Daily News Archive
Brought to you by Home Furnishings Business
August 8,
2010 by in UnCategorized 
By Home Furnishings Business in Bedding on August 9, 2010
Magniflex USA President Marco Magni announced that a trademark infringement lawsuit filed against it by the Bellagio hotel casino in Las Vegas was being reviewed by the company's attorneys, yet he believed that the lawsuit was largely without merit.
"We named our aromatherapy mattress the 'Bellagio Lavender' after the city in the Lake Como region of northern Italy," Magni said. "We are proud of our Italian heritage, and as a result, many of our mattresses are branded to pay homage to major cities and cultural centers in our country. This branding strategy is not unlike the marketing approaches taken by hundreds of global products, services, and real estate properties that carry the name of famous international cities."
Magniflex emphasized that its brand is synonymous with fine "made in Italy" craftsmanship and that, as a result, many of its products' names celebrate this identity and quality. The company believes that its Bellagio Lavender mattress--which has wholly unique features such as the infusion of pure lavender--can in no way be confused with a dramatically different product that happens to be named after a hotel-casino in Las Vegas.
The Bellagio Lavender mattress was initially launched in Italy and European Union in 2009 before it was introduced in the United States this year.
Magni added that, when naming the Bellagio Lavender mattress, Magniflex was unaware of the hotel's line of home products or the pending trademark of the Bellagio as a brand name.
"Upon review of these trademark-related matters, Magniflex will assess the validity of the trademark infringement claim and, subsequently, we will address all relevant legal and branding issues as they pertain to our product marketing initiatives in the United States and worldwide," he said.
Magniflex is Italys largest mattress manufacturer, producing a broad line of bedding products that the company ships to more than 70 countries around the world.
August 5,
2010 by in UnCategorized
By Home Furnishings Business in Case Goods on August 6, 2010
Chris Rayle has joined Legacy Classic Furniture as vice president of merchandising.
Rayle will have responsibility for overseeing Legacy Classic's youth and nursery furniture under the Legacy Classic Kids brand. Additionally he will assume responsibility for the development of Legacy Classic's casual dining collections at the company's new factory in Bangladesh.
"Chris brings an extensive background in developing and merchandising casegoods furniture from Asia," said Lee Boone, president of Legacy Classic, High Point. "Furthermore, his knowledge of the marketplace and merchandising expertise bring new energy and a fresh perspective to our business. Our youth business continues to grow and deserves a dedicated executive to lead the charge. Initially, Chris will spend much of his time meeting with our key youth retailers to understand their needs and identify opportunities in the dynamic youth category. Chris is a high-caliber leader with a terrific can-do attitude. I am confident he will take our kids business to the next level."
Rayle most recently served at Klaussner Furniture as vice president of merchandising over casegoods. He has 12 years prior experience in the furniture industry in
sourcing and merchandising.
Legacy Classic Furniture, a Samson Marketing company, is a vertically integrated supplier of bedroom, dining room, casual dining, youth and nursery furniture to retailers and specialty stores primarily in the United States and Canada.
August 5,
2010 by in UnCategorized
By Home Furnishings Business in Furniture Retailing on August 6, 2010
Furniture Row will build a furniture shopping destination in Tempe, Ariz., the Phoenix Business Journal reported.
The furniture retail center, which will include Furniture Row's store brand lineup of Oak Express, Bedroom Expressions, Sofa Mart and the Denver Mattress Co., should total 70,000 square feet, and will be located adjacent to an Ikea store in Tempe's Emerald Design Center.
Furniture Row operates 330 stores in 31 states.
August 5,
2010 by in UnCategorized
By Home Furnishings Business in Financial Reports on August 6, 2010
In advance of a meeting with analysts and investors next week, Kurt Darrow, president and chief executive officer of La-Z-Boy Inc. (NYSE: LZB) said the company's first quarter results due out Aug. 17 will show "relatively flat to slightly increased sales" and earnings per share in "a break-even range."
In a release, Darrow said the company's first quarter results were negatively impacted by several factors, including increased raw material costs and supply chain disruptions and delays. Hurricane Alex, he said, also affected shipping from La-Z-Boy's Mexican-based cut-and-sew operations. Those operations are also in transition as the company shifts its custom cut-and-sew product from its U.S. facilities.
"In addition to seasonality playing a role in terms of overall volume levels during the quarter, the storm in Mexico washed out roads, delaying the transport of cut-and-sewn kits to our U.S.-based facilities," Darrow said. "As a result of the supply chain disruptions and delays, our U.S. plants did not run as planned during July and we were required to move approximately $10 million of orders from production in July into August.
Darrow said the company's previous five quarters showed solid, consistent performance in its upholstery business. La-Z-Boy has introduced a number of lean initiatives and cellular production throughout its operations, he said.
"We believe many of the issues that reduced our first-quarter production levels are behind us," Darrow said. "Raw material pricing has been on the decline from its peak in the May-through-June period, supply chain disruptions are being minimized and our Mexico facility is improving its efficiencies. Importantly, the issues faced during the quarter are not systemic to our business and historically our first quarter is not indicative of our performance for the remainder of the year. As an example, in last years first quarter, we earned $0.04 per share and earned $0.62 for the full year.
La-Z-Boy Incorporated will announce its fiscal 2011 first-quarter results Tuesday, Aug. 17, with a conference call scheduled Wednesday, Aug. 18, at 8:30 a.m. eastern time. Details of the call will be issued the week prior to the results announcement.
August 4,
2010 by in UnCategorized
By Home Furnishings Business in Financial Reports on August 5, 2010
Haverty Furniture Cos. (
NYSE: HVT and
HVT.A ) reported a net loss of $606,000 during the second quarter ended June 30, compared to a loss of $6.6 million during the second quarter of last year.
Net sales for the quarter climbed 11.9 percent to $145.1 million, compared to $129.7 million during the second quarter of last year.
"We believe we are continuing to grow our market share as second quarter comparable store sales were up 13.2 percent, said Clarence H. Smith, president and chief executive office. "Recent sales trends and consumer confidence reports however indicate the tenuous nature of the recovery. Shipping lines are cautiously managing capacity, and although we have not experienced the level of disruption in receiving products from overseas suppliers that others have encountered, increases in contract container freight rates have modestly reduced our gross profit margins. Our discipline in holding operating costs in check kept SG&A expenses controlled. Despite today's economic uncertainty, we are not complacent in our approach to gaining market share. We are investing in our current store base and our internet site because we believe that focusing on the customer experience is vital to our continued success."
Net sales for the first six months of the year increased 9.9 percent to $301.1 million and same-store sales increased 11.6 percent.
Havertys has posted the complete release online.