Dive Brief:
- Wayfair on Tuesday opened its first AllModern store, located in Lynnfield, Massachusetts.
- The store “will offer a really unique shopping experience that blends high-touch service with tech-first convenience and inspiration to help customers find their favorite products and design their homes,” according to details emailed to Retail Dive. Shoppers will have access to free design services from experts as well as free delivery on all purchases.
- The Lynnfield shop is the first of two store openings planned for the brand this year with the second being in Dedham, Massachusetts.
Dive Insight:
Wayfair is making good on its promise to re-enter physical retail this year.
The retailer announced in December its plan to open three stores in 2022: two AllModern stores and one Joss & Main store. The second AllModern store, located in Dedham, Massachusetts, and the Joss & Main store, located in Burlington, Massachusetts, are expected to open in the fall, according to a company spokesperson. Those locations are the first in a series of store openings Wayfair is planning for each of its five brands, which also include Perigold and Birch Lane.
Wayfair first tested out physical retail in 2018 and over the years launched a number of pop-ups and one permanent store. That store, under the Wayfair name, closed last year.
But as digitally native brands grapple with the rising costs associated with acquiring customers online — which have sometimes hindered brands’ profitability — many are betting on physical locations to offset those expenses.
Wayfair has historically struggled with unprofitability, only seeing positive profits for a brief period when demand in the overall home goods sector skyrocketed during the early days of the pandemic. In its most recent quarter, the retailer reported net revenue of $3 billion, a 14% decline from last year, while its net loss reached $319 million from a profit of $18 million in the year-ago period. Wayfair also reported its customer base contracted by 23.4% to 25.4 million.
