Canadian Made Furniture: 1830 to Present Day
Canadian made furniture has a rich history and is still a thriving industry today. Learn more about the furniture industry in Canada by clicking on the following sections.
- Origins of the Canadian Furniture Industry
- Canadian Made Furniture Exports
- Canadian Made Furnture Today
- Benefits of Purchasing Canadian Made Furniture
If you are looking for high quality, Canadian made futons, contact us.
Canadian Made Furniture
1. Origins of the Canadian Furniture Industry
Colonial style furniture was brought to Canada by the Loyalists
The Birth of the Industry
The first Canadian furniture makers were the first settlers who immigrated to Canada. They made simple pieces of furniture for their personal use in their homes. These included handmade beds, tables, and chairs. Eventually local carpenters began to make furniture for others.
In 1830, the first Canadian furniture manufacturing company was established in Kitchener (then called Berlin), Ontario. The next one was started in Toronto a year later in 1834.
The furniture industry in Canada grew considerably during the latter half of the 19th century. This growth was mainly located in Ontario, however, there were a small number of furniture factories in Quebec at this time as well.
Colonial Style Furniture
One of the most popular styles of Canadian made furniture up to and including the 1930s was the Colonial style. This style was brought to Canada with the Loyalists. Colonial style is the type of furniture that was made in the American colonies before the end of the American Revolution.
It was highly influenced by the European styles of that time, however, it would feature a wider variety of woods and spiral turnings. It also featured cabriole legs, beds with short posts, curved lines, decorative carvings, and inset panels.
The Great Depression & WW2
The furniture industry developed further in Quebec after WW2
During the height of the Great Depression, the furniture making industry in Canada dropped by about two-thirds. This is because furniture buying is greatly affected by economic conditions. After World War II, the furniture industry further developed in Quebec especially with medium to lower priced pieces.
Free Trade Agreement
In 1987, the Free Trade agreement signed between Canada and the United States gave Canadian made furniture a boost with total tariff reductions on furniture that spanned a 5-year period.
The Canadian furniture industry often finds it challenging to compete with its American counterparts. This is because most of the Canadian furniture companies are small to medium-sized businesses that don't have the same production capacity as the American companies do. This means that they are unable to achieve economies of scale the same.
2. Canadian Made Furniture Exports
Canada exports the majority of its furniture to the United States
Canadian made furniture is exported more than it is sold inside of Canada. In fact, Canada is one of the largest furniture exporters worldwide. It ranks 5th in the world. The vast majority of its furniture is exported to the United States.
In 2021, the trade value of furniture exported from Canada to the United States was
about $5.36 billion U.S. dollars. The next highest country that Canada exported to in 2021 was Mexico. The value of those exports was
only $33.32 million U.S dollars.
3. Canadian Made Furniture Today
The most common types of Canadian made furniture produced today include:
- Office and institutional furniture (40.8%)
- Mattresses (38.5%)
- Wood kitchen cabinets and counter tops (17.9%)
- Blinds and Shades (2.8%)
There are, however, other companies that specialize in specific furniture pieces.
Some specialty Canadian made furntiture companies specialize in making mattresses and futons
For example, The Futon Shop is a Canadian furniture manufacturer making beautiful Canadian futons and mattresses today. What is particularly unique about The Futon Shop is that it both manufactures and sells its own pieces. Most Canadian businesses today will specialize in either one or the other.
Benefits of Purchasing Canadian Made Furniture
There are many great benefits to purchasing Canadian made furniture.
It Helps the Canadian and Local Economy
Buying Canadian not only helps the Canadian economy, but it also helps the local economies where the products are being manufactured. You will be helping to provide not only more local jobs, but employees of locally owned businesses also tend to spend money where they live and work.
Uses Real Wood from Canada
In many cases, imported furniture is made from particleboard and veneers that are made to look like wood. However, these materials are less durable and less attractive than real wood. If you do find imported furniture that is made from real wood, you may run the risk of the wood cracking or warping.
This is due to the fact that the imported wood is most likely coming from a completely different climate and it will need to acclimatize to our Canadian dry winters and hot humid summers. Such a change in weather conditions will often damage the wood.
More Environmentally Friendly
When you buy Canadian you are also helping the environment. Canadian logging has stricter
regulations than other countries to ensure that eco-friendly policies are being followed. Also, if you
buy locally, then you are helping to decrease your carbon footprint as your purchase will not need to be shipped as far as it would if you bought it from a foreign manufacturer.
Why Purchase from The Futon Shop
We Have Extensive Experience:
Since 1984, we have been manufacturing our own line of superior futons. Our highly-trained staff has extensive experience, so you can be sure that your futon will look amazing and last a long time.
We Do Custom Orders:
If you want a truly one-of-a-kind futon, just let us know. If you have a spot where you would like your futon to go, but the standard sizes just won't fit, we can help. We do custom sizes so not matter how small or awkward the space is, we can make a futon to fit in it.
We Use Superior Quality Materials:
We use only the best materials to manufacture our futons, so you can be sure that you are getting a superior product. We manufacture our own mattresses too, so you know that they will be top-quality as well. We invite you to stop by and test out all of our different mattresses yourself. That way you can find the perfect firmness to suit you and see our high quality and exceptional workmanship firsthand.
Our Suppliers Are Proudly Canadian too!:
Not only do we manufacture our own line of high-quality futons in Canada, but we also buy our materials from Canadian suppliers.
Here are some of the top suppliers that we deal with.
- Bean Bag Factory
- Crate Designs
- Tempur-pedic
- Triomphe
We Ship Our Products All Across Canada:
It doesn't matter where you live in Canada, you can enjoy our Canadian and locally made futons. Simply shop online and then we will ship it to you.
Easy to Order:
We make it incredibly easy to order our futons for sale. Simply follow these steps:
- Step 1: Choose Your Futon Package
- Step 2: Select Your Mattress Size and Type
- Step 3: Decide on the Wood Finish You Prefer
- Step 4: Pick the Perfect Futon Cover to Compliment Your Decor
You can shop online, call us toll free at 1-844-933-8866, or come into our showroom to place your order in person.
The Futon Shop Burlington Showroom Business Hours
Tuesday - Friday: 10:00am - 4:00pm | Saturday: 10:00am - 3:00pm Sunday - Monday: Closed
5205 Harvester Rd, Burlington, L7L, ON, Canada
"I am very happy with my futon/frame purchase. I called the store and someone helped me find a frame that was in stock and was able to ship the futon to me in a couple of days. And received it 3 business days later, right before Christmas."
- Diego Borja
