Fact sheet on the damaged consumer purchasing experience

Furniture sales trends

Over the last decade, overall furnishings sales rose from $91.54 billion in 2012 to $120.34 billion in 2019 to the record high of $140.59 billion in 2021, according to a U.S. Census Bureau survey of retail.

The only decline came during the first pandemic year, 2020, to $113.03 billion, before the industry rebounded to its record high.

These sales figures from the Annual Retail Trade Survey (ARTS) provide insight into the decade’s rise in consumer confidence and purchasing power and drop in interest rates, which fueled real estate activity, particularly in 2020 and 2021.

As people moved into new homes or renovated their existing spaces, demand for furniture and home furnishings increased, as it typically does.

With higher sales, satisfaction with furniture-related purchases and the buying process has plummeted. ConsumerAffairs looked at consumer reviews, star ratings and online comments about 383 different brands and found widespread dissatisfaction, particularly but not exclusively related to online buying.

Two online-only sellers, Wayfair and Overstock, were among the companies with the highest percentage of bad reviews, the ConsumerAffairs analysis found.

Customers also had complaints about other large sellers: IKEA, Hon, Pottery Barn, West Elm, Ashley, Sharp Furniture Co. and Rooms To Go.

After online purchasing accelerated during the pandemic, 43% of Americans reported shopping for furnishings online, with 25% opting for an e-commerce platform and 18% purchasing furniture directly on the brand's website, according to a March 2022 survey by Statista.

Consumer sentiment over the years

In an analysis of a decade of consumer star ratings for the best-known sellers, negative consumer sentiment has increased precipitously. The six companies we looked at are:

• Ashley Furniture, the top retailer in the country, according to Furniture Today’s annual report on the top 100 furniture stores
• West Elm and Pottery Barn, subsidiaries of Williams-Sonoma
• Ikea
• Wayfair 
• Overstock

Among the most recent star ratings, these six furniture sellers earned a poor-to-positive-ratings ratio of about 10-to-1, with 1-3 stars deemed poor and 4-5 stars positive.

Furniture complaint trends

From 76,119 total furnishing-related comments our team found posted on social media and product review websites since 2011, a subset of detailed negative comments were analyzed. They turned up five main categories of complaints, in order of frequency:

1. Customer service issues
2. Shipping delays
3. Insufficient refund, replacement, and warranty policies
4. Lost/damaged items
5. Poor quality/defective products

Domestic furniture manufacturing vs. import

Our research sampled five furniture retailers that market their products as “Made in USA” and found that they generally earned a higher percentage of positive consumer star ratings.

Although these companies stressing domestic manufacturing also experienced a decline in sentiment during Covid, they were less likely to generate complaints about shipping delays and had far fewer dissatisfied consumers.

Online furniture search trends

Over the past 12 months, Americans when searching by name for furniture retailers have most often looked for:

1. IKEA
2. Big Lots
3. Pottery Barn
4. Ashley
5. Rooms To Go

IKEA held the top spot nationally, except during the run-up to Thanksgiving, Nov. 20 to Nov. 26, when Big Lots unseated the Swedish giant.

A state-by-state look, however, reveals a regionally divided furniture market.

Big Lots is the surprise because it sells a lot more than furnishings, like Target and Walmart. But Americans know enough about its furniture offerings to ask for information about them, especially in the South (with a heavy concentration in West Virginia) and Vermont.

Ashley has a foothold across Montana, North Dakota and South Dakota.

Meanwhile, Ikea is the leader across the rest of the nation, including most of the West Coast and Northeast as well as in Texas, the Plains states and Florida. Its dominance is highest in Minnesota, Colorado and Washington.

Top 9 retailers

These nine furniture sellers are the most recognizable to consumers, and have generally earned poor recent reviews. How poor? We looked at the star ratings attached to reviews left on the ConsumerAffairs website over the recent 12-month period from October 2021 to September 2022. All nine averaged 1- to 1.5 stars.

Wayfair

U.S. sales: $13.7 billion

Wayfair.com was founded in Boston in 2002 by two longtime friends and billionaires, Niraj Shah and Steve Conine. While Wayfair's business started as online e-commerce in the United States, it expanded to international markets in 2008.

Average stars given on consumer reviews of Wayfair published on ConsumerAffairs in 12-month period: 1.22

Ashley

U.S. sales: $6.34 billion

Owned by father and son team, Ron and Todd R. Wanek, the company manufactures and distributes home furnishings throughout the world. It opened its first store in 1997 and now has over 1,075 licensed and company-owned stores in 64 countries. Ashley offers an e-commerce program for its furniture stores. There are both corporate stores and independently owned stores licensed to sell furniture.

Average stars given on consumer reviews of Ashley published on ConsumerAffairs in 12 month period: 1.22

Ikea

U.S. sales: $3.97 billion

The Swedish giant known for popularizing build-your-own minimalist modern furniture, Ikea (through its 12 franchisees) operates 389 stores in 32 countries, including 52 in the U.S. In 2021, Ikea U.S. increased its e-commerce business by nearly 30%, logging more than 581 million online visits, according to Furniture Today.

Average stars given on consumer reviews of Ikea published on ConsumerAffairs in 12 month period: 1.18

West Elm

U.S. Sales: $2.23 billion

Owned by Williams-Sonoma, West Elm employs design decisions to make a positive impact on the environment, communities and customers. Today, 60% of its product sales contribute to at least one of its sustainability initiatives. Launched in 2002, nearly all products are designed in-house and are exclusive to the brand, which features a modern urban style.

Average stars given on consumer reviews of West Elm published on ConsumerAffairs in 12 month period: 1.19

Pottery Barn

U.S. Sales: $3.12 billion

An upscale subsidiary of Williams-Sonoma, Pottery Barn was founded in 1949 in Manhattan by brothers Morris and Paul Secon. It was acquired by William-Sonoma in 1986 and offers contemporary and rustic furniture styles. It features exclusive products, many of which are designed in-house and made in the U.S.

Average stars given on consumer reviews of Pottery Barn published on ConsumerAffairs in 12 month period: 1.21

Overstock.com

U.S. Sales: $2.7 billion

Overstock.com was founded in 1999 by Utah businessman Patrick Byrne. Initially, the online site sold returned and surplus merchandise from other online businesses for a fraction of the original price. According to the company’s website, it was recognized in 2003 as Utah’s fastest-growing company. Overstock.com grew and now sells furniture, home decor and other new and closeout items.

Average stars given on consumer reviews of Overstock published on ConsumerAffairs in 12 month period: 1.44

Big Lots

U.S. Sales: $1.84 billion

Big Lots is a publicly held discount retailer operating nearly 1,500 stores in 48 states. It offers value-priced merchandise from traditional and closeout channels, including furniture from recognized brand-name manufacturers or sold under its own brand. Big Lots can trace its beginnings to Columbus, OH in 1967 when Sol Shenk began the first of several precursor businesses making crazy closeout deals. Those early stores evolved into Big Lots.

Average stars given on consumer reviews of Big Lots published on ConsumerAffairs in 12 month period: 1.36 

Rooms To Go

U.S. Sales: $2.7 billion

Rooms To Go is an American furniture store chain founded in 1991 by father and son Jeffrey and Morty Seaman. They opened the first Rooms To Go in Orlando, Florida and now have more than 200 stores in 11 states. It primarily offers American-made furniture, though some pieces are imported from overseas.

Average stars given on consumer reviews of Rooms to Go published on ConsumerAffairs in 12 month period: 1.46

La-Z-Boy

U.S. Sales: $1.63 billion

La-Z-Boy is headquartered in Monroe, Michigan, and was founded in 1927 by two cousins who created the first folding porch recliner. The next year they sold an upholstered version for indoor use. The company has 524 in-store galleries and also sells furniture online.

Average stars given on consumer reviews of La-Z-Boy published on ConsumerAffairs in 12 month period: 1.4

All sales totals are from Furniture Today or annualreports.com except when noted.

References

1. trends.google.com (2024). Google Trends. Evaluated January 08, 2024 Link Here
2. Top 100 U.S. Furniture Stores 2022.Evaluated January 08, 2024. Link Here