Document And Entity Information Note To Financial Statement Details Textual Intangible assets Note 3 - Business Combinations Note 5 - Accounts Receivable Note 6 - Inventories bset_DebtInstrumentCarryingAmountCurrent Principal Balance, less current portion Amount of short-term debt after deduction of unamortized discount or premium. Includes, but is not limited to, notes payable, bonds payable, commercial loans, mortgage loans, convertible debt, subordinated debt and other types of debt, with maturities within one year or the normal operating cycle, if longer. Note 7 - Goodwill and Other Intangible Assets Note 8 - Notes Payable and Bank Credit Facility Note 9 - Post Employment Benefit Obligations Principal Balance, excluding current portion Amount of long-term debt before deduction of unamortized discount or premium excluding current portion. Includes, but is not limited to, notes payable, bonds payable, commercial loans, mortgage loans, convertible debt, subordinated debt and other types of debt, with initial maturities beyond one year or the normal operating cycle, if longer. Note 11 - Commitments and Contingencies Long-term liabilities Note 12 - Earnings Per Share Prepaid expenses and other current assets Note 13 - Segment Information Accounts receivable, net of reserve (Note 5) Note 3 - Business Combinations - Acquisitions (Details) Note 3 - Business Combinations - Acquired Identifiable Intangible Assets (Details) Note 5 - Accounts Receivable - Accounts Receivable (Details) bset_InterestRateOfCertificatesOfDeposit Interest Rate of Certificates of Deposit Represents the interest rate for certificates of deposit. Inventory, net of reserve (Note 6) Note 5 - Accounts Receivable - Activity in Allowance for Doubtful Accounts (Details) Note 6 - Inventories - Inventories (Details) us-gaap_LiabilitiesCurrent Total current liabilities Schedule of Maturities of Long-term Debt [Table Text Block] Note 6 - Inventories - Activity in Reserves for Excess Quantities and Obsolete Inventory by Segment (Details) Schedule of Debt [Table Text Block] Note 7 - Goodwill and Other Intangible Assets - Goodwill and Other Intangible Assets (Details) Note 7 - Goodwill and Other Intangible Assets - Changes in Carrying Amount of Goodwill by Reportable Segment (Details) Note 7 - Goodwill and Other Intangible Assets - Amortization Expense With Intangible Assets (Details) Note 7 - Goodwill and Other Intangible Assets - Estimated Future Amortization Expense for Intangible Assets (Details) Note 8 - Notes Payable and Bank Credit Facility - Real Estate Notes Payable and Bank Debt (Details) us-gaap_BusinessCombinationConsiderationTransferred1 Business Combination, Consideration Transferred, Total Note 8 - Notes Payable and Bank Credit Facility - Maturities of Notes Payable (Details) Note 9 - Post Employment Benefit Obligations - Pension Liability (Details) Note 9 - Post Employment Benefit Obligations - Components of Net Periodic Pension Cost (Details) Note 9 - Post Employment Benefit Obligations - Deferred Compensation Liability (Details) Note 9 - Post Employment Benefit Obligations - Recognized Deferred Compensation Expense (Details) Note 11 - Commitments and Contingencies - Future Minimum Lease Payments Under the Non-cancellable Operating Leases (Details) Note 12 - Earnings Per Share - Reconciliation of Basic and Diluted Loss Per Share (Details) Note 12 - Earnings Per Share - Antidilutive Securities (Details) Note 13 - Segment Information - Segment Information by Segment (Details) Accrued compensation and benefits us-gaap_PostemploymentBenefitsLiabilityCurrent Notes To Financial Statements Notes To Financial Statements [Abstract] Current portion of long-term debt Long-term Debt, Current Maturities, Total Less current portion Retail Stores [Member] Information pertaining to the retail stores. Schedule of Net Benefit Costs [Table Text Block] Distribution Centers [Member] Information pertaining to the distribution centers. us-gaap_ProceedsFromSaleOfLongtermInvestments Proceeds from Sale of Long-term Investments Proceeds from maturities and sales of investments bset_TaxCutsAndJobsActOf2017ProvisionalAdjustmentOfDeferredTaxAssetLiability Tax Cuts and Jobs Act of 2017 Provisional Adjustment of Deferred Tax Asset Liability The provisional impact of the remeasurement of deferred tax assets and liabilities resulting from the federal tax rate reductions in the Tax Cuts And Jobs Act of 2017. Other Gains and Losses [Text Block] The entire disclosure for other gains and losses. Retirement Plan Name [Axis] us-gaap_GoodwillGross Goodwill us-gaap_GoodwillImpairedAccumulatedImpairmentLoss Goodwill, Impaired, Accumulated Impairment Loss Retirement Plan Name [Domain] Transportation Equipment Leases [Member] Information pertaining to transportation equipment leases. Goodwill and Intangible Assets Disclosure [Text Block] bset_OperatingLeaseLeaseTerm Operating Lease, Lease Term The lease term for an operating lease. bset_RenewalTermOnOperatingLease Renewal Term On Operating Lease The renewal term for an operating lease. Schedule of Goodwill [Table Text Block] bset_LeaseGuaranteesTerm Lease Guarantees Term The term for the lease guarantees. Accrued compensation and benefits Lease Obligations of Licensee Operators [Member] The nature of a loss contingency and in this case it is lease obligations of a licensee operators. Pension Plan [Member] Dividends payable Accounts payable Loans, Notes, Trade and Other Receivables Disclosure [Text Block] Retirement Plan Type [Axis] Retirement Plan Type [Domain] Proceeds from sales of property and equipment Proceeds from Sale of Property, Plant, and Equipment, Total Supplemental Employee Retirement Plan [Member] Schedule of Recognized Identified Assets Acquired and Liabilities Assumed [Table Text Block] Other accrued liabilities us-gaap_PolicyTextBlockAbstract Accounting Policies Finite-Lived and Indefinite-Lived Intangible Assets Acquired as Part of Business Combination [Table Text Block] Trade Names [Member] Indefinite-lived Intangible Assets [Axis] Indefinite-lived Intangible Assets, Major Class Name [Domain] us-gaap_PaymentsToAcquirePropertyPlantAndEquipment Purchases of property and equipment Current liabilities Identifiable Assets Total assets Technology-Based Intangible Assets [Member] bset_OperatingLeasesFutureMinimumPaymentsDueYearSix Thereafter Amount of required minimum rental payments for operating leases having an initial or remaining non-cancelable lease term in excess of one year due after the sixth fiscal year following the latest fiscal year. Excludes interim and annual periods when interim periods are reported on a rolling approach, from latest balance sheet date. bset_OperatingLeasesFutureMinimumPaymentsDueInSixYears Fiscal 2023 Amount of required minimum rental payments for operating leases having an initial or remaining non-cancelable lease term in excess of one year due in the sixth fiscal year following the latest fiscal year. Excludes interim and annual periods when interim periods are reported on a rolling approach, from latest balance sheet date. Basic earnings (loss) per share, net income (loss) Bassett Home Furnishings, Columbus, Ohio [Member] Represents the Bassett Home Furnishings location in Columbus, Ohio that was acquired by the parent company from a licensee. Customer Relationships [Member] Diluted earnings (loss) per share, net income (loss) Legal Matters and Contingencies [Text Block] Finite-Lived Intangible Assets by Major Class [Axis] Finite-Lived Intangible Assets, Major Class Name [Domain] us-gaap_LossContingencyEstimateOfPossibleLoss Loss Contingency, Estimate of Possible Loss us-gaap_NetIncomeLoss Net income Net income us-gaap_FiniteLivedIntangibleAssetsAccumulatedAmortization Intangibles subject to amortization, Accumulated Amortization us-gaap_FiniteLivedIntangibleAssetsNet Total Intangibles subject to amortization, Intangible Assets, Net us-gaap_FiniteLivedIntangibleAssetsGross Intangibles subject to amortization, Gross Carrying Amount Capital expenditures bset_CostOfPropertyPlantAndEquiptmentAdditionsAccrualBasis Accrual basis cost of additions to property plant and equipment during the period. Loss Contingency, Nature [Domain] Schedule of Antidilutive Securities Excluded from Computation of Earnings Per Share [Table Text Block] us-gaap_GoodwillPurchaseAccountingAdjustments Goodwill, Purchase Accounting Adjustments Antidilutive Securities [Axis] Antidilutive Securities, Name [Domain] Goodwill arising from acquisition of Lane Venture (Note 3) us-gaap_IndefiniteLivedTradeNames Trade names Loss Contingency Nature [Axis] Business Combination Disclosure [Text Block] Property and equipment, net us-gaap_Goodwill Goodwill Balance, beginning Balance, ending Unsecured Debt [Member] Recognized Deferred Compensation Expense [Table Text Block] Tabular Disclosure of Deferred Compensation Expense recognized during the period. Long-term Debt, Type [Axis] Long-term Debt, Type [Domain] us-gaap_PensionExpense Deferred compensation expense Investing activities: Schedule of Pension Liability [Table Text Block] Tabular disclosure of pension liability. Earnings Per Share [Text Block] Accounts payable and accrued liabilities Intersegment Eliminations [Member] Minority Interest in Privately-held, Start-up Provider of Property and Casualty Insurance [Member] Represents information pertaining to a minority interest in a privately-held, start-up provider of property and casualty insurance. Income tax expense bset_ExcessTaxBenefitsOnSharebasedCompensation Excess tax Benefits on Share-based Compensation Amount of excess tax benefits on share-based compensation included in income tax provision. Acquisition of Lane Venture [Member] Represents the information pertaining to the purchase of certain assets and assumption of certain liabilities of Lane Venture from Heritage Home Group, LLC, in order to acquire Lane Venture. Cash and cash equivalents Cash and cash equivalents - beginning of period Cash and cash equivalents - end of period Former Retail Store, Las Vegas, Nevada [Member] Information pertaining to a former retail store in Las Vegas, NV. New store pre-opening costs Income taxes related to SERP Income taxes related to LTCA Amendment Flag us-gaap_ComprehensiveIncomeNetOfTax Total comprehensive income us-gaap_GainLossOnSaleOfPropertyPlantEquipment Gain (Loss) on Disposition of Property Plant Equipment, Total Gain on sale of property and equipment us-gaap_IncreaseDecreaseInOtherOperatingAssets Other current assets Current Fiscal Year End Date us-gaap_DebtInstrumentInterestRateStatedPercentage Debt Instrument, Interest Rate, Stated Percentage Lease Arrangement, Type [Axis] Lease Arrangement, Type [Domain] Document Fiscal Period Focus Document Fiscal Year Focus Document Period End Date Document Type us-gaap_DividendsCommonStockCash Cash dividends Document Information [Line Items] us-gaap_DebtInstrumentCollateralAmount Debt Instrument, Collateral Amount Document Information [Table] Entity Filer Category Entity Current Reporting Status Entity Voluntary Filers us-gaap_BusinessCombinationAcquisitionRelatedCosts Business Combination, Acquisition Related Costs Entity Well-known Seasoned Issuer Provision for asset impairment charge Impairment of Real Estate Impairment of investment in real estate us-gaap_AccountsReceivableNet Accounts receivable, net bset_BusinessCombinationProvisionalInformationInitialAccountingIncompleteAdjustmentAccountsReceivable Business Combination, Provisional Information, Initial Accounting Incomplete, Adjustment, Accounts Receivable This element represents the amount of any measurement period adjustment (as defined) realized during the reporting period to accounts receivable acquired in connection with a business combination for which the initial accounting was incomplete. us-gaap_IncreaseDecreaseInAccountsReceivable Accounts receivable Statement of Comprehensive Income [Abstract] Entity Central Index Key Reclassification of certain tax effects from accumulated other comprehensive loss Reclassification of Certain Tax Effects from Accumulated Other Comprehensive Income to Retained Earnings Per ASU 2018-02 Represents the amount of reclassification during the period of certain tax effects from accumulated other comprehensive income to retained earnings, per ASU 2018-02. Entity Registrant Name Entity [Domain] Legal Entity [Axis] us-gaap_AmortizationOfIntangibleAssets Intangible asset amortization expense ASU 2018-02 [Member] Represents information pertaining to Accounting Standards Update 2018-02. Entity Common Stock, Shares Outstanding (in shares) us-gaap_StockRepurchasedAndRetiredDuringPeriodValue Purchase and retirement of common stock us-gaap_DefinedBenefitPlanAmortizationOfPriorServiceCostCredit Amortization of prior service costs us-gaap_IncreaseDecreaseInInventories Inventories us-gaap_DefinedBenefitPlanAmortizationOfGainsLosses Amortization of loss Trading Symbol us-gaap_DefinedBenefitPlanNetPeriodicBenefitCost Net periodic pension cost us-gaap_DefinedBenefitPlanServiceCost Service cost us-gaap_DefinedBenefitPlanInterestCost Interest cost Organization, Consolidation and Presentation of Financial Statements Disclosure [Text Block] us-gaap_LineOfCreditFacilityRemainingBorrowingCapacity Line of Credit Facility, Remaining Borrowing Capacity us-gaap_TableTextBlock Notes Tables us-gaap_LineOfCreditFacilityMaximumBorrowingCapacity Line of Credit Facility, Maximum Borrowing Capacity us-gaap_DefinedBenefitPlanAmortizationOfTransitionAssetObligation Amortization of transition obligation Gain on sale of investment Gain on sale of investment Additions charged to expense Line of Credit Facility, Lender [Domain] Lender Name [Axis] us-gaap_LiabilitiesAndStockholdersEquity Total liabilities and stockholders’ equity Retained earnings Retained earnings-beginning of period Retained earnings-end of period us-gaap_AssetsNoncurrent Total long-term assets Accumulated other comprehensive loss Debt Disclosure [Text Block] Changes in operating assets and liabilities: us-gaap_DisclosureTextBlockAbstract Notes to Financial Statements us-gaap_OtherNoncashIncomeExpense Other, net Inventory Disclosure [Text Block] Schedule of Inventory, Current [Table Text Block] Goodwill and other intangible assets Total goodwill and other intangible assets Unvested Shares [Member] Shares of stock that have not yet vested. Schedule of Deferred Compensation Liability [Table Text Block] The tabular disclosure of the deferred compensation liability. us-gaap_DeferredIncomeTaxExpenseBenefit Deferred income taxes Non-cash Change in Accounts Payable Related to Property, Plant, and Equipment [Member] Represents information pertaining to the non-cash change in accounts payable as it relates to property, plant, and equipment. us-gaap_FiniteLivedIntangibleAssetsAmortizationExpenseRemainderOfFiscalYear Remainder of fiscal 2018 us-gaap_FiniteLivedIntangibleAssetsAmortizationExpenseYearTwo Fiscal 2019 us-gaap_FiniteLivedIntangibleAssetsAmortizationExpenseYearThree Fiscal 2020 us-gaap_FiniteLivedIntangibleAssetsAmortizationExpenseYearFour Fiscal 2021 Furniture and Accessories [Member] Information pertaining to furniture and accessories. us-gaap_FiniteLivedIntangibleAssetsAmortizationExpenseYearFive Fiscal 2022 us-gaap_DeferredCompensationArrangementWithIndividualRecordedLiability Deferred Compensation Arrangement with Individual, Recorded Liability Schedule of Finite-Lived Intangible Assets, Future Amortization Expense [Table Text Block] Acquired allowance on accounts receivable (Note 3) Amount of increase in the allowance for doubtful accounts receivable resulting from business acquisitions during the period. Real Estate Notes Payable Operated in Retail Segment [Member] Information pertaining to the real estate notes payable operated in the retail segment. Other us-gaap_OtherAssetsNoncurrent Useful Life (Year) Acquired reserve on inventory (Note 3) Represents the amount of increase in the inventory valuation reserves during the period resulting from business acquisitions. Other Postretirement Benefits, Individual Contracts, Type of Deferred Compensation [Axis] Sales revenue us-gaap_Revenues Sales revenues Other Postretirement Benefits, Individual Contracts, Type of Deferred Compensation [Domain] us-gaap_AmortizationOfDebtDiscountPremium Amortization of Debt Discount (Premium) Deferred Bonus and Profit Sharing Arrangements, Individual Contracts, Type of Deferred Compensation [Axis] us-gaap_LesseeOperatingLeaseTermOfContract Lessee, Operating Lease, Term of Contract Deferred Bonus and Profit Sharing Arrangement, Individual Contract, Type of Deferred Compensation [Domain] Other Significant Noncash Transaction [Axis] Other Significant Noncash Transaction, Name [Domain] Depreciation and amortization Depreciation and amortization us-gaap_AssetsCurrent Total current assets Common stock Adjustments to reconcile net income to net cash provided by (used in) operating activities: Range [Domain] Maximum [Member] Minimum [Member] Weighted Average [Member] Product and Service [Axis] Other current assets us-gaap_DeferredTaxAssetsNetNoncurrent Deferred income taxes Product and Service [Domain] Range [Axis] Investment, Name [Domain] Investment, Name [Axis] us-gaap_InventoryLIFOReserve LIFO adjustment Inventories Inventory, net Bank Two [Member] Refers to information regarding the second of two banks that the entity usually uses for financing. Bank One [Member] Refers to information regarding the first of two banks that the entity usually uses for financing. us-gaap_InventoryWorkInProcess Work in process us-gaap_InventoryRawMaterialsAndSupplies Raw materials and supplies us-gaap_InventoryValuationReserves Reserve for excess and obsolete inventory Balance, beginning Balance, ending us-gaap_InventoryFinishedGoods Wholesale finished goods Selling, general and administrative expenses excluding new store pre-opening costs SGA Expenses Excluding New Store Pre-opening Costs The aggregate total costs related to selling a firm's product and services, as well as all other general and administrative expenses. This excludes new store pre-opening costs. us-gaap_InventoryGross Total inventories on first-in, first-out method Customer deposits Operating activities: Schedule of Segment Reporting Information, by Segment [Table Text Block] Statement [Line Items] us-gaap_AccountsReceivableGrossCurrent Gross accounts receivable us-gaap_AllowanceForDoubtfulAccountsReceivableCurrent Allowance for doubtful accounts Balance, beginning Balance, ending Accounts receivable, net us-gaap_NumberOfReportableSegments Number of Reportable Segments Tenant improvement allowance received from lessors Tenant improvement allowances received from lessors as of the reporting period. Sales revenue: Short-term investments Short-term Investments, Total Additional paid-in capital Stockholders’ equity us-gaap_OtherNonoperatingIncomeExpense Other loss, net Property, Plant and Equipment, Type [Axis] Property, Plant and Equipment, Type [Domain] Segment Reporting Disclosure [Text Block] Current assets Fair Value Disclosures [Text Block] us-gaap_CustomerAdvancesCurrent Customer deposits us-gaap_NetCashProvidedByUsedInFinancingActivities Net cash used in financing activities Total deferred compensation liability Total pension liability Postemployment Benefits Liability, Total Income (loss) from Operations us-gaap_OperatingIncomeLoss Income from operations Postemployment Benefits Disclosure [Text Block] us-gaap_NetCashProvidedByUsedInOperatingActivities Net cash provided by operating activities Net cash used in investing activities us-gaap_DefinedBenefitPensionPlanCurrentAndNoncurrentLiabilities Liability, Defined Benefit Pension Plan us-gaap_CashAndCashEquivalentsPeriodIncreaseDecrease Change in cash and cash equivalents Cost of furniture and accessories sold Consolidation Items [Domain] us-gaap_InventoryWriteDown Additions charged to expense Consolidation Items [Axis] bset_IntangibleAssetsGrossIncludingGoodwill Total goodwill and other intangible assets Amount before accumulated amortization of intangible assets. Logistical Services [Member] Information pertaining to the logistical services. bset_FinitelivedIntangibleAssetsAmortizationExpenseAfterYearSix Thereafter Amount of amortization expense for assets, excluding financial assets and goodwill, lacking physical substance with a finite life expected to be recognized after the sixth fiscal year following the latest fiscal year. Excludes interim and annual periods when interim periods are reported on a rolling approach, from latest balance sheet date. bset_FiniteLivedIntangibleAssetsAmortizationExpenseYearSix Fiscal 2023 Amount of amortization expense for assets, excluding financial assets and goodwill, lacking physical substance with a finite life expected to be recognized during the sixth fiscal year following the latest fiscal year. Excludes interim and annual periods when interim periods are reported on a rolling approach, from latest balance sheet date. us-gaap_PaymentsRelatedToTaxWithholdingForShareBasedCompensation Taxes paid related to net share settlement of equity awards us-gaap_LettersOfCreditOutstandingAmount Letters of Credit Outstanding, Amount us-gaap_PaymentsOfDividends Cash dividends Condensed Financial Statements [Text Block] us-gaap_AccruedRentCurrentAndNoncurrent Accrued Rent us-gaap_PaymentsForRepurchaseOfCommonStock Repurchases of common stock Proceeds from the exercise of stock options Other issuance of common stock Equity Components [Axis] Equity Component [Domain] Real estate notes payable Long-term Debt, Total us-gaap_IncomeLossFromContinuingOperationsBeforeIncomeTaxesExtraordinaryItemsNoncontrollingInterest Income before income taxes Deferred Compensation, Management Savings Plan [Member] Represents information about the Management Savings Plan. Transportation Equipment [Member] Pension Plans Defined Benefit and Supplemental Employee Retirement Plan [Member] Represents information about Pension Plans Defined Benefit and Supplemental Employee Retirement Plan. Unamortized discount, current portion us-gaap_DebtInstrumentUnamortizedDiscountNoncurrent Unamortized discount, noncurrent portion us-gaap_DebtInstrumentUnamortizedDiscount Unamortized Discount Principal Balance Total repayments of principal Options and restricted shares, net income per share (in dollars per share) Represents the effect of dilutive securities, stock options and restrictive stock units per share. Deferred Compensation Plans [Member] Represents information about deferred compensation plans. Accounting Policies [Abstract] Management Savings Plan [member] Represents the Bassett Furniture Industries, Incorporated Management Savings Plan, an unfunded, nonqualified deferred compensation plan maintained for the benefit of certain highly compensated or management level employees. Selling, General and Administrative Expenses [Member] Dividends per share (in dollars per share) us-gaap_AllowanceForDoubtfulAccountsReceivableWriteOffs Write-offs and other reductions Income Statement Location [Axis] Income Statement Location [Domain] Repayments of notes payable Name of Property [Axis] Segments [Axis] Name of Property [Domain] Segments [Domain] Options and restricted shares, weighted average shares (in shares) Company-owned Retail Stores [Member] Retail stores that are owned by the company. Anti-dilutive securities (in shares) Diluted earnings (loss) per share, weighted average shares (in shares) us-gaap_CostMethodInvestmentsRealizedGains Cost-method Investments, Realized Gains Scenario, Forecast [Member] Statement [Table] Scenario [Axis] Scenario, Unspecified [Domain] Diluted earnings per share (in dollars per share) Statement of Financial Position [Abstract] Basic earnings (loss) per share, weighted average shares (in shares) us-gaap_OperatingLeasesFutureMinimumPaymentsDue Total future minimum lease payments us-gaap_EffectiveIncomeTaxRateContinuingOperations Effective Income Tax Rate Reconciliation, Percent, Total Business Acquisition [Axis] us-gaap_OperatingLeasesFutureMinimumPaymentsDueInFourYears Fiscal 2021 Basic earnings per share (in dollars per share) Business Acquisition, Acquiree [Domain] us-gaap_OperatingLeasesFutureMinimumPaymentsDueInFiveYears Fiscal 2022 us-gaap_CostMethodInvestmentsOriginalCost Cost Method Investments, Original Cost Statement of Cash Flows [Abstract] us-gaap_OperatingLeasesFutureMinimumPaymentsDueInTwoYears Fiscal 2019 us-gaap_OperatingLeasesFutureMinimumPaymentsDueInThreeYears Fiscal 2020 us-gaap_LongTermDebtMaturitiesRepaymentsOfPrincipalRemainderOfFiscalYear Remainder of fiscal 2018 us-gaap_OperatingLeasesFutureMinimumPaymentsRemainderOfFiscalYear Remainder of fiscal 2018 Income Statement [Abstract] us-gaap_OtherComprehensiveIncomeLossNetOfTaxPortionAttributableToParent Other comprehensive income, net of tax Schedule Of Accounts Receivable [Table Text Block] The tabular disclosure of the accounts receivable. bset_InventoryRetailMerchandise Retail merchandise The amount of inventory pertaining to retail merchandise. Activity In Reserves For Excess Quantities And Obsolete Inventory By Segment [Table Text Block] The tabular disclosure of the activity in reserves for the excess quantities and obsolete inventory categorized by segment. Wholesale Segment [Member] The name of the segment, in this case it is the wholesale segment. Retail Segment [Member] The name of the segment, in this case it is the retail segment. Schedule of Credit Losses for Financing Receivables, Current [Table Text Block] us-gaap_LongTermDebtMaturitiesRepaymentsOfPrincipalInYearTwo Fiscal 2019 bset_InventoryWriteoffs Write-offs Charges to the reserve to reflect the disposal of inventory previously reserved. New Accounting Pronouncement, Early Adoption [Axis] New Accounting Principles, Early Adoption [Domain] Schedule of Future Minimum Rental Payments for Operating Leases [Table Text Block] Description of New Accounting Pronouncements Not yet Adopted [Text Block] bset_DefinedBenefitPlanFixedFutureBenefitAward Defined Benefit Plan, Fixed Future Benefit Award The fixed future benefit awarded to participants of the unfunded defined benefit plan. bset_DefinedBenefitPlanFixedFutureBenefitAwardIndividualParticipants Defined Benefit Plan, Fixed Future Benefit Award, Individual Participants The fixed future benefit awarded to each individual participant of the unfunded defined benefit plan. us-gaap_BusinessCombinationProvisionalInformationInitialAccountingIncompleteAdjustmentInventory Business Combination, Provisional Information, Initial Accounting Incomplete, Adjustment, Inventory Schedule of Intangible Assets and Goodwill [Table Text Block] Land and Building occupied by Spring, Texas Retail Store [Member] Represents the information pertaining to the land and building occupied by Spring, Texas retail store. bset_BusinessCombinationProvisionalInformationInitialAccountingIncompleteAdjustmentAccruedLiabilities Business Combination, Provisional Information, Initial Accounting Incomplete, Adjustment, Accrued Liabilities This element represents the amount of any measurement period adjustment (as defined) realized during the reporting period to accrued liabilities assumed in connection with a business combination for which the initial accounting was incomplete. Finite-lived Intangible Assets Amortization Expense [Table Text Block] Zenith Freight Lines [Member] The name of the affiliate involved in the investment. us-gaap_LiabilitiesNoncurrent Total long-term liabilities us-gaap_PaymentsForProceedsFromOtherInvestingActivities Other Financing activities: us-gaap_EffectiveIncomeTaxRateReconciliationAtFederalStatutoryIncomeTaxRate Effective Income Tax Rate Reconciliation, at Federal Statutory Income Tax Rate, Percent Other long-term liabilities Amortization associated with supplemental executive retirement defined benefit plan (SERP) Amortization associated with Long Term Cash Awards (LTCA) us-gaap_OtherComprehensiveIncomeDefinedBenefitPlanNetPriorServiceCostCreditArisingDuringPeriodBeforeTax Recognize prior service cost associated with Long Term Cash Awards (LTCA) us-gaap_IncomeTaxReconciliationTaxExemptIncome Effective Income Tax Rate Reconciliation, Tax Exempt Income, Amount Post employment benefit obligations Postemployment Benefits Liability, Noncurrent Financed Through Commercial Mortgages [Member] The type of loan that is financed through commercial mortgages. us-gaap_BusinessCombinationRecognizedIdentifiableAssetsAcquiredAndLiabilitiesAssumedNet Net identifiable assets acquired Other comprehensive income: us-gaap_BusinessCombinationRecognizedIdentifiableAssetsAcquiredGoodwillAndLiabilitiesAssumedNet Total net assets acquired us-gaap_StockholdersEquity Total stockholders' equity us-gaap_BusinessCombinationRecognizedIdentifiableAssetsAcquiredAndLiabilitiesAssumedLiabilities Total liabilities assumed us-gaap_PaymentsToAcquireBusinessesNetOfCashAcquired Cash paid for business acquisition Unfunded Deferred Compensation Plan [Member] The description of a deferred compensation plan. Class of Stock [Axis] Notes payable Total long-term notes payable Schedule of Earnings Per Share, Basic and Diluted [Table Text Block] us-gaap_PaymentsToAcquireBusinessesGross Payments to Acquire Businesses, Gross Zenith Note Payable [Member] Information pertaining to the Zenith Note Payable. us-gaap_BusinessCombinationRecognizedIdentifiableAssetsAcquiredAndLiabilitiesAssumedCurrentLiabilitiesOther Other accrued liabilities us-gaap_BusinessCombinationRecognizedIdentifiableAssetsAcquiredAndLiabilitiesAssumedAssets Total identifiable assets acquired us-gaap_BusinessCombinationRecognizedIdentifiableAssetsAcquiredAndLiabilitiesAssumedCurrentLiabilitiesAccountsPayable Accounts payable Operating Segments [Member] Real Estate Notes Payable [Member] Information pertaining to the real estate notes payable.