The company was one of the largest suppliers of kitchens and bedroom furniture in the United Kingdom, and operated mainly in retail parks in out of town locations.

[1] After success in its early decades, it experienced recurring financial problems accompanied by several changes of ownership, and on 26 November 2008, it was announced that the business had been placed into administration.

[2] Merchant Equity Partners, headed by Henry Jackson, was the last company to own it, before it was sold to the management in September 2008 for a "small profit".

Following its closure, the MFI brand was purchased by Victoria Plumb, and was relaunched as an online only retailer on 30 November 2011[5][6] only for it to cease trading again in July 2015.

As part of this expansion, VictoriaPlum.com announced on 17 March 2016 that it was set to revive the MFI brand name, to represent its exclusive collection of low cost, value for money bedroom furniture.

[8] The MFI Retail business was founded in 1964 as Mullard Furniture Industries by two British men, Noel Lister and Donald Searle, who previously traded in war surplus goods.

During 2004 to 2005, serious and highly publicised IT problems affecting customers damaged MFI Retail's credibility, and the finance director and chief operating officer left the Group.

In September 2006, the MFI Retail business was acquired by Merchant Equity Partners for £1 after which the parent company changed its name to Galiform.

The business had sought to upgrade many aspects of its operations, including greater focus on customer service; updating and improving the product range; improving utilisation of floor space; establishing closer supplier relationships; investing in logistics, IT, supply systems and product development and enhancing internal communications.

In a six-month survey by consumer magazine Which?, it emerged that four out of five kitchens in the "sale" had never actually been sold at the higher price against which the discount claims were being made.

In September 2007, MFI Retail was forced to withdraw a television advert featuring a woman slapping her husband in the face twice and shouting at him for leaving the toilet seat up.

The ASA concluded that it "was likely to cause serious or widespread offence to viewers and could be seen to condone intimidation, domestic violence and aggression as an acceptable way to resolve issues".