FIN Desk
Furniture Makers Saw the Biggest Rise in Material Costs. They Ranked #1 of 16.
A national factory survey puts furniture first for rising raw-material prices. Plus the LA and Long Beach port security deadline moves to Wednesday night.
Furniture makers led every industry in rising raw-material prices in the Institute for Supply Management's October factory survey. ISM listed Furniture & Related Products first of 16 industries paying more for materials in its Nov 2 report, and it ranks those industries from the biggest increase down. It's unusual for a national survey to single out furniture, and it lands as stores plan spring buys with vendors.
The short version
Costs: Furniture makers ranked first for rising material prices in ISM's October survey. Vendors have more cost pressure to pass along.
Ports: The security watchmen's contract at LA and Long Beach is extended to Wednesday evening, Nov 4. Talks continue with federal mediators.
Ethan Allen: The company now says it will split the CEO and chair jobs ahead of the Nov 4 shareholder vote.
Also: A Raymour & Flanigan expansion, La-Z-Boy on Amazon, Southern Motion's financing, household spending, home construction and a Haynes store closing.
Furniture makers top the list for rising material prices
ISM's monthly survey asks purchasing managers at factories across the country whether they're paying more or less for raw materials. In October no industry reported paying less, and furniture makers sat at the top of the list of those paying more. The survey doesn't publish a separate furniture price index, so the ranking is the furniture-specific signal.
The pressure is broad. ISM's overall prices measure has pointed to rising raw-material costs for more than two years straight, though it rose a little less quickly in October than in September. The report ties the increases to steel and aluminum, tariffs on imported goods and petroleum-based products, and its list of commodities going up includes resins, corrugated packaging, freight and diesel. Those are the parts of a sofa or a case piece that come from a mill, a refinery or a truck.
Furniture makers are busy too. ISM counted furniture among the industries that grew in October and among those whose suppliers were delivering more slowly. Factories that are growing while waiting longer for parts and paying more for them have less room to hold prices.
A big housing-linked maker showed how that is reaching buyers. Mohawk Industries, the flooring company, said Oct 29 that it sold fewer units in the third quarter because of soft demand, and price increases taken to offset inflation made up the difference. Its CEO said he expects higher costs to persist. That's flooring, not furniture, but it sells into the same move-in and remodel customer.
LA and Long Beach security talks run to Wednesday night
The Pacific Maritime Association, the employers' group for West Coast terminals, said Oct 30 that it and International Longshore and Warehouse Union (ILWU) Local 26 signed a contract extension through 5 p.m. Pacific on Wednesday, Nov 4. That's 7 p.m. Central. Negotiations are continuing with help from federal mediators. There's no deal yet, and no strike is underway.
Local 26 is a small union of watchmen who handle security at several container terminals. In an Oct 27 statement, PMA said those terminals handle most of the cargo moving through Long Beach and about a third of the cargo at Los Angeles. It said other ILWU members aren't expected to cross a Local 26 picket line, which could stop vessel, yard and gate work at those terminals.
The watchmen's last contract expired in July 2025, and the two sides have been meeting for more than a year. PMA says significant differences remain. This dispute is separate from the main West Coast dockworker contract. We haven't found a public statement from the union. PMA calls LA and Long Beach the nation's two busiest ports, and they're a major entry point for imported furniture. We'll post updates on our LinkedIn page as the deadline approaches.
Ethan Allen commits to splitting the top job
Ahead of its Nov 4 annual meeting, Ethan Allen said in an Oct 30 filing that the CEO and chair roles will be separate once a new CEO is named. It says independent directors are running the search with an outside firm and will announce the next CEO by June 30, 2027. Longtime Chairman and CEO Farooq Kathwari would then stay on as a non-executive director to help with the handover until the 2027 annual meeting, when he would leave the board.
The company is asking shareholders to back all five of its nominees over the five put up by activist investor DGB, which owns a stake in the company. DGB has filed its own materials arguing for change. The vote is Wednesday, and we'll report the result in Thursday's issue.
Quick hits
Raymour & Flanigan: The Northeast furniture and mattress chain said Oct 28 it plans two more Greater Boston showrooms, in Danvers, Mass., and Nashua, N.H., with both expected to open in late 2027. Nashua would be its first store in New Hampshire. The company says its three Massachusetts showrooms are beating expectations and its Boston-area delivery center already has room to grow. Independent stores across New England should expect a bigger competitor down the road.
Amazon: In its third-quarter results on Oct 29, Amazon named La-Z-Boy among the brands it has added much more selection from over the past year. Shoppers can now compare a well-known recliner brand online before they ever visit a furniture showroom.
Southern Motion: The Pontotoc, Miss., motion furniture maker's revised financing request was granted at an Oct 28 hearing in its Chapter 11 case, by agreement stated on the record, according to the court docket. The written order is due Nov 12, and a final financing hearing is set for Dec 9, so this isn't final approval yet. The court also approved a real estate advisor on Oct 30.
Household budgets: The Bureau of Economic Analysis said Oct 29 that consumer spending in September barely grew once inflation is taken out, and after-tax income adjusted for inflation fell. In dollar terms, spending on furnishings and household equipment hardly moved, while spending on gasoline and other energy jumped. Every dollar at the pump is one that isn't going to a new sofa.
Home construction: The Census Bureau said Nov 2 that private residential construction spending fell sharply in September and is well below a year ago. Spending on new single-family homes held about level with August and sits a little under last year. Fewer finished homes means fewer empty rooms to furnish.
Haynes Furniture: Virginia's WARN notice listing shows Haynes Furniture filed an Oct 30 closure notice for its Virginia Beach store on Virginia Beach Boulevard, covering dozens of workers, with an impact date of Nov 2. Shoppers in the Hampton Roads market lose one more furniture showroom.
Dates to watch
Nov 4: Ethan Allen annual meeting and board vote
Nov 4: LA and Long Beach watchmen's contract extension runs out at 5 p.m. Pacific (7 p.m. Central)
Nov 12: Written order due on Southern Motion's revised financing
Dec 1: ISM's next factory report, with November data
Dec 9: Final hearing on Southern Motion's financing
Bottom line
Furniture makers saw the biggest rise in material prices of any industry in ISM's survey, while shoppers are putting their extra dollars into gas and home construction spending is falling. On the freight side, the watchmen's Nov 4 deadline at LA and Long Beach is the one to watch this week.
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Sources
Institute for Supply Management, Manufacturing PMI Report, October 2026, released Nov 2, 2026: https://www.ismworld.org/supply-management-news-and-reports/reports/ism-pmi-reports/pmi/october/
Mohawk Industries, third quarter 2026 results, Oct 29, 2026 (SEC exhibit): https://www.sec.gov/Archives/edgar/data/851968/000085196826000038/a2026q3pressreleaseandtabl.htm
Pacific Maritime Association, Statement on Contract Extension With ILWU Local 26, Oct 30, 2026: https://www.pmanet.org/press_releases/pma-statement-on-contract-extension-with-ilwu-local-26/
Pacific Maritime Association, Statement on Negotiations With ILWU Local 26, Oct 27, 2026: https://www.pmanet.org/press_releases/pma-statement-on-negotiations-with-ilwu-local-26/
Ethan Allen Interiors, DEFA14A (shareholder letter and release), Oct 30, 2026: https://www.sec.gov/Archives/edgar/data/896156/000143774926034231/eth20261030_defa14a.htm
In re Southern Motion, Inc., Bankr. N.D. Miss., docket (PacerMonitor public mirror), entries Oct 28 and Oct 30, 2026: https://www.pacermonitor.com/public/case/66545195/Southern_Motion,_Inc.
U.S. Bureau of Economic Analysis, Personal Income and Outlays, September 2026, released Oct 29, 2026: https://www.bea.gov/news/2026/personal-income-and-outlays-september-2026
U.S. Census Bureau, Monthly Construction Spending, September 2026, released Nov 2, 2026: https://www.census.gov/construction/c30/current/index.html
Virginia Works, WARN Notices (Haynes Furniture Company, notice dated Oct 30, 2026): https://virginiaworks.gov/im-an-employer/retain-and-grow/warn-notices/
Chain Store Age, "Raymour & Flanigan expanding in 2027, here's where," Oct 28, 2026 (company statement): https://chainstoreage.com/raymour-flanigan-expanding-2027-heres-where
Amazon.com, Inc., Amazon.com Announces Third Quarter Results, Oct 29, 2026: https://ir.aboutamazon.com/news-release/news-release-details/2026/Amazon-com-Announces-Third-Quarter-Results/
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