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Furniture Leads All Categories For Shopping Levels Over Labor Day Weekend
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Labor Day weekend shopping was extremely strong, exceeding last year by 6.1%. With only 12% of families shopping for back-to-school clothing, apparel sales lagged other categories with only a 2% increase over a year ago. Furniture shopping topped all other categories with an 8.5% increase over a year ago. "Clearly Americans were shopping for their home with furniture being the strongest category and home accessories close behind with a 7.7% increase over last Labor Day" according to Britt Beemer, Chairman America’s Research Group. Beemer also noted, "this is the shot in the arm furniture retailers were looking for and consumers responded in a big way." "Many of my clients are reporting 20% and even 30% increases over last year, so this Labor Day weekend will go down as the best furniture Labor Day weekend in over a decade," said furniture guru Britt Beemer. The big question is whether these shopping levels can be sustained in September and going into October. "For right now, it looks like all systems are 'go' since even high end furniture shopping was up 4% this past weekend," Beemer said. There is a good chance these higher shopping levels signal an economic recover is clearly at hand since furniture historically is the last product category to rebound when a recovery is near. The good news is that Americans are buying furniture and getting ready to make their homes more beautiful and more comfortable for the holiday season. Return to News Index |