Daily News Archive
Brought to you by Home Furnishings Business
December 17,
2008 by in UnCategorized 
By Home Furnishings Business in Mattresses on December 18, 2008
FloBeds, Fort Bragg, Calif., has announced what it calls the nation's first "for women only" mattress.
Yes, men can sleep on it, too, company officials said. Stackable latex layers can be configured separately for two sides of a bed to suit the firmness favored by men, as well as women.
"It's a mattress that comfortably and intuitively recognizes the difference between straight lines and curves," said FloBeds Founder Dave Turner. "All things being equal, a woman usually needs a softer mattress. ... A softer mattress conforms better to the contour of her hips."
He said most customers use the company's www.hermattress.com site to order their mattresses, and all beds come with a 90-night guarantee. FloBeds mattresses are constructed from natural materials like latex from rubber trees.
December 17,
2008 by in UnCategorized
By Home Furnishings Business in on December 18, 2008
Whitecraft, Charleston, S.C., provided outdoor furnishings for the new Susan G. Komen Dream Home on the outskirts of Charlotte, N.C.
Public tours of the home began Nov. 20 and continued through Monday. Proceeds from admission tickets and from the auction of all the home's furnishings will benefit Susan G. Komen for the Cure, the largest grassroots initiative for finding a cure for breast cancer.
Partnering with the PBS home and garden series "For Your Home," Charlotte Magazine, and other corporate sponsors and donors, the 4,600-square-foot English cottage-style home features some of the freshest new products and hot innovations for luxury living.
Vicki Payne, the home’s lead designer and host of "For Your Home," selected Whitecraft as the exclusive outdoor furnishings provider for the home, which features two dramatic outdoor spaces—a covered patio and a screened porch—overlooking the serene landscape on the banks of Lake Wylie. Whitecraft’s transitional collection, San Miguel, graces both spaces, providing a comfortable year-round outdoor retreat.
The home’s interior and gardens will be featured in multiple episodes, airing Spring 2009, of "For Your Home," one of PBS’ top-rated series, reaching nearly 99 million households each week.
"We are very pleased and honored to be a part of this meaningful program supporting such a worthy cause," said Bill Herren, Whitecraft marketing director. "We hope our involvement will help generate much-needed funds, one day resulting in a cure for millions."
December 16,
2008 by in UnCategorized
By Home Furnishings Business in Acquisition on December 17, 2008
Aaron Rents Inc. announced on Tuesday that it has acquired all the stores of Rosey Rentals LP, a franchisee since 2003.
Rosey Rentals operated 35 Aaron's Sales & Lease Ownership franchised stores in six southeastern states with total annual revenues of approximately $45 million. The stores will now be company-operated.
"As in the past, we continue to make acquisitions of franchisees when it is of mutual benefit," said Robert C. Loudermilk Jr., president and CEO of Aaron Rents. "Rosey Rentals has been a good franchisee and we hope to continue our relationship in some form in the future. This transaction should add approximately 3 percent to our top-line growth in 2009 and is expected to be accretive to earnings."
Aaron Rents currently has more than 1,535 company-operated and franchised stores in 48 states and Canada. The company's MacTavish Furniture Industries division manufactured approximately $73 million at cost of furniture and bedding at 12 facilities in five states in 2007. The entire production of MacTavish is for shipment to Aaron Rents stores.
December 16,
2008 by in UnCategorized
By Home Furnishings Business in Retail Technology on December 17, 2008
Cory Home Delivery, a specialty carrier serving furniture, appliance and electronics retailers, has been named New Jersey Family Business of the Year for 2008 among businesses with more than $10 million a year in revenue.
Secaucus-based Cory celebrates its 75th anniversary and three generations of family ownership in 2009. Patrick Cory, grandson of founder Joseph Cory, who established the business in Brooklyn in 1934, accepted the award on behalf of the company at an awards event at the Crystal Plaza in Livingston. The 16th annual competition was sponsored by New Jersey Monthly, PNC Bank, and the Rothman Institute of Entrepreneurial Studies at Fairleigh Dickinson University.
"My great grandparents, Cosmo and Katerina Corigliano, came on a ship from Italy and passed under the Statue of Liberty, with nothing more than the dream of a better life," said Patrick Cory, who operates the company with his brother, Joe, and cousin Kevin Cory.
One of the oldest and largest specialized home delivery carriers in America, CORY Home Delivery serves many of the top 100 furniture, appliance, and electronics retailers in the United States, Puerto Rico, and the Virgin Islands. The company dispatches a modern fleet of 450 customized vehicles daily delivering more than $2.1 billion of merchandise to more than 1.6 million consumers annually.
December 16,
2008 by in UnCategorized
By Home Furnishings Business in economic news on December 17, 2008
Citing slowing sales after Thanksgiving, Select Comfort is cutting 120 jobs at its Minneapolis headquarters, a reduction of 22 percent, and has also halted the implementation of SAP technology.
Company officials said the cutbacks and other reductions the company is considering will save $15 million on an annualized basis. Select Comfort, which sells its products through more than 470 company owned stores, expects to incur a charge of approximately $35 million in the fourth quarter, primarily through asset impairments—about $4 million is severance and other cash costs.
"During the course of the year, we've navigated through an extremely difficult macro-economic environment by focusing on reducing our cost structure and improving product margins," said President and CEO Bill McLaughlin. "We expect these macro-economic challenges to continue and possibly worsen in 2009. Therefore, we've taken additional actions to better align our cost and cash structure with our 2009 outlook for the economy."
The company previously said it plans to close 20 stores in the first quarter of 2009 and will continue to examine its store base to shut additional locations throughout 2009.