The International Home Furnishings Marketing Association, which sponsors the trade show, doesn't release actual attendance numbers for each market. But Nancy High, the association's chief executive, agreed the general feeling is that traffic was off a little bit. The organization estimates that about 82,000 people normally attend the April and October markets. Even the industry's largest trade group, the American Furniture Manufacturers Association, was downbeat, predicting that consumer spending on furniture would decline 1.8 percent this year and that factory shipments would dip 2.7 percent. The unexpected half-point cut in interest rates by the Federal Reserve on the first day of market, though, sent a jolt of optimism through the market, she said.
Nobody is ecstatic, but nobody is panicking either.
Our buyers were cautious, but it was better than if they weren't buying at all. I feel good about this market. At Coaster Company of America's showroom, business was slow on the first two days of market but picked up over the weekend. We didn't break any records, but we didn't lose our shirts either. FedEx in the Triad Get the latest news on FedEx's proposal to build a regional shipping hub in Guilford County.