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ISBN 1-84168-195-4

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This report covers: home furnishings, textile products, window dressings, curtains, curtain fabric, linings, net curtains, window blinds, bedding, bed linen, duvets, pillows, blankets, bathroom textiles, towels, bath mats, pedestal mats, toilet seat covers, cushions, covers, loose covers, throws, table linen, tablecloths, napkins, fabric placemats, blinds, roller blinds, vertical blinds, sheets, pillowcases, bedspreads,

Companies covered include: Allders, Arthur Sanderson & Sons, BhS, Philip Green, Colefax Group, Conran Shop Holdings, Debenhams Retail, Dunelm Soft-Furnishings, Englewood, Fogarty, Homestyle Group, House of Fraser, IKEA, John Lewis Partnership, Laura Ashley Holdings, Marks & Spencer, Matalan, Osborne & little, Plumbs, Scotts of Stow, Coats Viyella, DuPont (UK),

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Executive Summary

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EXECUTIVE SUMMARY

The UK retail market for home furnishings was worth an estimated £4.07bn in 2000, having seen growth rates of over 4 percent per annum in recent years.

For the purposes of this Key Note report, home furnishings are defined as window dressings, bedding, bathroom textiles, cushions and covers, and table linen.

Household penetration levels are high, particularly in the largest subsectors of window dressings and bedding. Whereas replacement due to wear and tear may not necessarily be frequent, an increasing consumer interest in home interiors stimulates purchasing in what is now very much a fashion-led industry. The market also benefits from the growing number of households, a trend that is predicted to continue at an even faster rate.

Levels of expenditure on home furnishings, being discretionary to a large extent, reflect the health of the economy and can therefore vary considerably from year to year. For example, according to figures from National Statistics, spending on household textiles and soft furnishings rose by just 1 percent from 1993 to 1994 but, with memories of the recession fading, increased by 14.7 percent from 1995 to 1996. The UK economy and housing market - which is of obvious importance to the home furnishings sector - is currently buoyant, although some analysts are predicting an imminent recession.

Nevertheless, for the time being at least, household spending and levels of borrowing are high and consumers can take their pick of bargains on the High Street. This situation, however, means that many retailers are struggling in a more aggressively competitive environment than ever. Marks and Spencer, a principal retailer of home furnishings, is a well-documented example.

The UK textile industry was once a mainstay of the economy with a reputation for quality workmanship and innovative design. Although the level of imports of textiles has always been high, such is the competitive nature of the industry that more and more retailers are sourcing produce from overseas while manufacturers, beleaguered by the strength of sterling, are increasingly looking to move facilities to countries where production costs are lower.

It would seem that, as in many other industries, the best way forward for the UK home furnishings industry, given that it can not compete with other countries on price, is to concentrate on its design skills and workmanship. Although there are consumers who will be price-led, as is only too evident by the proliferation of discount chains, there are also those to whom design and quality are of paramount importance. Extending this latter group - and therefore keeping market values up - will be helped by designer names emphasising the fashion aspect and encouraging brand awareness, and by the ongoing interest in magazines and television programmes devoted to home interiors.

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Text © 2001 Key Note

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Last updated by Jacob van Eldik 19th May 2001