Daily News Archive
Brought to you by Home Furnishings Business
December 14,
2008 by in UnCategorized 
By Home Furnishings Business in Retail Technology on December 15, 2008
Furniture was among specialty retail categories that showed holiday spending declines in the most recent report issued by Spending Pulse, a retail data service owned by MasterCard. It covered the period from Black Friday (Nov. 28) through Dec. 6.
Furniture, as well as electronics and apparel, declined steeply, but SpendingPulse Vice President Michael McNamara told Reuters that the numbers could indicate declines are leveling off.
"Before things get better, they have to stop getting worse. These ranges seem to indicate that perhaps things have stopped getting worse," McNamara said.
As an example, specialty chains that sell furniture saw sales decline 23.5 percent from Nov. 1 to Dec. 6, but the decline moderated slightly to 23 percent when analysts tallied the figures since Black Friday. In specialty electronics, a sales decline of 24.9 percent (Nov. 1 to Dec. 6) has moderated to 22.3 percent since Black Friday. In the apparel sector, sales worsened. Sales were down 22.9 percent since Nov. 28 in apparel, which is a bigger drop than the the 19.5 decline in the Nov. 1-to-Dec. 6 period.
A lone bright spot is in e-commerce sales, which posted a 10.4 percent gain over last year in the week after Thanksgiving. However, e-commerce sales are down 4.8 percent for the season thus far since the current shopping season is shorter, with only 27 days between Black Friday and Christmas (versus 32 days last year).
December 14,
2008 by in UnCategorized
By Home Furnishings Business in Las Vegas on December 15, 2008
Las Vegas Market has set its "Forecast Series" of seminars designed to educate, inform and enlighten attendees on the latest trends and developments in the home furnishings industry. All seminars are free to Las Vegas Market attendees and will take place the first three days of Market on the 16th floor of World Market Center's Building B. Seminars to run from 10 to 11 a.m.
* "The Forecast: Color," sponsored by World Market Center Las Vegas and Furniture Style magazine, is set for Monday, Feb. 9. Leatrice Eiseman, Executive Director of Pantone Inc., will discuss color trends inspiring the home sector. Attendees will learn about the key colors for 2009 and will preview one of the most directional furniture palettes during this informative seminar.
* On Tuesday, Feb. 10, World Market Center Las Vegas and Design & Decor magazine present "The Forecast: Trends for the Home." Michelle Lamb, trend forecaster and editorial director of The Trend Curve industry newsletter, will present her color forecast for 2010, then discuss the décor directions design enthusiasts need to know. Her presentation will incorporate many colorful images—including many up-to-the minute photographs taken from the Winter 2009 Las Vegas Market. A question and answer session will follow.
* "The Forecast: Lighting for the Home," sponsored by World Market Center Las Vegas and Residential Lighting magazine, is scheduled for Wednesday, Feb. 11. Lighting industry expert Randall Whitehead will discuss "the good, the bad and the ugly" of lighting; and how lighting can influence a space positively and negatively, enhance color and texture, emphasize depth or dimension and combine comfort with drama. Whitehead also will share best practices in energy-efficient lighting solutions for indoor and outdoor living spaces.
Other educational events at Market, which runs Feb. 9–13, include the Brave New World Environmental Leadership Series, the Business Survival Series and Designer Days. Additionally, many educational series will be offered by Western Home Furnishings Association in the Retailer Resource Center.
December 11,
2008 by in UnCategorized
By Home Furnishings Business in on December 12, 2008
Sleep Innovations, a manufacturer of memory foam mattresses and sleep products, announced Thursday that it expects to emerge from Chapter 11 during the middle of the first quarter of 2009 after filing its plan of reorganization in late November.
The company, based in West Long Branch, N.J., also announced that company founder Michael Fux will return to resume his role as CEO upon the company's emergence from Chapter 11. Fux, who founded the company in 1996 and sold it to investors in 2005, will become part owner and provide additional liquidity.
The company said it will emerge from Chapter 11 without using all of the debtor-in-possession financing made available to it. In a statement, officials said strong relationships with suppliers and customers, along with the support of lenders, has enabled the company to stay on or ahead of its Chapter 11 plan. The company, which makes its products in the United States, supplies retailers such as Costco, Sam's Club, Wal-Mart and Sears.
December 11,
2008 by in UnCategorized
By Home Furnishings Business in on December 12, 2008
The U.S. Department of Commerce reported Friday that the nation's retail sales fell 1.8 percent in November, the fifth straight month of decline, and were down 7.4 percent compared with a year earlier, and record declines in gas retail prices are a big reason why.Excluding a 14.7 percent drop in sales at gas stations, retail sales were down only 0.2 percent for November, and some sectors had large increases. Commerce revised October and September sales to reflect respective monthly decreases of 2.9 percent and 1.6 percent.
December 11,
2008 by in UnCategorized
By Home Furnishings Business in on December 12, 2008
BJ's Wholesale, which operates 178 membership stores in 15 states, announced that Laura Sen has been promoted to chief executive officer. Sen, who had been president and COO, will retain the title of president of the Natick, Mass.-based company.
She succeeds Herb Zarkin, who will continue as chairman of the board and will stand for reelection to the board when his term expires in May 2010. Previously, he had planned to retire at that time.
“Laura has done an outstanding job of managing our day-to-day operations for the past year,” Zarkin said. “Our business has never run more smoothly.”