Today is March 10, 2026, and welcome to Furniture Industry News, the podcast that helps keep furniture professionals up to speed on the most important developments shaping our industry.

There's quite a bit happening right now across the furniture landscape.

Tariffs are back in the headlines again.

Sourcing strategies continue to evolve.

Some retailers are seeing traffic gains while others struggle.

And the broader retail environment is still adjusting to supply chain disruptions and and shifting consumer demand.

So today we'll walk through several key stories that could affect furniture retailers, manufacturers and suppliers as the year unfolds.

Let's start with an issue that has impacted just about everyone in the furniture business over the past several tariffs A recent ruling from the U.S. court of International Trade could result in major refunds for businesses that paid tariffs that have now been deemed illegal.

The tariffs in question were collected under the International Emergency Economic Powers act, and the court has determined that companies are owed refunds.

We're talking about a massive number of businesses here.

The ruling potentially affects roughly 300,000 companies across multiple industries, including furniture.

The estimated amount that could be refunded is around $130 billion, and when interest is added, that number could rise to about $175 billion.

For companies in the furniture industry, this ruling comes after years of confusion and disruption caused by shifting tariff policies.

Tariffs made it much harder for businesses to determine pricing, and in furniture, that process often begins far upstream in product development.

Companies spend months designing products to hit a certain value and price point for the consumer, and tariffs can throw that entire calculation off balance.

The court also made it clear that requiring every business to file its own lawsuit to recover those tariffs would create an enormous administrative problem.

Instead, the court is encouraging the creation of a streamlined refund process so companies can recover the money without thousands of individual legal cases clogging the system.

U.S. customs and Border Protection has indicated that its Automated Commercial Environment system will likely need about 45 days to add functionality needed to process the refunds.

Once that system is ready, the full process could still take several months.

The expected process would involve importers submitting records of shipments where those duties were paid.

The system would then recalculate what the duty should have been without the tariffs, verify the refund amount, and eventually issue electronic refunds through the US Treasury.

Of course, there is another layer to this story.

Many retailers and consumers also paid higher prices during the tariff period, since those costs were often passed through the supply chain.

If importers receive refunds, it raises the question of how those savings might be shared with retailers and ultimately, consumers.

That part of the conversation is still unfolding.

Now let's shift to manufacturing, where another development highlights the continuing pressures facing domestic furniture production.

Prepack Furniture has announced it will shut down its manufacturing facility in Whitset, N.C. laying off about 200 workers.

The layoffs are scheduled to take effect in early May.

Prepack is a Canadian supplier known for ready to assemble case goods, including bedroom storage pieces like dressers, nightstands and cabinets.

Those products are sold through major online and mass retailers such as Amazon, Wayfair and Walmart.

The company described the shutdown as part of an orderly wind down of operations, citing rising production costs and intensifying global competition.

According to the company, domestic manufacturing is becoming increasingly difficult to maintain when competing against lower cost imports, including those coming from China.

The Witset plant itself was a significant investment when it opened in 2021.

The facility spans roughly 260,000 square feet and represented about $27 million in investment.

The project also received around $2 million in incentives from the state of North Carolina.

This closure also reflects a longer term trend in the region.

North Carolina once had nearly 80,000 workers in furniture manufacturing around the turn of the century.

That number has fallen significantly with the industry employing about 28,000 workers in the state last year.

Now let's move over to retail performance, where department stores and big box retailers continue to face mixed results.

Kohl's recently reported its fourth quarter performance, and the company acknowledged that merchandising missteps played a role in the results, and net sales for the quarter came in at about $5 billion, down nearly 3% from the previous year.

Comparable sales were also down about 3%.

Executives said the company struggled with inventory depth and allocation during the holiday season.

In simple terms, the right products were not always in the right place.

In the home category, specifically, seasonal decor assortments were too narrow and lacked strong value messaging.

One executive summed it up with a bit of humor, saying the company learned not to go too deep on Santa Claus and snowmen.

Kohl's also admitted it missed opportunities during key promotional windows like Black Friday, Cyber Monday and the week after Christmas.

Interestingly, though, profitability improved.

Net income more than doubled for the quarter, reaching about $125 million.

Looking ahead to this year, Kohl's plans to sharpen pricing strategies, rebuild proprietary brands and add more depth in key categories while trimming redundant assortment when it comes to traffic trends, the picture across department stores is also mixed.

Data from location analytics firm Placer AI shows that most department store chains experienced declines in holiday season traffic.

However, two retailers stood out with gains regional department store chain Boscov's saw overall visits climb nearly 4% year over year, with per location traffic also increasing.

Bloomingdale's also posted strong traffic growth with overall visits rising about 3.8%.

Meanwhile, several mid tier department store chains struggled.

Kohl's saw overall visits decline 5%, while JCPenney and Macy's also experienced traffic declines.

Analysts say one of the challenges for many traditional department stores is the lack of a clearly defined value proposition or distinctive in store experience.

Now let's talk about promotions because retailers are getting increasingly creative when it comes to attracting customers.

One common theme emerging across the industry is the importance of consistency in messaging.

Marketing experts say there is no single formula that works everywhere.

Instead, retailers are finding success by leaning into what resonates locally.

For example, Rife's Furniture in Oregon has focused heavily on highlighting American made and Oregon made products in its advertising.

Rather than talking about tariffs directly, the retailer emphasizes the local connection.

According to the company, customers respond strongly to the idea that a product was made in their own state.

Other retailers are using themed events to create excitement.

In Rapid City, South Dakota, a store called 5th and Main by Freed's has gained attention with playful advertising campaigns tied to holidays and local events.

Some ads feature the store owners themselves in humorous roles, including construction themed promotions and patriotic themed campaigns.

Meanwhile, in Syracuse, New York, Dunk and Bright runs a promotion that has become something of a local tradition.

It's called the Irish Bargain Party and it has been around for more than 50 years.

The promotion typically begins after President's Day and runs through March.

The store goes all in with festive elements including themed giveaways and heavy advertising.

According to the company, the event can nearly double business during that period.

And of course, when discussing retail promotions in the furniture world, it's impossible not to mention Gallery Furniture in Houston and its well known owner, Jim Mackingvale, also known as Mattress Mack.

For decades he has appeared in his own advertisements emphasizing fast delivery and community support.

More recently, he has gained national attention for sports related promotions tied to major games.

In one well known example, winnings from a sports bet allowed the retailer to refund $75 million to customers who had made qualifying purchases.

Next, let's look at sourcing, which continues to evolve as companies balance cost, reliability and geopolitical risk.

Many case goods suppliers have been moving production away from China for several years and that trend has continued as companies diversify sourcing strategies.

Universal Furniture, for example, relies heavily on Vietnam and even operates its own timber factory there.

About 90% of the company's production is handled in that facility, allowing it to scale production and maintain consistent finishing quality.

At the same time, the company spreads production across several regions, including Vietnam, India, Indonesia and North Carolina.

Each region plays a different role.

Vietnam provides scale, while India contributes more intricate craftsmanship and design driven pieces.

Lineage collections also relies heavily on Vietnam, pointing to skilled labor and faster shipping times.

In some cases, containers are arriving in about 30 days.

Indonesia still plays an important role as well, particularly for specialized techniques such as steam bending and woven furniture components.

And in some cases, suppliers are choosing deep specialization instead of diversification.

Napa Furniture Design sources all of its production from a single factory in Indonesia, emphasizing consistency, sustainability and close partnership with the manufacturer.

Finally, a quick look at the broader retail environment.

According to the National Retail Federation, consumer spending remained solid in February.

Core retail sales increased slightly month over month and rose more than 6% compared with the same month last year.

February marked the fifth straight month of growth.

Furniture and home furnishing stores did see a slight dip compared with January, but sales were still about 3% higher than the previous year.

Retail leaders say steady wage growth and low unemployment continue to support consumer spending, although global uncertainty and geopolitical developments remain factors to watch.

At the same time, supply chains are being redesigned for resilience rather than just efficiency, many retailers are moving away from the old just in time production model and instead building more diversified sourcing networks.

A recent survey found that more than half of executives are planning some form of near shoring or reshoring strategy.

Planning cycles are also becoming shorter, with companies relying more on real time data to monitor inventory levels, sales trends and supplier performance.

The overall message is In a world where tariffs, consumer demand and global events can change quickly, flexibility and visibility across the supply chain are becoming essential.

And that's your Furniture Industry news update for March 10, 2026.

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