Daily News Archive
Brought to you by Home Furnishings Business
December 4,
2008 by in UnCategorized 
By Home Furnishings Business in Accessories on December 2008
Metal sculpture accent vendor Artisan House, Burbank, Calif., has named John Breckman as manager of operations to help assess, develop and implement the company’s presence in the European market.
Breckman has served as a fashion agent in the United Kingdom for more than 40 years.
“John is well known for his work in men’s and women’s wear,” said John Shilling, president of Artisan House. “He has a keen eye for great clothing design, as well as a lifelong interest in interior design.”
During his career as a fashion agent, Breckman frequently participated in designers’ “pre-selection meetings.” At these meetings, Breckman and other experts were involved in selecting colors and fabric designs, and keeping collections up to date with current and future trends.
Breckman sees Europe as a largely untapped market for fine metal art sculptures.
“I’m hoping Artisan House will become the ‘Biros ballpoint pen of home décor accessories’—where the Artisan House name becomes synonymous with the type of product we offer,” he adds.
Breckman is based in Edgware in northwestern London.
December 4,
2008 by in UnCategorized
By Home Furnishings Business in Retail Technology on December 2008
Technology vendor ViewIT, Toronto, has launched a redesign of its 3Dream.net Web site, which allows users to create and space-plan projects in two dimensions, then at the click of a button switch to three dimensions to fully decorate and accessorize the space.
The goal of the site overhaul was to make it easier to navigate, be more informative, and to bring forward special features of the program that could previously only be viewed when logged in.
New features include a new Design Showroom section that lets users showcase and even share their designs. An automatic and customizable “tear sheet” presentation report has been added that details all desired items with images, descriptions and materials used.
“We have so many cool things in 3Dream that were hidden from view—unless you were logged in,” said Ross Barlett, CEO of ViewIT Technologies. “This new look and feel goes a long way in showing industry professionals what amazing things 3Dream is capable of.”
The site was created internally by the 3Dream development team and has already benefitted from increased Web traffic, page views and free trial accounts registered, according to a release.
3Dream is available to industry professionals starting at $39 a month. Designers, retailers and manufacturers can sign up for a free 30-day trial account. To register online, visit
www.3Dream.net, or call (800) 449-9984 for information.
December 4,
2008 by in UnCategorized
By Home Furnishings Business in Furniture Retailing on December 2008
Home Furnishings Business Editor-In-Chief Sheila Long O’Mara contends that the furniture industry, which probably can’t expect the sorts of handouts we’re seeing these days from Washington, has to rely on its own brainpower to generate ideas for survival and success.
Click
here to read about “Old-fashioned Idea Sharing.”
December 4,
2008 by in UnCategorized
By Home Furnishings Business in on December 2008
Patrick H. Norton, chairman emeritus of La-Z-Boy Incorporated and the company’s former chairman of the board, died Thursday at age 86 after a short illness.
Norton was a furniture industry pioneer and leader for more than 50 years as well as a World War II veteran who served in the Army Air Force. Norton began his career in the furniture department at a St. Louis-based retailer in 1939 after attending Washington University. Interrupted by five years of wartime service, Norton returned to furniture retailing and later became vice president of sales and a member of the board of Baumritter/Ethan Allen before moving to La-Z-Boy in 1981. He became chairman of the board in 1997 and is widely credited with transforming the company by building its brand, widening its product offering and distribution system and establishing the La-Z-Boy Furniture Galleries® store system.
“The furniture business has suffered a great loss with Pat Norton’s passing,” La-Z-Boy Inc. CEO Kurt Darrow said in a release. “He was truly a leader in this industry and a visionary in helping create the furniture landscape we know today, including being the ‘caretaker of the legacy’ left by the La-Z-Boy founders and taking our company to even higher levels. He had a profound impact on the success of La-Z-Boy and on the lives of everyone with whom he worked. Pat was an extraordinary human being and one of the most generous men I’ve ever known. I am deeply saddened to lose not just a mentor and a colleague, but a very dear friend. On behalf of all my colleagues, I would like to express our deepest sympathies to Pat’s family.”
An avid industry supporter, Norton served on the board of the American Furniture Manufacturers Association, now the American Home Furnishings Alliance, and on the liaison committee with the National Home Furnishings Association. As the first Home Furnishings Council chairman, he worked to unite retailers, manufacturers and suppliers. In 1995, Norton was inducted into the American Furniture Hall of Fame to honor his contributions to the American furniture industry. Other honors include the National Brotherhood Award from the National Conference of Christians and Jews as well as the Spirit of Life Award from the City of Hope. Norton received an honorary Doctorate from High Point University in High Point, N.C., where, in 2000, the school named its Furniture Studies Hall Norton Hall. Additionally, in 1992, members of the La-Z-Boy “extended family,” including sales representatives and dealers, established in his honor the Patrick H. Norton Scholarship Fund at the University.
Norton was preceded in death by his wife, LaVerne, and son Krell. He is survived by two children, Kevin and Susan, and their families, including three grandchildren and two great-grandchildren.
Funeral service information is pending.
December 3,
2008 by in UnCategorized
By Home Furnishings Business in Upholstery on December 2008
A La-Z-Boy official confirmed on Thursday that the company is closing its Bauhaus factory in Sherman, Miss., which will eliminate about 150 jobs.
Citing difficult economic conditions, Director of Investor Relations Kathy Liebmann said the decision to close the plant and shift work to the company’s Saltillo, Miss., Bauhaus factory is part of a “right-sizing” designed to more closely match production to demand.
In November, the company announced plans to lay off 850 workers as it announced a net loss of $53.7 million in its second quarter. In addition to trimming about 10 percent of its workforce, the company said it would shut up to 20 dealer-owned stores by early 2009.
According to Mississippi officials, about 1,100 furniture industry layoffs have been announced by factories in the state since the beginning of the year.