Daily News Archive
Brought to you by Home Furnishings Business
June 15,
2008 by in UnCategorized 
By Home Furnishings Business in Recliners on June 2008
St. Louis-based Furniture Brands International (FBI) announced today that former Nike executive Mike McBreen has left the company a little over a year after taking on the role of vice president of supply chain and logistics.
Dan Stone, vice president of strategy and and business development, has been named interim leader of the company’s supply chain organization. It was announced in March 2007 that McBreen had joined FBI from Nike, where he was director of global apparel operations since 2004. Friday’s announcement said McBreen has chosen to leave FBI. Stone joined FBI in 2006 as vice president of finance from Procter & Gamble.
“We thank Mike for his contributions to the development and execution of our strategic plan,” said FBI Chairman and CEO Ralph Scozzafava. “Mike developed the blueprint for our FBN Asia organization and built a team to manage that operation. I’m confident that Dan’s long experience in supporting supply chain initiatives at Procter & Gamble provides ample bench strength as we advance our global supply chain program.”
The release said FBI has begun a national search and expects to find a replacement for McBreen in the near future.
June 15,
2008 by in UnCategorized
By Home Furnishings Business in Accessories on June 2008
For the first time, shoppers can now buy a La-Z-Boy online after the Monroe, Mich., merchandiser added e-commerce capabilities to Lazboy.com to offer nine top-selling recliners and 10 room groups.
The announcement by the nation’s largest maker of upholstered furniture said the cross-channel shopping system will utilize the nationwide network of more than 300 La-Z-Boy Furniture Galleries stores.
“As more consumers are cross-channel shopping, it is imperative that La-Z-Boy provide them with the information and resources, the desire and the ability to make their purchase whenever and however they want to,” said Doug Collier, chief marketing officer for La-Z-Boy. “Our e-commerce model will offer customers the best of both worlds—the convenience of online furniture shopping and the service of a local store.”
The site’s initial offerings represent a wide range of stationary and motion styles in select fabrics and leathers. The company expects to expand its offerings in the future to include more furniture styles, as well as tables, lamps and accessories.
The La-Z-Boy Web site already offered a number of tools, such as a dealer locator, realistic fabric-to-frame rendering and a virtual room planner. La-Z-Boy developed the e-commerce platform with Fry Inc., an integrator that provides solutions to companies such as Crate and Barrel and Whirlpool.
June 15,
2008 by in UnCategorized
By Home Furnishings Business in on June 2008
• May sales in furniture and home furnishings stores increased 0.4 percent from April sales on a seasonally adjusted basis, according to the U.S. Census Bureau. Measured against May 2007 figures, sales declined 4.9 percent. On an annualized basis, combined sales for furniture and home furnishings stores in May were $114.3 billion.
• The overall Consumer Price Index (CPI) increased 0.8 percent in May, before seasonal adjustment, according to the Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS), part of the U.S. Dept. of Labor. On a similar basis, the CPI for household furnishings and operations inched up 0.2 percent compared with April and was also up 0.2 percent measured against May of last year.
• May home foreclosures skyrocketed 48 percent compared with year-earlier results, according to RealtyTrac, a foreclosure listing company. The company bases its report on the number of homes that received at least one foreclosure-related filing in the month. Compared with April, foreclosures were up 7 percent.
• The Organization of Petroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC) hinted at a possible decline in oil prices in its monthly market report. OPEC said in the report that the recent rapidly fluctuating price of oil doesn’t reflect market conditions. OPEC added, “A review of prospects for the remainder of the year also shows little support for prices to remain at current levels.”
On Friday, oil prices per barrel fell, closing at nearly $4 below the all-time trading high set the week before. Oil closed at $134.86 a barrel.
Weekly Review of Economic News (WREN) reports are summaries of recently-released economic statistical data that affect the home furnishings industry. WREN reports are compiled by
HFB Research Editor Janice Chamberlain.
June 15,
2008 by in UnCategorized
By Home Furnishings Business in Furniture Retailing on June 2008
Cost Plus Inc., Oakland, Calif., announced that its board of directors has unanimously rejected Fort Worth, Texas-based Pier 1 Imports Inc.’s merger proposal.
In a letter dated today to Pier 1 President and CEO Alexander Smith and Chairman Tom Thomas, Cost Plus’ board said the stock-for-stock merger is not in the best interests of Cost Plus and its shareholders from neither a financial nor strategic perspective.
“We believe that our strategic plan, which is yielding positive results, will provide Cost Plus shareholders with superior and compelling long-term value as an independent company,” the letter said. “Despite your statements to the contrary, Cost Plus has significant liquidity to pursue its business objectives and to deliver improvement in our core business metrics.”
The letter also characterized Pier 1’s proposal as “both distracting and ill-timed given the difficult retail environment and the progress we have made investing in and improving our business. We believe that our shareholders want us to remain focused on our business and provide superior operational execution.”
Cost Plus,a leading specialty retailer of casual home living and entertaining products, currently operates 296 stores in 33 states.
June 15,
2008 by in UnCategorized
By Home Furnishings Business in Furniture Retailing on June 2008
Consumers who by furniture in Suffolk County, New York, will receive protection under a new law passed by the county legislature on May 28, according to a report in the
Times Beacon Herald, which serves communities on Long Island.
The law requires home furnishings retailers to place a consumer’s down payment on furniture in an individual escrow account until the goods on order are delivered. The retailer cannot use the money until delivery, and also must give the consumer written documentation of the name and address of the bank managing the escrow account.
The report quoted a written statement from Lynne Nowick, county legislator chairwoman of the Consumer Protection Committee and a cosponsor of the bill: “The purpose of this measure is to protect the consumer and prevent the loss of deposits to unscrupulous retailers or companies (that) go out of business, become insolvent or simply disappear.”
The law will take effect after being filed with the New York Secretary of State, which a Nowick aide told the paper takes approximately three weeks.