Why DTC Rug Brands Are Targeting Bergen County, NJ Shoppers
DTC rug brand Ernesta is opening its fourth physical showroom, betting big on a clicks-to-bricks strategy. We break down why this move into the affluent NJ market is a masterclass in building trust and driving sales for high-ticket items, and what every ecommerce brand can learn from it.
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Introduction
In a world where "digital-first" is the common mantra, a growing number of direct-to-consumer (DTC) brands are making a surprising pivot: back to brick-and-mortar. It’s a trend that signals a major shift in how high-end products are sold online.
Case in point: DTC brand Ernesta just unveiled its newest showroom in Summit, New Jersey, their fourth physical store in just over a year. This isn’t a retreat from ecommerce; it’s a calculated strategy to conquer it.
For any brand selling high-ticket items online, from designer rugs in Bergen County, NJ, to luxury furniture, Ernesta’s playbook offers a critical look into the future of retail. It's a future where tactile experience and digital convenience must merge to win over the modern consumer.
Key Takeaways
The DTC Pivot: Why Online Brands Are Rushing into Physical Retail
It’s one of the more interesting shifts we’re seeing in the market right now. A direct-to-consumer (DTC) brand, built on the back of slick digital ads and a seamless online checkout, suddenly decides to get into the messy, expensive world of brick-and-mortar retail.
But the recent opening of Ernesta's fourth showroom in just over a year, a 1,390-square-foot space in the affluent enclave of Summit, New Jersey, is anything but a random move. It's a calculated play that every ecommerce brand, especially those in high-ticket categories, needs to watch closely.
This isn't just about opening another storefront. It’s a deliberate strategy to capture a discerning customer base that includes both retail consumers and design professionals.
For brands selling products like premium wool rugs or custom area rugs, the digital world has its limits. Ernesta's expansion into the NYC metro area, strategically placed to attract shoppers from wealthy communities including nearby Bergen County, demonstrates a keen understanding that for some products, seeing is believing. This offline push is designed to build a brand that feels permenant and trustworthy, moving beyond the transient nature of an Instagram ad.
High-Touch vs. High-Tech: Closing the Trust Gap for Premium Goods
Why would a successful online brand invest in rent, staff, and physical inventory? The answer lies in the nature of the product itself.
You can’t truly appreciate the texture of a hand-knotted wool rug or the exact shade of a natural fiber rug through a screen. For these high-consideration purchases, the sensory experience is everything. This is where physical showrooms become a critical tool for building brand trust.
As one Ernesta representative put it, their goal is to “bridge the gap between online convenience and the ability to physically see and feel our rugs.”
This single statement cuts to the core of the issue. For ecommerce sellers, especially in home goods, furniture, or luxury niches, the biggest hurdle is often purchase anxiety. A customer might hesitate to spend thousands on a custom rug they’ve never seen in person.
A physical showroom eliminates that risk. It allows for in-person consultations, tactile interaction with samples, and a level of service that’s impossible to replicate through a chatbot. This high-touch approach transforms a risky online transaction into a confident, informed purchase.
Online-Only vs. Omnichannel for High-Ticket Home Goods
Feature | Online-Only Model | Omnichannel (Physical + Digital) Model |
|---|---|---|
Customer Trust | Relies on reviews, photos, and digital assets. Higher perceived risk. | Significantly higher trust due to physical interaction and in-person service. |
Conversion Rate | Lower for high-priced, sensory items. Dependent on convincing copy and images. | 20-40% higher conversion rates for considered purchases after in-person interaction. |
Return Rate | Higher, as product may not meet expectations set by digital images. | Lower, as customers make more informed decisions after seeing the product. |
Average Order Value | Often lower; customers may be hesitant to make large purchases sight-unseen. | Often higher; consultations can lead to up-sells and custom orders. |
Brand Building | Reliant on digital marketing spend; can feel less permanent. | Physical presence builds legitimacy and acts as a powerful marketing tool. |
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The Economics of Experience: How Showrooms Boost the Bottom Line
Let's talk numbers. The move to physical retail isn't just about creating warm, fuzzy feelings; it's a powerful financial strategy.
According to retail industry studies, brands that blend physical showrooms with a strong ecommerce presence see a 20-40% lift in conversion rates for products that require significant consideration. That's a massive impact on the bottom line.
How does this happen? It’s a multi-step process:
Risk Reduction: As mentioned, seeing a product in person de-risks the purchase. A customer who touches and feels a designer rug is far more likely to buy it than someone who only sees a picture. It just makes sense.
Higher Transaction Value: In-person design consultations are a natural environment for upselling. A knowledgeable staff member can recommend a larger size, a premium material, or a custom design, increasing the average order value.
Lower Return Rates: Returns are a huge profit drain for ecommerce businesses. When a customer has seen the product in person, the chances of it being returned because "it wasn't what I expected" plummet. This protects your margins.
Increased Brand Loyalty: A positive, high-touch experience creates a strong emotional connection to the brand. That customer is more likely to return for future purchases and recommend the brand to others. This is how you build lifetime value, not just a one-time sale.
Ernesta's strategy confirms what we've seen across the industry: combining digital convenience with physical evaluation opportunities is a recipe for higher transaction values and healthier profit margins.
The Power of Place: Targeting Rugs for Bergen County, NJ and Beyond
Opening a showroom in Summit, New Jersey, wasn't a random choice. It's a prime example of a hyper-local retail strategy.
Brands like Ernesta aren't trying to be everywhere; they are targeting specific, affluent markets where style-conscious consumers live. Summit and its surrounding areas, including the high-income communities of Bergen County, are filled with the exact demographic that invests in high-end home furnishings.
These are customers who are more likely to undertake major design projects and seek out premium products like wool rugs and custom rugs.
For any ecommerce brand, the lesson here is to analyze your own sales data. Where are your best customers clustered? A physical presence, even a small one, in a key market can have an outsized impact. It signals that you understand the local taste and are committed to serving that community.
This strategy moves beyond generic national campaigns and builds deep, local roots. This is how you effectively capture customers searching for 'rug stores in Bergen County' even when your physical pin is a few miles away… you become a regional destination for quality.
For many shoppers looking for designer rugs in Bergen County, NJ, the short drive to a dedicated, high-end showroom like Ernesta’s in Summit is part of the purchasing proces. They aren't just buying an area rug; they're investing in a centerpiece for their home and expect a commensurate level of service and expertise.
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Your Brand's Clicks-to-Bricks Playbook
So, how can other ecommerce sellers replicate this success? You don't have to jump straight to a 1,400-square-foot showroom. There's a scalable path to integrating physical experiences into your DTC brand. It's about being strategic and data-driven.
This is a journey we help brands navigate, moving from pure-play ecommerce to a more resilient, omnichannel model. It starts with understanding where your customers are and what they truly want. From there, you can build a physical presence that supports and amplifies your digital efforts, creating a powerful growth flywheel.
For a deeper dive into scaling your brand effectively, check out our insights on what a true ecommerce accelerator can offer.
A Phased Approach to Physical Retail
Phase | Action | Key Objective |
|---|---|---|
1. Data Analysis | Analyze your sales data to identify geographic clusters of high-value customers. Look at zip codes, average order value, and repeat purchase rates. | Identify your top 3-5 potential markets for a physical presence. |
2. Low-Cost Testing | Launch a pop-up shop or a 'store-within-a-store' concept in one of your target markets. | Test demand, gather feedback, and measure the impact on local online sales with minimal financial risk. |
3. Forge Local Partnerships | Connect with local interior designers, real estate agents, and complementary businesses. Offer exclusive previews or referral programs. | Build a local ecosystem that drives traffic and builds community trust before a major launch. |
4. The Permanent Showroom | If the test is successful, invest in a small, permanent showroom. Focus on experience over inventory. | Create a permanent brand hub for sales, consultations, and community events. |
5. Full Integration | Seamlessly integrate the showroom with your online store (e.g., in-store pickup, online appointment booking). | Create a true omnichannel experience where the physical and digital channels support each other. |
No Showroom? No Problem. How to Build Trust Digitally
Let's be realistic. Opening a physical location isn't feasible for every ecommerce brand. But the underlying principle, building tangible trust, is universal.
If you can't bring the customer to the showroom, you have to bring the showroom experience to the customer. This requires a significant investment in your digital storefront and marketing assets.
Key Strategies for Digital Trust-Building:
An Elite Sampling Program: For products where texture and color are key, a best-in-class sampling program is non-negotiable. Make it easy and affordable for customers to order high-quality samples. The experience of receiving and interacting with these samples is a crucial touchpoint.
Advanced Visualization Tools: Invest in technology that helps customers overcome the imagination gap. Augmented reality (AR) tools that let a customer see how a rug or piece of furniture would look in their own room are becoming table stakes in the home goods category.
Unmatched Branded Content: Your product listings are your digital showrooms. They need more than a few static images. We're talking high-resolution video, 360-degree views, and lifestyle photography that tells a story. At Fifth Shelf, our Listing Audit & Quality Score Analyzer (LAQS)™ is designed to identify exactly these kinds of gaps and opportunities in your digital presentation.
Expert-Led Digital Consultations: Offer one-on-one video consultations with product experts or designers. This replicates the in-store experience and allows you to answer detailed questions, building the same confidence a showroom visit would.
Brands that can’t go physical must overcompensate with a superior digital experience. This is where a Custom Solutions Partner can be invaluable, helping to build out the technical and creative assets needed to compete.
How Do Physical Showrooms Actually Impact Online Sales?
This is the million-dollar question for any digitally native brand. Does investing in a physical location cannibalize your online sales?
The overwhelming evidence says no. In fact, it does the opposite. It creates a powerful "halo effect" that lifts the entire brand.
A physical showroom acts as a three-dimensional advertisement. People who drive by it are introduced to your brand. Local press might cover the opening. Most importantly, it gives your brand a sense of legitimacy and permanence that a website alone cannot. This increased brand awareness directly fuels online growth.
We often see a significant uptick in direct website traffic and branded search queries in the regions surrounding a new showroom.
Furthermore, consumer behavior has evolved. Many customers now engage in "webrooming," where they research online and then visit a store to make the final purchase. The reverse, "showrooming," (browsing in-store and then buying online) is also common. An omnichannel brand captures both types of customers.
By having both channels, you meet the customer wherever they are most comfortable converting. Tracking this complex journey is crucial, which is why having a unified analytics platform is essential to see the full picture.
The Future is 'Phygital': Why Integration is Everything
The success of brands like Ernesta sends a clear message: the future of retail isn't a battle between online and offline. It's about the seamless integration of the two.
This is the essence of a "phygital" or unified commerce strategy. Your website, social media, and physical showrooms shouldn't operate in silos; they should be interconnected parts of a single, cohesive brand experience.
Imagine this customer journey...
A homeowner in Bergen County sees an ad for Ernesta on Instagram. They browse the website but are hesitant to buy a custom rug online. They see there's a showroom in Summit and book an appointment online. At the showroom, they work with a designer, see the materials, and finalize their choice. A week later, they receive an email with a link to a private gallery showing their completed rug before it ships.
Every step of that process was smooth, interconnected, and reinforced the brand's value. This is the new standard, especially for the booming high-ticket ecommerce market. It's not just about selling a product; it's about delivering an experience.
For DTC brands looking to build long-term, sustainable growth, the lesson from Ernesta's New Jersey showroom is clear: the most successful brands of tomorrow will be the ones that master the art of blending the physical and the digital.
Conclusion
Ernesta's new showroom in Summit is far more than just a new dot on the map. It's a masterclass in modern brand building for high-consideration products.
It proves that for certain categories, physical touchpoints aren't just a bonus—they're essential for building the trust required to close a sale. The data is clear: this "clicks-to-bricks" strategy drives higher conversions, reduces returns, and builds lasting brand loyalty.
For other ecommerce sellers, this serves as a powerful case study. Whether you're planning a physical expansion or looking to replicate the high-touch experience digitally, the core lesson is the same: you must find ways to close the trust gap.
Analyze your data, understand your customers' needs, and invest in experiences—be they physical or digital—that make them feel confident in their purchase. The brands that successfully merge the convenience of online with the trust of offline will be the ones to win the future of retail.
Sources
[1] Retail Dive. (2025, July 22). Ernesta opens New Jersey showroom as it expands its retail footprint. https://www.retaildive.com/news/ernesta-rug-summit-new-jersey-showroom/753541/
[2] PR Newswire. (2025, July 15). Ernesta expands retail footprint with new showroom opening in Summit, NJ. https://www.prnewswire.com/news-releases/ernesta-expands-retail-footprint-with-new-showroom-opening-in-summit-nj-302505669.html
[3] Ernesta. (n.d.). Locations. https://www.ernestarugs.com/locations
[4] ROI-NJ. (2025, July 15). Ernesta opens new showroom in Summit, expanding retail presence. https://www.roi-nj.com/2025/07/15/industry/retail/ernesta-opens-new-showroom-in-summit-expanding-retail-presence/
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