Daily News Archive
Brought to you by Home Furnishings Business
November 27,
2007 by in UnCategorized 
By Home Furnishings Business in on November 2007
Capel Rugs, Troy, N.C., announced Tuesday that Bruce Hric has been named president and CEO after filling the position on an interim basis for 14 months.
“We are pleased to reward Bruce for his nine years of service with Capel by giving him the full responsibilities of this role,” said Jesse Capel, director and owner. “He has served exceptionally well as acting president and CEO for the last year. The future of Capel is in good hands with this promotion.”
Prior to joining Capel, Hric served as a vice president with Koury Corp. for 13 years and also worked for a furniture manufacturer and fabric company. He succeeds Eric Birnbach, who stepped down in September 2006 after about a year in the position.
November 27,
2007 by in UnCategorized
By Home Furnishings Business in Retail Technology on November 2007
Ethan Allen will roll out Storis Management Systems’ Vision R8 retail automation system at all locations.
“This was an important decision for our organization, as Vision R8 will take our retail technology infrastructure to the next level of sophistication,” said Mike Bacon, director of retail systems for Ethan Allen, Danbury, Conn.
Ethan Allen will utilize all of the Vision R8 companion products, which include Advanced Warehouse Management, Data Warehouse & Business Intelligence applications, Storis’ e-commerce platform, and the InTouch customer relationship management solution.
“Ethan Allen is well known for their innovation and leadership,” said Donald J. Surdoval, president and CEO of Storis, Mt. Arlington, N.J. “This partnership allows Storis to capitalize on Ethan Allen’s extensive retail and supply chain management expertise to further enhance our products and services.”
November 27,
2007 by in UnCategorized
By Home Furnishings Business in on November 2007
Legendary major league pitcher Randy Johnson, his family and Sleep America, hosted the Seventh Annual Randy Johnson Shoe Drive earlier this month.
New and gently used shoes were collected at all Sleep America showrooms Oct. 1-19. The donation presentation on Nov. 8 benefited more than 500 children from non-profit agencies throughout the Phoenix area who would otherwise go without new shoes.
Shoes were provided for children ranging from 3 months to 17 years of age. In addition to the Johnsons, other Sleep America partners in the event included Nike, Runner’s Den, Payless and KSLX. Sleep America President Debbie Gaby’s son J.J. Fonville founded the “Put your Best Foot Forward” shoe drive six years ago to help needy athletes. After teaming up with Randy Johnson, the shoe drive grew into a much bigger event.
Sleep America has over 130 employees and more than 44 store locations in Arizona.
November 27,
2007 by in UnCategorized
By Home Furnishings Business in Home Office on November 2007
Buoyed by rising orders, Zeeland, Mich.-based Herman Miller, which makes furniture for offices and homes, said Tuesday that sales and earnings in its second quarter will likely be higher than previous forecasts.
The company eliminated 150 full-time jobs during the quarter as part of an initiative designed to improve its operating and financial performance. The company said sales in its second quarter, which will be announced Dec. 19, will be near the top of its previous guidance of $475 million to $500 million—and could exceed the higher figure. The company is also raising its earnings-per-share guidance to 56 cents to 63 cents, not including a one-time charge of up to 5 cents related to its cost-cutting actions during the quarter.
“We’ve made great strides over the past several months in refining Herman Miller’s structure, sharpening our focus and reallocating resources towards high-growth areas,” said CEO Brian Walker. “We are confident that these actions—along with several great new designs in the pipeline—position our core North American furniture business to be even stronger and more profitable going forward.”
November 27,
2007 by in UnCategorized
By Home Furnishings Business in Youth, Juvenile Furniture on November 2007
Peder Sorensen, the former president of juvenile producer Flexa’s U.S. arm, has left the company under a corporate restructuring.
Flexa Group in Hornsyld, Denmark, is in the process of restructuring its U.S. operations in Suffolk, Va., which underwent a $6 million expansion in 2006.
During the transition, Per Lykke Jensen will be acting manager for the division, and Claus Johnsen will be running daily operations in Suffolk, Va. Jensen is located in Denmark.