by Shaky consumer confidence, the Iran War and high gas prices are top of mind for retailers
Memorial Day weekend, one of the furnishing industry’s most important promotional periods, arrived this year under a cloud of economic uncertainty. High gas prices, the war in Iran and shaky consumer confidence loomed over the holiday weekend.
Perhaps the most telling thing about this year’s Memorial Day sales was retailers’ general reluctance to talk about it at all. Many retailers that I reached out to declined to contribute. Some reasons were benign (vacations, scheduling conflicts) but others simply passed without explanation. Although it is certainly not representative of the entire industry, the hesitation is notable. In my opinion, some of the general reluctance could indicate sales outcomes that fell below expectations. Typically, retailers are eager to discuss holiday performance.
Those who were willing to share results described outcomes ranging from solid to slightly above 2025 results, though none disclosed specific percentages. With this past holiday period more difficult than usual to define, I’ve arrived at this conclusion: Memorial Day weekend sales were a mixed bag, and ultimately, a bit of a mystery.
“Based on the circumstances with gas prices and the war and consumer confidence, we were pleased with the results over Memorial Day,” said Walter E. Smithe III, president of Walter E. Smithe Furniture & Design in the Chicago area. Smithe said the retailer is “in the same neighborhood,” compared to its 2025 Memorial Day weekend results.
The retailer is best known for its custom furniture, including upholstery and dining sets, but Smithe said there wasn’t one category that stood out over the holiday weekend. Smithe said he’d like to see gas prices come down and a resolution to the war in Iran.
“When consumers get concerned, they can get a little bit shy about buying furniture,” Smithe added.
Shy customers were also the experience of RJ Williams, who owns Jacksonville Bedding, Mattresses & More. He said that by 1 p.m. on Memorial Day, his company had only done $64 in sales (a set of pillowcases) between both of its stores, located in Jacksonville and Fleming Island, Florida. But in the afternoon, traffic picked up, and the retailer ended the day with $40,000 of merchandise sold between the two locations.
“This economy and this year have been trying for many people,” Williams said. “It’s not a prime economy right now, but it pulled through.”
Jacksonville Bedding, Mattresses & More’s strongest sales day of the entire holiday weekend was on Memorial Day. Overall, Williams said traffic was down slightly, but the average ticket was up. He added that shoppers were looking for complete sleep systems and that the attachment for adjustable bases, and sheets and pillows were “through the roof” over the weekend period. Decreased foot traffic and increased tickets have been a notable trend in furnishings for the past several months and are ongoing.
Compared to the same period for 2025, Williams said sales were “slightly down,” but did not disclose a percentage. He said they anticipated a downturn, but it ended up being less of a decrease than they were expecting. “With the economic (activity) and microeconomics that are going on right now, we were pleasantly surprised and happy with the overall results for sure,” Williams added.
HOM Furniture, which operates locations in Minneapolis, Minnesota, South Dakota, North Dakota, Iowa and Wisconsin, had good results.
“We were happy with how Memorial Day weekend turned out,” said Kyle Johansen, executive vice president of HOM Furniture.
Johansen said on Memorial Day, Minneapolis had sunny weather and temperatures reaching 85 degrees. “It was a good day for the lake or a pool, not the furniture store, but fortunately, we still executed at retail,” he said.
Johansen shared that HOM Furniture’s Memorial Day weekend sales were “up” over last year, and its outdoor furniture and mattresses categories were “bright spots.” Since tax refunds increased approximately 18% this year, he believes American consumers still have some disposable income to put toward furniture.
In the e-commerce-only sector, Montreal-based, direct-to-consumer company Transformer Table ran a 30% promotion on its website for Memorial Day. Filipe Bohrer, the company’s web director, said that Memorial Day highlighted significant growth opportunities heading into the second half of the year.
“The number of online shoppers, as well as customers reaching and abandoning checkout, has continued to grow consistently each day, reaching record levels during the Memorial Day period,” said Bohrer. “We are also seeing similar upward trends across other channels, indicating increased customer interest, stronger engagement and a growing future sales pipeline. These are strong indicators that the brand is building momentum and expanding its potential customer base moving forward.”
The contrast between cautious in-store shoppers and growing online engagement may reflect a broader consumer mindset: Interest is there, but many shoppers remain hesitant to fully commit amid ongoing economic uncertainty.
In a recent article on its website, the National Retail Federation shared its forecast of a “cloudier” outlook heading into summer. The retail trade association noted that consumers, particularly lower-income shoppers, continue to face pressure from higher prices and weaker wage growth.
That uncertainty may make the industry’s next major sales holiday, the Fourth of July weekend, especially important. For some retailers, Fourth of July sales exceed Memorial Day and Labor Day promotional periods. Falling almost exactly at the midpoint of 2026, the holiday will likely be one of the clearest indicators of how the rest of the year will pan out. Most notably, will consumer confidence (or lack thereof) stay the same, increase or decrease?
