There are too many items in a manufacturer's line to show them all, that's why. This is not an industry exactly flush with cash and margins are thin for everyone, dealers/manufacturers alike. Who can afford to floor all that and pay for that kind of building space, property taxes, payroll dollars, etc? It cost a LOT of money to do something like that.

There has not been a lot of money in the furniture business for quite some time, so you'll find technology upgrades are few and far between. Manufacturers don't have the cash reserves to buy tracking systems/databases to see which dealer has what. What will eventually happen is to have web-based systems that will allow customers to select a frame, then with a few clicks of the mouse they can see what a particular cover will look like on that frame. The technology for that is already there and as a dealer I ask every maker to implement that feature, but everyone says they would like to do it but cannot afford to. Some even can't afford new print catalogs or still give us black and while sale materials.

As for dealers, call around before you head out in the car. I'm a big fan of Hancock and Moore, so I have (33) of their pieces on my floor right now in my little store, however stores 10x my size in the Washington DC market may only show half a dozen H&M pieces. Size of the store is no indicator of what they might floor. H&M has 1,522 frames in their main price book, and maybe another 100 that are new market intros. Even my paltry 33 floor models are but a fraction of their entire line! Who can possibly carry it all from even one maker?

In truth, big stores will tend to floor whatever they can get a deal on. They're more interested in turnover of inventory vs. giving the customer a number of choices.

Its just as frustrating for the dealer as it is the customer, I can assure you. That's why if you do order something sight unseen, and just absolutely hate it when it arrives, most better stores will work with you in some manner so you are not forced to take it.

Good luck!
Duane Collie

Duane,

How much would it cost per year for H&M or Leathercraft to rent/heat/staff a large warehouse, in semi-rural western NJ for example, that would carry a good percentage of H&M's line (maybe not all 1522 frames but a good cross selection)?

I realize it would be many thousands of dollars, but it might be worth it in increased sales throughout that region by people that can actually see, feel and sit in the products that H&M wants to sell.

Your store is the exception in its breadth of H&M items. Each of the NJ stores I have visited (including the ones identified by H&M as their bigger dealers) display less than 5, and as I mentioned Leathercraft is virtually invisible.

Crouch,

I can talk to Jack Glasheen and Jimmy Moore to see if they will partner up with you to invest in that (grin)! In all seriousness, the return on investment would be poor especially if there were no sales done in the building. A suitable building to house even half the H&M frames in a commercial area would cost on the order of $ 100K per month to run. I would seriously doubt it would generate an increase in sales overall that would cover the cost of operation. Plus, it would have to be staffed with knowledgeable personnel to have any impact at all - and those folks are not easy to find. H&M would then say, "If we're paying for the building, all the inventory, and staffing it, why do we need dealers?" And indeed, many operations have tried to have both manufacturing and operate the retail store with the end result they usually do neither particularly well.

These showrooms DO exist on a trade level. Of course there is the Furniture Market in High Point where they install about 250 frames for 10 days, twice a year. These showrooms are then sold off at a discount in their entirety after each market and resupplied before the next one. Then there are the Designer Showrooms, where certain product is showcased though hardly the entire line.

What you propose is really a massive retail store, and I would be terrified to attempt something like that as a long-term businessman. Virtually EVERY furniture store than has tried large expansion has failed (or are failing, look at Boyles for example). I think it would be a novel concept, but the cost to develop it would most likely not yield the sales, especially in today's internet marketplace when customer loyalty is questionable at best. Guess wrong on the anticipated increase in sales and you're bankrupt in short order.

I have only 5,000 s.f. in my store, but have (33) Hancock and Moore pieces, (5) Leathercraft, (4) Bradington-Young as of today. Of course this makes the L/C and B/Y reps complain about the lack of floor space, but the truth of the matter is I do 10x the sales in H&M than the other brands and they have more aggressive marketing promotions / product mix / samples, so they get the floor space.

What you are going to see in reality is LESS product floored in more stores than in years past. The reason for that is not only the cost of the inventory (there is no "floor planning" in the furniture industry as there is in the automotive field), but the very real fact that the majority of customers come into their brick and mortar store, spend hours in there gathering information, then buy from the lowest seller on the internet. Even if they asked to price match the low guy to get the sale, the margin is destroyed. No margin means no profitability, and thats why stores are closing up left and right. There is no incentive for ANY retailer to bulk up on stock when customers are using them as an informational showroom and buying elsewhere.

-Duane...

I can say that I have a retail store of about 3000 sq ft. and we show many different lines on our floor, but 98% of our customers purchase from us without "patting the bunny" as we say. The reason for this in our case is our customers are buying us..more than the sofa. What I mean by this is our customers come to us for guidance in the industry, they recognize and respect that we know what we are talking about when it comes to providing them with the appropriate item for them, and they trust that we will stand behind our product and that it is quality. The higher the quality the less important it is to "sit in it". It's the mediocre quality of the catalog companies that lead you to feel the necessity to sit in everything.
We have had customers like yourself that are riddled with fear from bad experiences, or from horror stories of others and have the misconception that designers are "too expensive".
I suggest you find a designer oriented showroom in your area, keep an open mind and see what can happen. You may become so pleased to find a trustworthy source for your home (especially if they really get to know your likes and dislikes) you may never open another furniture catalog again!!

Bravo nottootoo, what you say is so true. A good store that cares about their customers is always the best choice.

Duane Collie

Wouldn't it make sense for them to open up large warehouses in certain areas (Southern California, San Francisco area, Massachusetts, NY/NJ, etc.) just to display their entire product line?

Yes it seems like it would make sense. But, its been tried, and it just doesn't work. That's why you don't see it.

The other odd thing is that even when you call the sales reps for these companies directly, they can't tell you what store in your area displays a particular item or even which stores have a large amount of their stuff on display. Leathercraft has no idea whatsoever.

Most reps don't keep track of what's on the floor at various stores. For a better end line I think that's really lax, but that's just the way it is.

" The higher the quality the less important it is to "sit in it". It's the mediocre quality of the catalog companies that lead you to feel the necessity to sit in everything. "

Sorry nottootoo but I have to disagree with you here. Many folks like me would never buy an upholstered piece without sitting in it first. I sat on at least a hundred differnt sofas recently from brands like Leathercraft H&M B-Y Legacy Stickley and all had some sofas that were not comfortable for one reason or other. The quality was there especially in the H&M lines but a 4k sofa i wouldn't sit on would be a bad choice for me.
I really wanted to use this opportunity to let all our Shop local/Buy internet folks know if they continue to do so ther won't be many Shop local places left.

Cheers
Larry

Stores and Suppliers are going under at a rate I've never imagined. Its amazing, and I've never seen anything like it. Its a meltdown right now, and there won't be many left standing. I have never seen suppliers so hungry for sales before, and at the same time the pressure from customers to beat down prices is unrelenting.

I do both local and long distance sales, and my numbers are actually up from the prior year. Perhaps thats because I'm still solvent and the locals are running out of choices?

Customers want top-flight service, but demand fire-sale prices. Its fairly typical to do a lot of work for a customer on an order over several hours and then when they finally decide, they go in search of the cheapest price they can possibly find on the item and call back to say "you have to match this price". That causes the dealer a lot of heartache, because on one hand you have a lot of time invested into this customer and don't want the sale to leave, but on the other hand you have to make margin or you WILL NOT be able to sustain your business.

I do think its not practical to expect the best in service and the lowest price at the same time. Most customers take four to six hours to pick out a leather sofa, for example....and require a hour or two of service after the sale. The internet seller who merely writes an order because some other dealer has done all the work has maybe 15 minutes invested into it, then doesn't want to deal with any problems after delivery because his margins are too thin...he's onto the next 15 minute order. How many times do we read about it here on the Forum about folks ordering long distance and can't get anyone to help them with their problems afterwards?

The great thing though, is you pays your money and you takes your choice, and customers DO have choices they can make. I think its awful however, that the news media has everyone so terrified with unrelenting news of impending economic doom that people are afraid to buy right now. That makes a slow period worse, and their gloom and doom predictions come true.

Duane Collie

I guess I have a conscience. I'm not going to go into a store and have someone spend hours on end just to then shop for the lowest bidder. I will walk into a store to look at merchandise and order elsewhere if I feel the stores prices are excessively high but i won't waste alot of their time.
The largest showroom in my area discounts about 25% at best so I haven't bought alot from them. A couple of the local store are close enough to Boyle's and I don't mind paying the litte extra for the service these store provide. In fact the B-Y sofa and recliner I recently purchased was cheaper locally than Boyle's and I did not ask them to reduce their price.

Larry

Everyone wants the best service, best price, and best quality. In reality you can get two of the three, but not all three.

"Everyone wants the best service, best price, and best quality. In reality you can get two of the three, but not all three."

Put these together and you've got value. Which is what you really should be looking for. I don't have a problem paying $600.00 for a $600.00 sofa(although I don't actually want a $600.00 sofa) but i have a problem paying $1000.00 for a $600.00 sofa , table, dog whatever.
You get what you pay for... if your lucky.

Larry