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National Retail Federation

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Holiday Sales Miss Expectations: What the Latest Numbers Mean for Retailers and Designers

The U.S. Census Bureau released some startling numbers on the recent holiday season shopping numbers, and they didn't provide a lot of optimism for economists and the stock market. The bureau found…
Shayla Copas holiday design
Designer Shayla Copas took home first place in the holiday design category of the Interior Design Society’s 2017 Designer of the Year awards. Her award-winning look, shown here, mixed jewel tones into a traditional red-and-gold Christmas scheme.

Decking the Halls

It may be the season to be jolly, but not all homeowners delight in untangling tree lights. For those clients, some interior designers have found a new calling in relieving this holiday stress. The…
Aerial shot of cargo ship in a harbor
Photo: Tom Fisk from Pexels

What to Know About The U.S.-China Trade War Truce

Last weekend, the U.S. and China came to a truce in the ongoing trade war, alleviating (for now) one of the biggest economic concerns for both retailers and designers coming in 2019: the 25 percent…

U.S., China Halt Tariff Increases for 90 Days Amid Truce

The U.S. and China have reached a truce of sorts to the ongoing trade war. At the Group of 20 summit in Argentina this weekend, U.S. President Donald Trump and Chinese President Xi Jinping came to…

NRF Survey Says More Than 164 Million Consumers Plan to Shop Over Five-Day Thanksgiving Weekend

Retailers are preparing for one of their biggest weekends of the year as an estimated 164 million people are already planning to go shopping Thanksgiving Day through Cyber Monday, according to the…
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Next Round of Tariffs to Directly Impact Furniture and Lighting Retailers and Interior Designers

The trade war between the U.S. and China escalated yesterday and continued through this morning. Yesterday, President Trump announced another round of tariffs on $200 billion worth of imported…
Shopping mall escalators in black and white
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Retail Jobs Up, But Not In Furniture and Home Furnishings Sector

By just about any measure, the U.S. economy is doing very well. Unemployment remains low. Consumers are spending and fueling the economy. Though the threat of tariffs remains poised to wreck much of…
LIving room with beige couch and chairs and blue and orange rug by Global Views
Photo: Global Views

How Hard Will Tariffs Hit the Home Furnishings Industry

Like many other industry groups, the National Retail Federation (NRF) fiercely opposes the Trump administration's proposed tariffs on China and other U.S. trading partners. Now they have the numbers…

How Showroom Events Could Attract Millennial Males

Katherine Cullen, Director of Retail and Consumer Insights at the National Retail Federation, knew that, in general, Millennials love going to retail events — more than any other demographic. But as…

How Shipping Can Make — Or Break — An Online Sale

You can thank Amazon for setting consumer shipping expectations. For those enrolled in Amazon Prime, free shipping — free two-day shipping to be more specific — is the norm, and while that's not true…
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