Furniture retailer DFS was founded in 1969, as specialists in sofas and soft furnishings. It has since extended its presence in the UK to around 115 DFS stores following its flotation in 2015. It is also active through the Dwell, Sofa Workshop and Sofology brands, having acquired the latter towards the end of 2017 to bolster its omnichannel credentials. In recent years, it has made its first international moves by expanding into Ireland, the Netherlands and Spain. The DFS Group is embarking on a digitally led strategy to position the business for future growth. It is investing in its web platform and customer engagement tools, including new augmented reality visualisation tools and ‘chatbots’, while it is also leveraging the scale and expertise of the wider group to boost efficiency across all areas of the business. In addition to strong promotional and core DFS ranges, the retailer has exclusive partnerships with aspirational brands including House Beautiful, Joules and French Connection, to target different customer types.
Furniture specialist DFS has reiterated its full-year profit guidance and hailed a strong start to winter trading, having spent much of last financial year struggling with low customer demand.
Cancelling or postponing key appointments is a false economy. Investment in people is a relatively small outlay and can make all the difference, says Clarity founder Fran Minogue
DFS has indicated there may be some green shoots of recovery in the furniture sector after a tough summer, with order volumes strengthening heading into the golden quarter.
DFS profits have plummeted as the retailer blamed supply chain issues, double-digit inflation and staff shortages for the slump.
The homewares sector has enjoyed a boom over the past two years but, with DFS and ProCook issuing the latest in a string of profit warnings, has the pandemic bubble burst?
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