The consumer: We'd better treat her right
Ray Allegrezza, Editor in Chief -- Furniture Today, April 4, 2004
With the market just around the corner, I know manufacturers are frantically focused on putting the finishing touches on introductions they hope will wow retailers. I'd also bet that retailers are equally focused on finding new items at market that can help them fatten the bottom line.
Nothing wrong here. Focusing on sell-through and profitability is a good thing. Unless, of course, we've overlooked why exhibitors and retailers really come to market. Which, in my opinion, is to buy and sell furniture the consumer wants.
And speaking of the consumer, we had better treat her right. Yes, her. I realize that we've long known the female consumer makes the vast majority of home furnishing purchases. But I'm here to tell you that this lady is smarter, sharper, better informed and better armed than at any other time in history.
I've been doing some research on the growing clout the female consumer has in this country. The numbers are compelling. For example, women not only rock the cradle, they control this country's purse strings as well.
At last year's Furniture/Today Leadership Conference, our keynote speaker, Dr. Roger Blackwell, underscored that by sharing a long laundry list of consumables that women buy in greater amounts than men. Some were predictable, but others, such as automobile tires, were a bit more of a surprise.
Since then, I've learned that some 90% of American women describe themselves as the primary shopper for their household. As such, these women either purchase or significantly influence the purchase of about 80% of all the consumer goods they use.
A few other factoids: Last year, for the first time, more women than men bought those high-priced Hummers. Similarly, for the first time, she outspent her male counterpart on consumer electronics. (There goes the urban myth that the woman lets the man pick out the big, ugly wide-screen TV and he gives her the nod to pick out the corresponding furniture.)
Earlier, when I said she controls the purse strings, I wasn't kidding. As a result of more women working outside the home, female consumers collectively are earning well over $1 trillion, and close to 70% of them say they contribute more than half of their family's income.
My list could go on and on. The thing to focus on here is that other, larger industries are spending significant amounts of time, money and effort to woo the female consumer.
The strategy is simple: Catch her eye, appeal to her heart and capture her wallet. They may have a leg up. She's told us for years that buying furniture often is an uphill climb.
We often hear the question about what do women want. I may not have the complete answer. But I think part of the answer is that when they speak, they want us to listen.
Opinion columns are available online atwww.furnituretoday.com .
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