The High Point Furniture Market is in full swing this week. Organizers say the bi-annual event draws more than 85,000 people.
A new study by an industry consulting firm, Anderson Bauman Tourtellot Vos (ABTV) in Greensboro, coincides with this year's market. WFDD's Keri Brown spoke with the organization's Peter Tourtellot about the findings. He says North Carolina's furniture industry is recovering from years of economic losses, but it there are still hurdles ahead.
“The U.S. housing market, skilled worker shortages, transportation and labor costs, as well as global competition are factors that could impact the industry's future,” says Tourtellot.
He says the furniture industry's audience is also evolving.
“The furniture industry faces a consumer audience today that has multiple needs. Baby Boomers are downsizing from family homes to co-op arrangements. Millennials, straddled with college debt, are postponing ownership and choosing instead to rent small living spaces that require less furniture.”
Click here for the entire 2014 Furniture Industry Market Watch Report.
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