• by Sarah Mahoney , December 7, 2021

Image above from Joss & Main

Wayfair, which last month hinted at what its physical stores might look like, is taking the wraps off its first brick-and-mortar experiments.

The Boston-based ecommerce giant says its first stores will showcase its Joss & Main and AllModern brands, with three Massachusetts stores scheduled to open next year.

AllModern, which focuses on a mid-century look, will open locations in Dedham and Lynnfield. And Joss & Main, which strives for a stylish balance of contemporary and classic, is set to open in Burlington.

Wayfair says these are just the beginning and that it will eventually open stores representing all five of its brands, including Birch Lane, featuring classics, and Perigold, its luxury brand, as well as Wayfair itself.

Future stores are scheduled in different sizes, formats and geographies.

Wayfair has used pop-up shops for several years and says this step is just its latest effort to meet customers where they are, blending online shopping and ordering with the chance to see its furniture and tabletop items up close.

“With our first-ever AllModern and Joss & Main retail stores, we are introducing a new kind of omnichannel shopping experience powered by the Wayfair platform,” says Karen McKibbin, head of physical retail, in its announcement. “We’re inviting our customers to engage with the brands they know and love in an innovative format that blends the best of in-store and online shopping.”

Last month, the company reported a quarterly sales drop of 19%, with revenues falling to $3.1 billion. Impacted by supply shortages and consumers who are a little less interested in nesting, U.S. sales decreased by 20.8%.

In a conference call announcing those results, Wayfair execs revealed they were closer to unveiling physical stores.

While the pandemic created a sales boom for most furniture brands, the race to digital and ongoing supply issues made the field fiercely competitive, dominated by Wayfair, Overstock.com, Amazon and Ikea.