ISPA expects gains in bedding unit shipments, wholesale values in next two years

The U.S. mattress industry is projected to enjoy healthy increases in both units shipped and the value of those shipments for the next two years, according to a new forecast from the International Sleep Products Association.

The forecast, released in October, projects that the number of mattresses and foundations shipped will rise by 2% and the wholesale dollar value of those shipments will increase 4.5% in 2015 over 2014 figures. The average unit selling price is expected to grow 2.5%.

In 2016, unit shipments are forecast to increase 2.5%, with dollar values rising 5% and the AUSP growing 2.5%.

Increases in units shipped and the value of shipments are expected as the economy grows stronger and the housing market continues to recover.

For 2014, ISPA forecasts a 1.2% increase in units shipped and a 4% increase for the value of those shipments compared with 2013. “This slight growth in unit shipments in 2014 could be attributed in part to a decline in housing resales in the first half of 2014 due to unexpectedly bad winter weather combined with the continuing effects of mortgage rate hikes from 2013,” the forecast reports.

The forecast for the U.S. bedding industry generally is issued twice a year and is produced by ISPA’s Forecast Panel using an econometric model of the mattress industry linked with the larger home furnishings market and national economy. For more information about the forecasting process, check www.sleepproducts.org and click on “Industry Statistics.”

Mattress sales mixed in August

Unit sales of mattresses and foundations decreased by 2.5% in August, compared with unit sales in the same month of 2013, according to the International Sleep Products Association’s Bedding Barometer. But the wholesale dollar value of those units grew by 0.5%, compared with August 2013, and the average unit selling price increased 3%.

Year-to-date unit sales and the wholesale dollar value increased by 0.8% and 4.4%, respectively, and the year-to-date AUSP increased 3.6%.