she said. “But they're looking for those easy pleasures, things to cheer up their homes.”
A matter of geography
Ron Penney, who is responsible for export sales and marketing for Décor-Rest Furniture, said geography has an effect on whether loveseats sell or don't.
“It depends on the market area,” he said. “There's a paradigm shift in urban areas to upscale and more contemporary (looks). We're moving to a collection of chairs — one, two and three chairs — rather than sofa/loveseat. However, in the rural areas, it's still a little bit more old-fashioned because consumers have the room in the rural properties for a sofa/loveseat. It's still more traditional.”
Moreover, more and more consumers are opting for the “relative comfort of their own chair,” Penney said. “The sofa is a requisite for the room because the sofa is the focal point. But most people don't sit in the middle, they sit at either side and that seems to be the way people are going — especially the more interior design-conscious people.”
In addition, Penney sees sectionals as a growing trend.
At Nichols Furniture in Little Rock, Ark., President John Nichols said that the company has never been big on loveseats — partly because it's hard to justify a piece that's smaller than a sofa but not that much cheaper.
“If you're selling a $3,000 sofa, a $3,000 loveseat seems a little excessive,” he said, noting that several years ago the company spotted a trend in “little settee-type pieces” as add-on upholstery items.
“It allows you to have a lower-cost item that is still appropriate to its price if you're trying to lower the overall investment a notch and still have a quality piece,” he said.
 In this Rowe setting, an 88-inch sofa anchors the room, with armless chairs providing additional seating without crowding the space. |
 Norwalk combines the Blake sofa with the Antonio chair and Del Ray ottoman for flexible seating. |
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