Daily News Archive
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May 3,
2010 by in UnCategorized 
By Home Furnishings Business in Bedding on May 4, 2010
Logistics expert Jason Smith has joined mattress vendor Spring Air International, Chelsea, Mass., in the new position of national account service manager.
Smith will work with Spring Air's factories to provide transportation, in-home delivery and other logistical services for both national retail and contract accounts. He reports to both J.P. LeDoux, company vice president of sales, and Bill Frame, vice president of manufacturing.
"Jason has a very strong background in logistical services and we look forward to leveraging his extensive experience as we continue to grow our business," said Rick Robinson, Spring Air president.
Before joining Spring Air, Smith had been an on-site account manager for Summit Logistics, which was providing transportation services in 2009 to Spring Air's factory in Boston.
From 2006 to 2008, Smith was a Los Angeles-based operations manager for Dallas-based Omni Logistics. Prior to that he worked for Exel North American Logistics in Chelsea, Mass., beginning in 2002, until the company was acquired by DHL Express in 2005.
Spring Air International has 17 manufacturing locations in the United States and 29 international locations.
May 3,
2010 by in UnCategorized
By Home Furnishings Business in Furniture Retailing on May 4, 2010
Arson is suspected in a furniture store fire that heavily damaged the Grand Furniture Outlet in Norfolk, Va., in March, the Virginian-Pilot reported Tuesday.
The blaze that destroyed the Grand Furniture Outlet warehouse building on March 22 was set, according to Norfolk Fire-Rescue.
"The investigators have ruled out all accidental and natural causes for the fire and are now seeking information that could help solve it," said Battalion Chief Harry Worley, a spokesman for Norfolk Fire-Rescue.
The fire destroyed the 15,000-square-foot warehouse and all of its stock.
May 3,
2010 by in UnCategorized
By Home Furnishings Business in Bedding on May 4, 2010
The Spring Air-Texas licensee, Winco USA LLC, has acquired the license for Spring Air-Florida, announced Rick Robinson, president of mattress manufacturer Spring Air International, Chelsea, Mass.
Spring Air-Texas will make and market Spring-Air products in Florida from its Bartow factory, based in the south-central part of the state. Prior to this change, Spring Air-Midwest had been serving retail customers in Florida from its Columbus, Ohio, facility.
"With an existing mattress factory in Florida and the company's knowledge of our products and how to manufacture them, Spring Air-Texas will be able to hit the ground running," Robinson said. "This change will significantly strengthen Spring Air's position in the Southeast."
As Spring Air-Texas, Winco USA also makes and markets Spring Air products in Oklahoma, Kansas, Arkansas and parts of Louisiana, in addition to Texas.
With the addition of the Florida facility to the Spring Air factory network, Spring Air products are now manufactured in 17 facilities across the United States and in 29 international locations.
May 2,
2010 by in UnCategorized
By Home Furnishings Business in Bedding on May 3, 2010
Sedlak Interiors, Cleveland, Ohio, one of Northern Ohio's largest furniture stores, has unveiled a newly remodeled mattress gallery featuring Shifman Mattresses.
Mike Hammer, CEO of Shifman Mattresses, and Bill Hammer, president of Shifman Mattresses, will be at Sedlak on Tuesday for the gallery's grand opening, hosted by Sedlak Interiors Owner John Sedlak.
The mattress gallery, located on The Street of Dreams in the 100,000-square-foot furniture store, has undergone a floor-to-ceiling improvement.
"We really wanted to give our customers a complete visual and sensory mattress shopping experience," said Sedlak Bedding Manager Mike Culp. "We incorporated elements of luxury and comfort into the entire room."
The gallery features flooring with plush carpet supported by an 80-ounce carpet pad to give customers the subtle sensation of walking on clouds. The ceiling of the gallery has a Sky Factory installation featuring a six-panel skylight design that gives the illusion of an outdoor sky with billowing clouds.
"The skylight is one of the most beautiful features of the gallery," Culp said. "Customers can lay back on the mattresses, test the feel and truly enjoy the ambiance of the room."
Sedlak Interiors primarily features Shifman Mattresses, a luxury brand of hand-crafted mattresses.
"The Shifman experience is all about comfort, quality and true craftsmanship, so we are delighted that Sedlak's customers get to have that experience in the new gallery," Shifman's Hammer said. "Sedlak Interiors is a valued retailer, and Shifman looks forward to strengthening this partnership with the launch of the new mattress gallery."
"We are excited with our decision to sell Shifman mattresses, and we have done tremendous business with this product," said Sedlak Interiors' Jeff Sedlak. "The company has a great story and the product is one of a kind, making it an easy sell. Shifman has restored our confidence in the mattress industry. Our sales staff was extremely skeptical of mattresses considering the high number of complaints we experienced with other brands. Now, everyone is completely energized to sell these mattresses. In fact, many of our staff has purchased a Shifman mattress for themselves."
May 2,
2010 by in UnCategorized
By Home Furnishings Business in Advertising on May 3, 2010
Home Furnishings Business Editor-In-Chief Sheila Long O'Mara blogs about a Sleepy's commercial she saw last week while in the Philadephia office of our parent company, Napco.
Read here about a great furniture television commercial.