Jul 14, 2009. /Lesprom Network/. According to the latest BRC-KPMG Retail Sales Monitor sales of furniture and floorcoverings in June were down on the previous year, Cabinet Maker reported. The latest monitor revealed that furniture and floorcoverings remained well below their year-earlier level, and the fall was against a very weak June 2008. Housing market weakness and consumer caution continued to hit big-ticket items. In addition to this the monitor stated that hot weather caused people to shun major purchases of indoor furniture such as fitted kitchens and sofas but bought garden furniture instead, especially as it was usually cheaper. However according to the British Retail Consortium and KPMG some better forward orders for indoor furniture were helped by clearance offers.