Closing furniture stores leave opportunities for growth in ‘tepid' market

So is it a good time to sell furniture in Atlanta? Or not?

"It's decent," said Jeffrey Seaman, president and CEO of Rooms To Go. "The furniture market is OK, it's not great. Atlanta is one of the better markets for Rooms To Go right now."

The company is due to open a 40,000 square foot showroom in October in the Perimeter Mall area where for 10 years it has been looking for a site.  Seaman said it is opening new stores opportunistically, as it sees available real estate. He said, though, that he expects to close some other locations as new store sales cannibalize those that are already in the market.

While Seaman said he is seeing some pent-up demand for furniture because people put off major purchases during the recession, he has also seen that demand come too late for several furniture retailers.

Beverly Hall closed its Buckhead store a year ago, though it still has locations in Roswell and South Carolina. Arte Forma shut down its store on Dawson Boulevard's furniture row. The Atlanta Decorative Arts Center has seen at least one furniture retailer go out of business. Z Gallerie closed its store at Perimeter Mall following a reorganization.

Rupal Mamtani, owner of Global Living in Buckhead, said she is closing that store less than two years after it opened.

"It's very hard to sell enough to pay the bills," she said. "People would keep coming in to see us, but they wouldn't open their purse strings. More and more, they were waiting for a sale."

Since she announced the store was closing and began to discount the merchandise three months ago, Mamtani said she has sold more than she did in the previous eight months. She doesn't expect to see business pick up for furniture retailers for another two years.

Some sellers, though, are optimistic. Jay Howard, CEO of I. O. Metro, opened three Atlanta-area stores this week in The Avenues projects, and is looking for a fourth location, in Buckhead, for the spring. The Arkansas company has 21 stores and this was its first foray into Georgia.

Howard said he was able to expand into Atlanta because the company, which offers modern eclectic furniture for less than high-end retailers, saw a void for its products in this market. Lower real estate prices meant a lower cost of entry.

"It's no secret that commercial real estate opportunities are better than they have been in decades," Howard said. "It really gave us the confidence to move forward."

Howard is seeing a lot of trade-down in the furniture market, he said, as customers looking to update their homes find high-quality products for less than they were willing to pay in the past.

CB2, the Crate and Barrel concept that opened in Atlanta last month, is performing well, spokeswoman Vicki Lang said. The Dump is new to the market. Jimmy Stanton, owner of Stanton Home Furnishings, a year ago moved to a 7,o00-square-foot space, nearly tripling his footprint as he moved from Edgewood to the West Midtown Design District.

While Stanton said he, too, is seeing more stores closing than expanding, he said he has seen business boom as his showroom grew.

Seaman, at Rooms To Go, said failing furniture stores provide opportunities for those that are still hanging on as they leave vacant space in good locations.

"Tepid is the new good," he said. "When we find these gems of locations, we try to do it."