ADADMeanwhile, the furniture business is booming, driven by big jumps in work-from-home arrangements and home sales, making it an unexpected bright spot in the otherwise flagging retail sector. Monthly sales in the sector have soared 181 percent since April, while overall retail sales have grown 34 percent. AD***Many furniture shops say pandemic sales have followed an unpredictable but clear pattern: Revenue dropped precipitously in March and April when much of the country went into shutdowns. AD“It’s been such an extreme roller coaster,” said Bruce Champeau, president and chief operating officer of Minneapolis-based furniture chain Room & Board. “We went from being closed to having record sales months, one after another.”ADAnnual sales are up 30 percent from a year ago, to nearly $500 million, he said, adding that it expects to break $600 million this year.

Source: Washington Post March 08, 2021 18:26 UTC