Where consumers shop for bedroom
By Furniture Today Staff -- Furniture Today, August 1, 2004
High Point — High Point— U.S. households shop a wide variety of outlets when they're in the market for new bedroom furniture, but furniture stores can continue to capture the biggest share of the dollars spent.
Almost three-fourths of the approximately $12 billion spent on bedroom furniture last year was in furniture stores. In terms of total bedroom dollars spent in 2003, the channels stack up as follows:
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Furniture stores, $8.6 billion
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Department stores, $600 million
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Direct-to-consumer, $350 million
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Interior designers, $350 million
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Discount department stores, $250 million
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Warehouse membership clubs, $250 million
Furniture stores
When buying bedroom furniture in furniture stores, U.S. households spent a median of $1,185. That's lower than the median spent in either department stores or warehouse clubs, but far more households make their bedroom purchase in furniture stores than in the other channels.
Furniture stores are especially popular for bedroom buying among Southern and Midwestern households. But the channel is the least popular among households in the Northeast.
There are also differences in preferences for different types of furniture stores among consumers in different regions of the country. Traditional or conventional furniture stores, such as Rooms to Go, Havertys or various local furniture stores, are favored more in the South and Midwest. Lifestyle furniture stores, such as Pier 1, Ikea and Pottery Barn, are most popular with consumers in the West. And manufacturer's galleries, such as Ethan Allen and Bassett Furniture Direct, are favorite buying places in the Northeast and South.
Household incomes among furniture store bedroom buyers are spread fairly evenly across the income spectrum. But furniture stores are capturing a larger share of the higher-income bedroom-buying households. Almost three-fifths of bedroom-buying households with incomes of $75,000 or more purchased at a furniture store. Furniture stores captured about half of bedroom-buying households with incomes under $75,000.
Furniture store buyers also tended to spend more than their counterparts purchasing at other channels. Nearly three-fifths of furniture store buyers spent $1,000 or more on their total bedroom purchase, and nearly one-third spent $2,000 or more.
Minority households are less likely to purchase bedroom in a furniture store than White households: 54% of White households buying bedroom made their purchase at a furniture store, compared with only 44% of African-American households and 48% of Hispanic households. Traditional furniture stores seem to be equally popular among the three groups, while lifestyle furniture stores and manufacturer's galleries are more popular with African-Americans and Hispanics.
Other demographic characteristics of furniture store bedroom buyers include:
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27% are members of Generation X; 25% are Younger Baby Boomers; and 21% are Older Baby Boomers.
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67% are married; 15% have never been married; and 18% are either divorced, widowed or separated.
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78% own or are buying their home and 17% are renting.
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86% are white; 8% are African-American; 2% are Asian; and 4% are Hispanic.
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53% are parents with children living at home.
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58% bought bedroom furniture as part of a group or collection, while 42% mixed and matched pieces.
Department stores
Department stores, once thought as a dying channel, appear to be very much alive. The channel accounted for about 5% of the total dollars spent on bedroom in 2003, a total of about $600 million.
The channel is most popular among:
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Households living in the West and Northeast.
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African-Americans and Hispanics; 12% of all bedroom-buying African-Americans households chose department stores, as did 7% of Hispanic households.
Even though nearly three-fourths of department store bedroom buyers had incomes of less then $75,000, they spent a median of $1,800 on their bedroom purchase — significantly higher than the $1,185 median spent at furniture stores. Nearly two-fifths of bedroom buyers spent $2,000 or more at a department store, compared with 30% of furniture store buyers.
Contributing to the higher amounts spent in department stores is the prevalence of older consumers, who often have more disposable income, buying there. Almost two-fifths of department store buyers were 55 or older.
Direct-to-consumer
The direct-to-consumer channel — catalogs, the Internet and TV shopping — is one to watch. The channel accounted for approximately $350 million in 2003 for bedroom furniture. U.S. households buying in this channel spent a median of $675 on their purchase, with more than two-fifths spending $1,000 or more. The channel is most popular among households living in the South and West. It's also well-accepted by the high-income consumer. Half of buyers have household incomes of $75,000 or more.
| Amount spent, by channel | |||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Furniture stores | Dept. stores | Discount dept. stores | Warehouse membership clubs | Direct-to-consumer | |
| $1,185 | $1,800 | $315 | $1,850 | $675 | |
| % of households spending | |||||
| Under $300 | 10% | 11% | 48% | 12% | 22% |
| $300 – $599 | 19% | 11% | 19% | 6% | 22% |
| $600 – $999 | 14% | 15% | 8% | 6% | 14% |
| $1,000 – $1,499 | 15% | 7% | 10% | 13% | 14% |
| $1,500 – $1,999 | 12% | 19% | 5% | 13% | 7% |
| $2,000 – $2,999 | 12% | 15% | 6% | 25% | 7% |
| $3,000 or more | 18% | 22% | 4% | 25% | 14% |
| Source: Furniture/Today market research |
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| Distribution channels, by region | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| % of households | Northeast | Midwest | South | West |
| Furniture stores | 49% | 55% | 54% | 52% |
| Other | 28% | 24% | 24% | 22% |
| Discount department stores | 13% | 11% | 14% | 10% |
| Department stores | 5% | 3% | 2% | 7% |
| Direct-to-consumer | 4% | 3% | 5% | 5% |
| Warehouse membership clubs | 1% | 4% | 1% | 4% |
| Sears is included in department stores and closeout stores are included in discount department stores. "Other" includes interior designers, home improvement centers, used/pre-owned, gift and decorative accessory stores, designer show-rooms, military exchanges, variety stores, antique shops, custom-made, rental and fabric/craft stores, among others. |
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| Distribution channels, by race/ethnicity | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| % of households | White | African-American | Hispanic |
| Furniture stores | 54% | 44% | 48% |
| Other | 25% | 18% | 27% |
| Discount department stores | 12% | 16% | 11% |
| Department stores | 3% | 12% | 7% |
| Warehouse membership clubs | 2% | 6% | 4% |
| Direct-to-consumer | 4% | 4% | 3% |
| Sears is included in department stores and closeout stores are included in discount department stores. "Other" includes interior designers, home improvement centers, used/pre-owned, gift and decorative accessory stores, designer showrooms, military exchanges, variety stores, antique shops, custom-made, rental and fabric/craft stores, among others. For example, 48% of Hispanic households purchased at a furniture store. Source: Furniture/Today market research |
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