Daily News Archive
Brought to you by Home Furnishings Business
May 23,
2007 by in UnCategorized 
By Home Furnishings Business in High Point on May 2007
High Point’s Rose Furniture has shut its doors for a second time this year, and a spokeswoman for North Carolina Attorney General Roy Cooper said the shutdown appears to be permanent.
Spokeswoman Noelle Talley said the Attorney General’s office confirmed the closing this week in conversations with lawyers representing Rose after receiving calls from customers asking whether the 81-year-old retail store had closed again.
Early Thursday, there was no activity at the retail store, and a sign taped to the customer entrance stated “Rose Furniture is closed.”
In October, Rose announced plans to close, but said in January that its liquidation sale was so successful, it planned to stay open. The Attorney General’s office has said there are dozens of unresolved complaints about the retailer dating back several months.
An announcement by Rose in February indicated the company had struck a deal with its creditors in which the retailer agreed to pay 11.5 percent of claims initially to be followed by additional payments over a period of up to two years.
May 22,
2007 by in UnCategorized
By Home Furnishings Business in Advertising on May 2007
Cost Plus World Market, which operates 294 stores, announced Wednesday that it has hired a marketing firm that has worked with Wal-Mart and Southwest Airlines. The marketing firm, GSD&M of Austin, Texas, projects a $60 million budget for a marketing campaign that will stretch over three years, according to published reports.
“This is a partnership based on collaboration at the highest levels of both organizations,” said Barry Feld, CEO and president of World Market, Oakland, Calif. “Both GSD&M and World Market are fully invested in this relationship and are both working towards the mutual goal of strong results for our customers and shareholders.”
Cost Plus World Market sells an ever-changing selection of home furnishings, housewares, gifts, jewelry, decorative accessories, gourmet foods and wines from more than 50 countries. Earlier this month, the company reported a $22.5 million net loss for fiscal 2006. Revenue for the year totalled $1.04 billion, a 7.2 percent increase, with a same-store sales decrease of 3.3 percent.
Earlier this month, Cost Plus World Market announced the opening of new stores in Arlington, Texas, and Papillion, Neb.
May 22,
2007 by in UnCategorized
By Home Furnishings Business in Bedding on May 2007
Ergonomics expert Dr. Susanne Frohriep has joined the research and development team of Leggett & Platt, Carthage, Mo., where she’ll have a major impact on the development new components for L&P’s operations serving the bedding industry.
Frohriep comes to Leggett & Platt from the automotive industry in Europe, where she has spent the last three years as an ergonomics specialist, responsible for product development and ergonomic research of comfort products.
“At Leggett & Platt, we’ve made it one of our top priorities to focus research efforts on improving overall health through improved sleep quality,” said Mark Quinn, group executive vice president of sales and marketing for Leggett & Platt’s bedding division.
Frohriep said ergonomics plays a pivotal role in giving consumers the comfort that enables restful sleep, which impacts overall health.
“By understanding how ergonomics is connected to better sleep, Leggett & Platt can continue developing innovative sleep systems,” added Frohriep, who has spent her career studying, teaching and researching in the United States, Germany and Japan. She studied language, linguistics and anthropology at Kiel University in Germany and completed her doctorate in 1998. From 1991 to 2001, and again from 2003 to 2004, Frohriep worked in the physiological anthropology research group at Kiel University. As a member of this group, she was responsible for consumer testing on a range of products such as mattresses, cushions and medical braces.
Frohriep’s research has been published and presented in academic and educational settings across Europe and Asia. Her work includes studies on female car drivers and comfort, mattress quality assessment through an index of deformation and ergonomic implications of upper spine variability.
Niels Mossbeck, vice president of product development for Leggett & Platt, said Frohriep’s is evidence of Leggett’s commitment to advancing the science and technology that creates better sleep systems.
“Dr. Frohriep’s experience offers us insight into how the body interacts with our products,” he said. “We are marrying technology with human impact.”
May 22,
2007 by in UnCategorized
By Home Furnishings Business in High Point on May 2007
The High Point Design Center, a 50-plus member network of high-end showrooms, has designated Wednesday, June 6 as the first of a new monthly “Designer Day” promotional event.
All of the member showrooms, also known as the High Point Showroom Association, have designer-friendly policies and are open year-round to the trade, some daily and some by appointment. The creation of a monthly event ensures designers that at least one given day per month all member showrooms will be open.
Designer Days are scheduled for the first Wednesday of each month. The June 6 event runs 9:30 a.m.-5 p.m.
Click
here for upcoming events and special offers, contact information for each member showroom, and a description of all the home furnishings and accents available.
May 22,
2007 by in UnCategorized
By Home Furnishings Business in High Point on May 2007
The auction of a historic High Point home to benefit the High Point Arts Council includes items from the home of Thomasville Furniture’s founder, Tom A. Finch.
Finch was grandfather-in-law of the owner of the property for auction, a 9000-square-foot traditional brick home located on 3.2 acres near downtown at 1201 Sturbridge Dr.
A silent auction is set for the weekend of June 2-3, 1-4 p.m., which includes the home, more than 10 pieces of fine art, and more than a dozen pieces of antique furniture. Unique features include a 24-by-30-foot den with walls of cherry-panel finish fashioned and hand-polished by Thomasville Furniture artisans.
Five percent of the auction proceeds will be donated to the High Point Arts Council.