The wood household furniture and kitchen cabinet industries: a contrast in fortune.

In 1977, the value of wood household furniture shipments from domestic manufacturers exceeded kitchen cabinet shipments by 170 percent; conversely, in 2006 shipments of cabinets exceeded shipments of furniture by 78 percent. The most apparent reason for the decrease in domestic furniture shipments is the increase in furniture imports, whereas cabinet demand has increased because of the popularity of larger kitchens and the robust housing market prior to 2006. However, there are less apparent factors. A large portion of domestically produced wood furniture is sold to comsumers from retail stores whose buyers ordered product at semiannual furniture markets.