Furniture stores in Murrieta try cluster strategy

Most motorists who want to replace their oil-leaking cars look for an auto mall, where they can try out models at several dealerships.

The Home Center Murrieta allows shoppers to have a similar array of choices when it’s time to replace the ratty, hopelessly out-of-style living-room couch.

The center, visible from Interstate 215 south of the Los Alamos Road interchange, is like a beefed-up version of the furniture row concept seen in most urban markets in the country. It’s an example of a retail cluster, suggesting shoppers make numerous stops before writing a check.

Home Center Murrieta contains some 20 stores. The center, which opened in 2005, has a mixture of small, locally owned stores and large showrooms of national chains.

Many managers say that Home Center Murrieta’s setup is good for all the merchants, as well as for shoppers, who in many cases would have to go to San Diego County or elsewhere outside the region to find some of its wares.

Many furniture store owners also said that Murrieta’s growth made going into that city a no-brainer.

Dream Home Furniture specializes in Italian hand-carved wood furniture. Sales manager Shawn Rad said the store’s presence at the home center works because it attracts people who want to compare products from multiple vendors.

Carol Torres, a salesperson and designer at Salmo’s Custom Sofa Factory, said the center’s visibility from the freeway is a draw, even if some customers have trouble accessing the center from the freeway. A recent visitor at Salmo’s lamented that she had to travel about a quarter-mile east from the freeway along Los Alamos Road and use two side streets.

Not everyone thinks bombarding the public with furniture choices is a good idea.

George Whalin, president and chief executive officer of Retail Management Consultants in San Marcos, said furniture stores aren’t the first to form clusters.

“This kind of clustering is quite common in all kinds of retailing,” he said. “The first companies to do this were probably the fast-food chains.”

According to Whalin, automobile dealers were probably next, as auto malls began springing up in the 1980s.

“For automobile dealers, the idea has been quite successful, since they also collectively advertise their location, resulting in measurable savings with respect to their advertising dollars,” Whalin said.

He said the clustering of furniture stores is a fairly new idea, but may not be a great one. “They don’t usually advertise collectively,” he said.

Whalin said that clustering probably works well for weaker retailers who haven’t previously built a strong name brand or are unable to truly distinguish themselves from the competition.

“In my view, it is a very poor idea for most furniture stores to locate in one of these clustered areas, since this makes it even more difficult to stand out from the competition. Most of these stores seem to look the same and sell generally the same kinds of merchandise.”

Of Murrieta in particular, Whalin said, the arrangement works because the stores are visible from Interstate 215.

“This is first a real estate deal, and second a retail destination,” he said.

Francis McTiernan, sales manager at Plummers , which opened in May, saw the center as a preferred location, not only because of the proximity to other furniture retailers, but also because of housing growth in southwest Riverside County.

McTiernan said the view that having competitors nearby helps more than it hinders was common among those running the Murrieta furniture stores.

“We’re not afraid of competition,” McTiernan said. “We love the fact that people are going to come and look around.”

Jody Elliot, of Linder’s Furniture, said the competition solidifies the center as a great location, because shoppers expect to find good deals. She said the store has received a good number of sales from people who saw the center from the freeway and came down to investigate.

“Sometimes, the customers see the Linder’s sign,” she said. “Sometimes, they shop around and end up here.”

Jim Riedl, chief executive of Arizona Leather Co., said his company made the decision to put a store there because it did well at similar projects by the developer, Orange County-based Cornerstone Development Partners. He said the combination of the store’s location among other furniture retailers means it’s a destination, drawing customers from 25 miles away or more.

That sort of drawing power also works for Larry Escobosa, sales manager at the Easy Life Furniture store.

“Anytime there’s a grouping of stores like this, more people shop there,” he said. “It’s like going to a mall. Customers are going to see all stores, and naturally come in to look at all the stores and look at all the options.”

Escobosa said housing growth is the key, and said the still-healthy office market also bodes well for the furniture stores.

“This area, even with the dip in the housing market, is still great,” he said.

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