Corridor furniture buyers taking more time

CEDAR RAPIDS - When consumers purchase furniture, it is typically not on a whim. This is particularly true in tough economic times.

But local furniture dealers noted that the purchasing trends they are seeing in Corridor furniture stores today reflect the overall improved economy.

'People are more conservative with their spending now than they were in 2008, but we've seen an increase in interior design consultation, custom window treatments and key pieces like sofas, area rugs or a great cocktail table,” said Emily Hughes, an interior designer with the Mansion in Iowa City.

Hughes's associate at the Mansion, Rhonda Staley, an IIDA professional interior designer who has worked in the industry for several decades, agreed.

'The current economy, especially the rising stock market, and the boom in new home sales in this current housing market, is reminiscent to me of the mid-1980s to the 2001 era, which is all extremely positive.”

The Mansion displays its medium- to high-end furnishings and accessories in the setting of an historic home.

'The idea is to let customers see furniture and accessories displayed to give them inspiration for their interiors,” Holmes said. 'We certainly do traditional interiors, but also a surprising amount of contemporary work.”

The move from more traditional style is another trend in furniture sales, Holmes noted.

'Transitional, painted pieces in bold colors and classic pieces with a rustic twist, like a gray or sandblasted finish, have been really popular,” she said.

'The clients' projects I have been working on for the past year are 75 percent contemporary or transitional, and 25 percent traditional,” Staley added.

One factor influencing sales is that consumers are taking more time with their purchases.

'People spend more time analyzing how they spend their money,” Holmes said. '...

Depending on their budget, many choose to buy one piece here and there instead of completing the whole room at once.”

In the door

Paul Phelan, chief operating officer at Phelan's Interiors in Cedar Rapids, said the store - which has been in business since 1938 - has started looking at new ways to get customers in the door.

'Women are our main customers, and we started looking at products that might bring in customers more often - jewelry, handbags and wine,” he said. 'That way when customers come shopping for these lower price-point items they come in and see what we are doing with the furniture in the store.”

Phelan said he has been pleased with the new approach, especially since it is such a shift from how the company has operated for decades.

'We used to focus on being a high-end furniture store,” he said. 'Post-9/11 we really saw a downward spiral of the high-end furniture market, so we made a conscious decision to shift to products that offer more value and are still really good quality at a more reasonable price.”

But their shift wasn't just in the styles and price points of furniture they carried, he noted.

'We had a shift in our mind-set,” Phelan said. 'We didn't want to be just a great place to come and look at furniture. We wanted to be a place where people could buy the pieces they needed in their homes.

'And the economy has shown us that was a good move. People want a product that is going to last but not pay out the nose for it.”

At Phelan's they also have made a more conscious effort to measure and evaluate their business, from tracking the number of consumers walking into the store to surveying customers and evaluating every sale.

Furniture retailers, of course, tend to be known for their sales promotions and enticing offers of zero interest. It's a culture fostered in the industry, said Phelan.

'When it hits our floor, it goes on sale,” said Phelan, noting they traditionally offer 30 percent retail prices. 'And at different times of the year our manufacturers allow us to do deeper discounts.”

At the Mansion, Hughes said, sales tend to be seasonal.

'We will also put an emphasis on furniture for entertaining and accessories as we head into the holiday season. But because we are stocking for many vendors, we offer discounts off of retail pricing every day,” she said.

While Hughes said her work to create design concepts for clients and help them pick out pieces that fit their homes is rewarding, the growing interest in design often can throw off client perspectives.

'It can be a challenge when people are watching HGTV and expecting everything to be as easy and inexpensive as they make it look on TV,” she said. 'It takes a lot of creativity, tedious paperwork and order follow up to create beautiful spaces.”