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Buying gap data reveal big bedding opportunities

David Perry, Executive Editor -- Furniture Today, March 18, 2007

Our report on the buying gap in home furnishings offers good and bad news for the bedding industry. The report, published in the Feb. 26 issue, shows that bedding has the third-highest buy-shop ratio, trailing only infant cribs and glider rockers. That ratio is the percentage of buying households compared with the percentage of shopping households. For bedding, the percentage is 71%.

That means that 71% of the households shopping for bedding last year bought bedding.

That's the good news. Bedding is in an elite category, easily outdistancing such furniture staples as reclining chairs (64%), desks (62%), stationary sofas (61%) and motion sofas (57%). So pat yourself on the back.

But looked at another way, there's tremendous lost opportunity. The fact is, 29% of the households who shopped for bedding didn't buy. That is almost one in three households. Where did we lose those consumers?

I asked Tom McLean, the veteran Kingsdown executive, why we are losing so many bedding sales. First, he said, many consumers are confused by the shopping experience. They see beds that have similar constructions and components and offer only slight differences. They also see beds that differ widely in price but feel the same. Too often, he said, "the industry is selling rectangles."

That confusion comes at a steep price: $4.8 billion. That's how much the bedding category lost last year from consumers who shopped but didn't buy. Remember, they were looking at our products. Sales were waiting to be made, and almost one out of three households said: "No thanks, we won't buy bedding."

Of course, we can't expect to sell every household that shops for bedding. But I do think we should be closing a higher percentage of those shoppers. They are in the market, so shame on us for not closing the sale. What are those consumers going to do? Hang on to a lousy bed? We must have really ticked them off.

This is why we have to work harder as an industry to make the shopping experience pleasant. Even incremental improvements would be helpful. It's not easy to get shoppers into our stores. Once they are there we should delight them with the experience.

McLean sees a parallel between the buy-shop ratio and another figure he likes to cite: 47% of consumers would like to own a bed better than the one they have. That means almost half are unhappy with their beds, but it also means the industry has a major opportunity.

Let's not cry over our lost sales, but let's all resolve to close a higher percentage of those bedding shoppers.

Contact David Perry at dperry@reedbusiness.com

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Buying gap data revealbig bedding opportunities

Mar 20, 2007

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