Daily News Archive
Brought to you by Home Furnishings Business
September 28,
2008 by in UnCategorized 
By Home Furnishings Business in Furniture Retailing on September 2008
The owner of a Bassett Furniture Direct store in Grand Chute, Wis., with a growing line of customer complaints filed for bankruptcy in mid-September, according to local reports last week.
David W. Ewald and joint debtor Amy J. Ewald, filed the bankruptcy petition Sept. 16. A meeting with creditors is scheduled for Nov. 21 in West Bend, Wis.
Consumers had filed numerous complaints about fraudulent sales at the store during a going-out-of-business sale this past summer.
September 25,
2008 by in UnCategorized
By Home Furnishings Business in Furniture Retailing on September 2008
The Nebraska Furniture Mart in Kansas City, Ks., has been named a winner of one of the human resources profession’s highest awards. The Society for Human Resource Management presented a Competitive Workforce Award to NFM as part of the organization’s Human Capital Leadership Awards, according to an announcement Thursday.
The Nebraska Furniture Mart, one of the nation’s largest home furniture stores, was selected for an outreach program to the Hispanic community. The retailer was finding that the volume of job applications wasn’t meeting its staffing needs. Recognizing the potential of a previously untapped labor pool, the Hispanic community in Kansas City, it designed a bi-lingual and multicultural recruitment campaign. NFM also offered a variety of acclimation services for the new employees, including free on-site English classes.
Nebraska Furniture Mart was one of three organizations and one HR professional that SHRM recognized at its Strategic HR Conference in Palm Springs, Calif., this week.
September 25,
2008 by in UnCategorized
By Home Furnishings Business in Advertising on September 2008
Serta’s Counting Sheep has been forever enshrined on the Madison Avenue Advertising Walk of Fame and will be recognized in the new Advertising Icon Museum that’s now under construction in Kansas City, Mo.
The announcement was made Monday during a press conference on the corner of 42nd Street and Madison Avenue in New York. Previous Walk of Fame winners have included the M&M characters, the AFLAC duck and memorable slogans that include Wendy’s “Where’s the Beef?”
As an honoree, the Counting Sheep will receive a spot on the Walk of Fame located on Madison Avenue between 42nd and 50th Streets, which includes a permanently displayed banner with a picture of the icon.
Serta introduced the Counting Sheep as their reluctant brand icon in 2000. Since the launch, Serta has seen significant increases in brand awareness The campaign has earned Serta the Gold EFFIE and Silver ADDY awards, and it has appeared in more than 20 countries, extending Serta’s global brand reach.
The Madison Avenue Advertising Walk of Fame was created to not only celebrate great advertising icons and slogans, but to recognize their business and brand-building impact. The Serta Counting Sheep was created by the Southfield, Mich.-based advertising agency, Doner.
September 25,
2008 by in UnCategorized
By Home Furnishings Business in Furniture Retailing on September 2008
After 27 years in one location, Gallery Furniture is opening its second store, Gallery Furniture and Rugs, in Houston’s Uptown area at Post Oak and Westheimer.
The new store, which is scheduled to open before the holidays, will feature an extensive rug and accessories department. Located near the Galleria in the Post Oak Shopping Center in space previously held by Pier 1 Imports, the store will also feature a new Kreiss Furniture showroom that will occupy a former Pier 1 Kids on the site. In celebration, Kreiss, which it well known for handmade, exclusive furniture and leathers, will debut its 2009 line at the grand opening.
Gallery Furniture has had only one main location since its inception (along Interstate 45), but owner Jim McIngvale opened a separate, high-end Kreiss store in late 2007. He closed the location in July, saying the building was too small and lacked parking. On Thursday, he said the new building does not have space or parking limitations. “Gallery Furniture has always been known for great service, low prices and same-day delivery, but in the past few years we have expanded on these qualities with a great selection of furniture, including high-end pieces,” McIngvale said. “The Houston Uptown area is a logical place to continue Gallery’s evolution and we are excited to bring lines like Kreiss and Tempurpedic to the area.”
September 25,
2008 by in UnCategorized
By Home Furnishings Business in Bedding on September 2008
If Congress needs to stay in session late into the wee hours this weekend, Classic Sleep Products CEO Mike Zippelli has 535 mattresses ready that he has offered to help solve the nation’s financial crisis.
Zippelli offered the mattresses in a letter to House Speaker Nancy Pelosi, and has all 535 staged in the company’s Jessup, Md., warehouse for immediate delivery to the Capitol, should they be needed.
“It doesn’t matter what side of the political aisle you are on, solving this crisis is paramount,” Zippelli said, according to a press release Friday. “Congress should be in session 24/7 until this issue is resolved, and I’ll make sure we give them the tools to take some naps on the Hill, but stay in session until this problem is resolved.”
He said the home furnishings category has borne the brunt of the sluggish economy. “If, in this small way, I can make a contribution to resolve this problem, I want to do it,” he said.
Zippelli selected his “Classic by Dormia” line for the politicians. It is an visco-elastic memory foam and offers orthopedic support with a high performance base.