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UK Furniture & Flooring Sector Report summary

April 2022

Period covered: Period covered: 27 February – 02 April 2022

Note: This report summary is one or two months behind the current month as standard reporting practice. The content is indicative only and incomplete with certain data undisclosed. Become a member to access this data or take out a free 30 day membership trial now.

Furniture & Flooring sales rose by 00% year-on-year in March against 00% a year ago, according to the Retail Economics Retail Sales Index.

Despite furniture performance growing for the third consecutive month, this month’s reading highlights a slowdown in growth. This is partly because this same period last year, Furniture sales began to pick up again as lockdown restrictions gradually eased.

But also, as inflationary pressures intensify and economy uncertainty rises, many consumers are starting to think twice before making major purchases such as Furniture.

Retail sales growth largely reflects higher prices

Annual retail sales comparisons are distorted against the third national lockdown last year, while two-year comparisons are now impacted by the rapid emergence of the UK’s Covid-19 outbreak in 2020.

Moving to a three-year comparison (Yo3Y) helps provide a better underlying picture of retail sales through comparisons to the pre-pandemic level. Using this Yo3Y pre-pandemic measure, Furniture & Flooring sales were down 00% in March.

Total retail sales rose by 00% YoY in March, but with inflation reaching 00% over the month, this growth largely reflects rising prices rather than increased volumes.

With inflation set to accelerate further over the course of 2022, the gap between value and volume growth is expected to widen further in the months ahead.

Consumer price inflation for the Furniture & Flooring category was 00% in March, according to the ONS.

Uncertain macro environment

  • Uncertainty around the Ukraine conflict and rising pressure on commodities had a dire effect on consumer confidence as GfK’s confidence index fell to near historic lows of 00 in April.
  • All the measures of confidence dropped considerably with forward looking conditions on Personal finances and General economic situations falling by 8 and 6 points respectively. Similarly, the Major purchases index fell 00 points from March, to 00 in April.
  • Household budget is increasingly coming under pressure with the CPI at a 30-year high in February (00%), further rising to 00% in March. The Bank of England warned that inflation could hit as high as 10% in Autumn when the….
  • As a result of the continuous increase in cost of living, the average households saw a 00% (00) decline in discretionary income in March on last year (Retail Economics).
  • With both inflation and interest rates rising, coupled with low economic growth and declining incomes, consumers are becoming extremely cautious on their spending. More than 00 (00%) of consumers indicated they would spend less on non-essential items over the next quarter, rising from 00% in January (Retail Economics).

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Now, thinking about your spending on non-essential items over the next three months, which statement best describes your intentions:

Source: Retail Economics

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UK Furniture & Flooring Sector Report: March 2024

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  • Market Share - top 10 Furniture and Flooring retailers
  • Market Size estimates (£m)
  • Furniture and Flooring Sales Growth by category
  • Total Spending by category (£m)
  • Online Furniture and Flooring Sales (y-o-y)
  • Forecasts for 2021 - 2025
  • Footfall by channel and region
  • Regional Weather data and more…