Jeni Mah, owner of Kings and Queens bedding and furniture store in Toronto

03.07.2008 22:01 Shopping - Source: cbc.ca

Jeni Mah is the owner of Kings and Queens, a bedding and furniture store in Toronto's Gallery District. The four-year-old store faces stiff competition from chains such as Ikea and Leon's, which buy in large volume. Besides relying on her eye for style (she studied industrial design at the Ontario College of Art and Design and cole des Beaux-Arts in France), Mah's strategy to make her store stand out in a crowded retail market is to feature Canadian-made products and offer high-quality, built-to-order furniture.

Jeni Mah is the owner of Kings & Queens, a bedding and furniture retail store in Toronto's Gallery DistrictCBCnews.ca: How have rising fuel prices affected your business?

Jeni Mah: Kings and Queens has always sold mainly Canadian furniture, but now more than ever I have become more focused on buying from more local suppliers. I buy fewer bedding and accessories from U.S. suppliers.

Part of that is not because I'm afraid consumers won't pay more but [that] they'll find some website somewhere from a store in the U.S. that'll sell the same item for less, and they'll think that I'm overpricing merchandise when really I'm just trying to cover my freight costs - and oftentimes duties, as well, when the products aren't U.S.-made. Canadian consumers aren't used to considering freight costs, because it hasn't been a big factor in the past.

Transport is always a big factor in the furniture business, and rising fuel prices will always affect the cost of doing business. Raw materials will cost more, too, especially petroleum-based materials like foam, thus affecting prices further.

Have you noticed any changes in your customers' buying patterns as fuel prices have risen in recent months?

I haven't noticed any noticeable changes in recent months so far, but I'm sure I will if fuel prices continue to climb.

Are you more concerned about the direct costs that more expensive fuel could add to your store's overhead or about the effect rising fuel prices may have on customer's general willingness to spend on items such as furniture?

Of course, I am concerned about how price increases will affect my overall business. It will definitely pose certain challenges for the future. Perhaps consumers will evolve into a more pragmatic consumer, being more conscious about quality and value.

Is buying Canadian-made furniture rather than goods from overseas an advantage in the current economy?

First of all, I like buying Canadian merchandise for Kings and Queens for reasons unrelated to fuel prices. Furniture is often of better quality than furniture made overseas from places like China, Indonesia and Thailand.

I like the fact I can offer more options in terms of finishes, fabrics and minor design modifications, as domestically made furniture in the medium-to-high price bracket is normally made to order. Furniture made in Asia can't be made to order and [is] limited in options. Most importantly, if something goes wrong, such as if something gets damaged during transport or, say, a customer moves homes and loses some hardware along the way, it's easier to get parts and replacements with a Canadian supplier.

How is buying Canadian an advantage in the current economy? Furniture from overseas will be less competitive price-wise and still usually be of lesser quality, so Canadian products will prove to be the better value.

I think also consumers are becoming more conscious of how as an individual he or she affects a bigger picture, as they consider more "green" and "organic" products. Buying Canadian for them would mean supporting a better Canadian economy.

Many Canadian furniture manufacturers suffered a sizable decline in sales from their U.S. buyers due to our strong dollar, their economy and rising fuel prices. I think Canadian consumers are beginning to realize they need to support domestically made furniture, or we'll lose our manufacturers.

Canadian manufacturers, in turn, need to realize they can't always count on a weak dollar to generate sales in the U.S., and [they] also need to pay more attention to luring and supporting Canadian retailers, which hasn't always been the case in the past.

Are your suppliers absorbing cost increases or passing them on to you? Have you been able to absorb any higher costs in recent months, or have they been passed on to the customer?

I think both sides are doing a bit of both. We try to absorb costs as much as we can, but also pass on higher costs. I think eventually it'll makes us work harder to operate more efficiently and make smarter business choices.

How do you think your business would be affected if the price of fuel doubled in the coming months?

I would hate for that to happen and would rather not think of that, to be honest!

Well, one thing we may see less of is that consumers may not be as willing to travel to many stores or far from their home to find what they need anymore. They will be more streamlined in their choices of stores to visit. I may need to focus on products that are more relevant to a local consumer, as well as ensure a strong web presence for consumers doing research on the web.

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