Daily News Archive
Brought to you by Home Furnishings Business
November 16,
2008 by in UnCategorized 
By Home Furnishings Business in Case Goods on November 2008
Decorize, an importer of home accents furnishings, said Monday that it recorded a net profit of $8,655 in its first quarter after recording a loss of $371,000 in the same period a year ago.
The Springfield, Mo.-based company, which serves more than 3,000 retail accounts, said revenue in the quarter totaled $3.8 million in what was its second straight profitable quarter, according to a filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.
“The Decorize team completed two phenomenal quarters by staying profitable in a very challenging economic climate,” said Ron Jones, a Decorize board member, in a press release. “The home furnishings industry has been hit hard by the recent drop in consumer spending. Most companies in this industry have been reporting substantial declines in profitability, not successive profitable quarters.”
Vice President of Operations Vik Karode said the recent opening of the company’s lighting factory in China completes a two-year strategy for Decorize to produce all of its proprietary wall décor, lighting, accessories and accent furniture from company-owned factories.
November 16,
2008 by in UnCategorized
By Home Furnishings Business in Furniture Retailing on November 2008
Tradeway Furniture Outlet, a 72-year-old operation in El Cerrito, Calif., is holding a going-out-of-business sale, the San Fransisco Chronicle reported Saturday.
Tradeway Furniture Outlet specialized in marked-down goods on closeouts, samples, wrong shipments and slightly damaged furniture from manufacturers and trade showrooms.
Vendor names in stock include Hekman, Howard Miller, Barcalounger, Lee, Highland House, Pulaski, Bernhardt, Stein World, Woodmark and more. Product includes dining room tables and sets, china cabinets, dining and occasional chairs, sofas, sectionals, sleeper sofas, occasional tables, plasma TV stands, armoires, bedroom furniture and items.
November 16,
2008 by in UnCategorized
By Home Furnishings Business in Accessories on November 2008
Home decor, accessory and gift vendor CBK, Union City, Tenn., has launched a new consumer drop-ship program called CBKwik Ship.
This program aims to help CBK’s retail customers compete more aggressively through expanded product offerings with now inventory investment.
CBK provides retailers with a file of item information and images to be loaded onto their retail Web site. When a consumer places an order for CBK goods on the retailer’s Web site, the retailer sends the order to CBK, who then processes the order for shipping to the consumer and sends a shipping confirmation back to the customer so that they can communicate the order status with the consumer.
CBK can transmit updated information to a customer’s Web site daily, weekly, or monthly, based on customer needs and preferences. CBK guarantees to ship the product within four business days.
For more information about CBK’s new CBKwik Ship Program, contact a local sales representative or visit CBK’s Web site at
www.cbkhome.com .
November 16,
2008 by in UnCategorized
By Home Furnishings Business in Bedding on November 2008
Sealy, Trinity, N.C., said it has negotiated changes in its credit agreement that provides increased capacity and flexibility.
Larry Rogers, Sealy’s president and CEO, called the new agreement a positive step that “demonstrates the confidence our lenders have in our ability to execute our strategies.”
With the agreement in place, he said, “Our focus remains on implementing the initiatives necessary to drive revenue and aggressively reduce our cost structure, which we believe will enable us to gain market share, improve our profitability and generate solid cash flow.”
Monday’s announcement did not state the name of the lender or specify the amount available under the agreement. The announcement states the new agreement increases the maximum permitted leverage ratio.
Sealy is the largest bedding manufacturer in the world with sales of $1.7 billion in 2007.
November 16,
2008 by in UnCategorized
By Home Furnishings Business in Case Goods on November 2008
Case goods vendor Magnussen Home, New Hamburg, Ontario, has permanently laid off five people, including Executive Vice President and Chief Marketing Officer Don Essenberg, at its U.S. headquarters in High Point. Magnussen also temporarily laid off 17 positions in New Hamburg.
In the restructuring, Vice President Kelly Magnussen will take on senior management of the total sales operation. Vice President Nathan Cressman will oversee the company’s product development and marketing functions. Essenberg had joined Magnussen three years ago from Broyhill.
The moves are a proactive approach to the industry’s current economic challenges, and will create a leaner, more efficient organization that is tightly focused on product development and supply chain management, said President and CEO Richard Magnussen. The layoffs represent a 14-percent reduction in staff worldwide.
Russ Langford heads Magnussen’s 50-plus people in Asia to support operational objectives; Richard Magnussen will take a more active role in meeting with the company’s dealers.
“Our goals are to offer products that capture the consumer’s imagination and stimulate retail sales while providing our dealers with seven to 20 turns on their inventory,” Magnussen said. “We believe this strategy will allow us to grow our share of the market by helping our customers get through these difficult economic times.”