What Smart Furniture Operators Are Watching Right Now

Originally published April 21, 2026. This version was rebuilt from Census, Flexsteel and CBP for the FIN archive, and the facts are as of that date.

Heading into the second quarter the decline in furniture sales was easing. Costs were the bigger worry, and a possible tariff refund was the bright spot.

The short version

• Furniture store sales rose in March and were only slightly below a year earlier.
• Flexsteel's sales grew slightly, helped by tariff surcharges.
• Importers prepared to claim refunds of the struck down emergency tariffs.

Furniture sales steady

The Census Bureau's advance report showed furniture and home furnishings store sales up 2.2% from February and down 0.8% from a year earlier in March, a much smaller gap than earlier in the year.

Total retail and food services sales were $752.1 billion, up 1.7% from February and 4.0% from a year earlier, so furniture was still trailing retail overall even as its gap narrowed.

Flexsteel grows on surcharges

Flexsteel reported quarterly net sales of $115.1 million, up 1.0%, with higher pricing from tariff surcharges offsetting lower unit volume. It swung to an operating profit from a loss a year earlier.

Gross margin rose to 22.6% from 22.2% on a richer mix of higher-margin products, and the CEO put the operating margin at about 7%. He also said demand softened as the quarter progressed, particularly after the conflict in the Middle East began.

Surcharges were holding up revenue, but lower volume and a late-quarter slowdown showed shoppers were buying fewer pieces.

Tariff refunds

After the Supreme Court struck down the emergency tariffs, importers of record could seek refunds through a CBP refund process. For furniture importers that paid those duties in 2025, the money could help offset rising material costs.

Into the second quarter

Sales were stabilizing, but surcharges and costs were doing much of the work. How refunds flowed back and whether volume recovered would decide the rest of the year.

Related on FIN

• Furniture Sales Rose. Costs Are Rising Faster.
• Follow the Tariff Dollars

Sources

• US Census Bureau, Advance Monthly Retail Trade Report, March 2026
• Flexsteel Industries, Fiscal third quarter 2026 results (SEC exhibit 99.1)
• US Customs and Border Protection, IEEPA Duty Refunds