Share this on

Statistics suggest market for consignment furniture

Jerry Epperson -- Furniture Today, October 14, 2011

Jerry Epperson An insider’s viewYes, I love statistics, especially when they trigger a related thought or theory.
     I just read a brief note about auto sales and learned that according to J.D. Power and his associates, 73% of all new cars are purchased by drivers 45 or older. Think about that. This is units, not dollars, so 73% of the vehicles that drive off the lot are bought by mature consumers.
     Knowing statistics like I do, this implies that 27% of new vehicles are bought by young folks, mostly 18 to 44, yet to look at most car and truck ads, the drivers are young, handsome/pretty, energetic people. So what do all those young people buy?
     The answer is obvious. They buy used vehicles (or ride the bus, bike, taxi, walk or pester their friends).
     At least with vehicles they have the option to buy used.
     The auto industry, only 90 years ago, discovered that without an efficient, practical way to get value out of a consumer's used car, people would delay buying a new one until the first one was no longer repairable. Yes, some consumers bought the latest and greatest buggies but most kept the old one as long as they could.
     Based on my limited knowledge from watching old westerns, the same was true with horses, so we had horse traders.
     There is a lesson in here somewhere for us. Yes, some furniture is disposable but most has a usable life beyond its first use. But how do you capture that value? My old furniture has gone to my sister-in-law or my kids - for free - and lasted for years.
     I was pleased to get a note from Doug Wolf of Wolf's Furniture, based in Bellwood, Pa., that Wolf's is aggressively promoting a new consignment concept and has opened its first store. I hope to go see it soon.
     Over the last 40 years, I have seen perhaps a dozen consignment concepts. One retailer even published a book on how to do it.
     I once visited Terri's Consign and Design, based in Scottsdale, Ariz., and it had an elaborate system to value used furniture and operated several stores in the Southwest. To keep the floor mix correct and the looks fresh, she mixed in some new furnishings with her used or consigned merchandise.
     With a big new generation of people just starting households, this might be just the right time to teach them how to recognize the value of better furniture and how to "trade up" as their households grow.

Share this on

Also by Jerry Epperson

Featured Company

FurnitureCore.com

FurnitureCore.com is a dynamic web application aimed at the furniture industry. Retailers and manufacturers alike will find our deep reserve of tools to be exactly what their furniture business needs.www.furniturecore.com... more