home furnishings

A massive "Home Furnishings" banner glares over the line of grubby once-white caravans, many with padlocked doors and windows taped shut.

Next door is the historic Helms Bakery campus, a former bread factory dating to the 1930s that now houses home furnishings and design stores, and restaurants.

The January wildfires created a highly unusual situation in the local home furnishings market.

“Natural disasters such as the California fires, floods, hurricanes, etc., create incredible spikes in demand,” said Ray Allegrezza, a director for the International Home Furnishings Representatives Assn.

Consumer spending for residential furniture and bedding fell 3% last year to $116.1 billion, according to the American Home Furnishings Alliance.