Furniture Grows in a Shrinking Factory Sector, HNI Agrees to Buy Steelcase, and Wayfair's Orders Get Bigger

Originally published August 4, 2025. This version was rebuilt from ISM, BLS and company releases for the FIN archive, and the facts are as of that date.

The first days of August 2025 were rough for American manufacturing and for the stock market. Furniture was a rare bright spot in the factory data, and the biggest deal in office furniture in years landed the same morning.

The short version

• Manufacturing shrank again in July, but furniture was one of seven industries that grew and the only one with growing export orders.
• HNI agreed to buy Steelcase in a cash and stock deal worth about $2.2 billion.
• Wayfair grew revenue with fewer active customers and a bigger average order.
• July job growth was weak, and earlier months were revised down sharply.

Furniture bucks the factory slump

The ISM manufacturing index registered 48% for July, its fifth straight month of contraction. Furniture and related products was among the seven industries reporting growth, and it was the only one of 18 to report growth in new export orders. The prices index was still high but came down from June.

One month of survey data isn't a trend. It did suggest that furniture makers with steady orders were in better shape than the factory sector as a whole.

HNI and Steelcase combine

HNI and Steelcase announced that HNI would acquire Steelcase for about $2.2 billion in cash and stock. The companies said both headquarters, in Muscatine and Grand Rapids, would remain.

Update. HNI completed the acquisition on December 10, 2025.

For office furniture dealers, the deal put two major contract brands under one owner. Dealers carrying both lines had to think about how the combined company would manage its dealer network.

Wayfair sells bigger orders

Wayfair reported second-quarter revenue of about $3.3 billion, up 5%, and called it its highest growth and profitability since 2021. Active customers fell 4.5% to 21.0 million, while average order value rose to $328 from $313.

Fewer customers spending more per order is the pattern a lot of furniture stores were seeing that summer. Retaining the customers who do buy mattered more than chasing new traffic.

The job market wobbles

The BLS reported that payrolls rose by just 73,000 in July, and revisions cut May and June by a combined 258,000. For a big-ticket category like furniture, a softer job market is one of the clearest warning signs.

Where this left the industry in early August

Furniture had some real strengths that summer, in exports, in deal-making and in online order sizes. The job numbers were a reminder that all of it depended on a consumer whose footing was getting less certain.

Related on FIN

• Furniture Factories Made Less in September
• Furniture Orders Rose 9%. Factories Still Aren't Hiring for It.

Sources

• Institute for Supply Management, July 2025 Manufacturing ISM Report On Business
• HNI and Steelcase, HNI Corporation to Acquire Steelcase Inc., Aug. 4, 2025
• HNI, Completion of the Steelcase acquisition, Dec. 10, 2025
• Wayfair Inc., Second quarter 2025 results, Exhibit 99.1
• U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, The Employment Situation, July 2025