Daily News Archive
Brought to you by Home Furnishings Business
April 1,
2007 by in UnCategorized 
By Home Furnishings Business in on April 2007
Case goods importer Legacy Classic named Omaha-based Nebraska Furniture Mart its “Retailer of the Year”; and Kittle’s Furniture, Indianapolis, the “Legacy Kids Retailer of the Year” during last week’s High Point Market.
“Legacy Classic has enjoyed tremendous success over the past seven years, and it is because of retail partners like Kittle’s and Nebraska Furniture Mart that we continue to grow our business into the future,” said Legacy Classic President Lee Boone.
Criteria for the awards include the retail partner’s commitment to Legacy with respect to growth, volume, floor space, advertising, outstanding product display, and investment in the growth of their retail enterprise for the future.
April 1,
2007 by in UnCategorized
By Home Furnishings Business in High Point on April 2007
The High Point Market has been selected by the federal Department of Commerce as a U.S. Commercial Service International Buyer Program (IBP) event., according to an announcement Friday. With the designation that recognizes the market’s export potential, the Department of Commerce will promote the High Point Market through its Commercial Service offices around the globe.
“As the largest home furnishings show in the world, we have more export potential than any other home furnishings market,” said Brian Casey, president and CEO of the High Point Market Authority. “There is tremendous opportunity here both for U.S. companies seeking to do business overseas and for companies around the globe interested in doing business in the American marketplace. With this significant recognition, we are further validated as the world’s home for home furnishings.”
The High Point Market has more than 2,600 exhibitors representing more than 100 countries worldwide.
April 1,
2007 by in UnCategorized
By Home Furnishings Business in High Point on April 2007
Near the close of what organizers called a largely successful High Point Market, a group of exhibitors from the high-end Hamilton Wrenn showroom district made a plea for a new market schedule they say would attract more designers to High Point and reduce conflicts with spring break family vacations.
During the High Point Market Authority’s Board meeting Friday, officials did not release attendance figures, but board members representing exhibitors gave mixed reports on showroom traffic, with most saying they were pleased with buying activity considering the difficult retail conditions in recent weeks.
Market Authority board members did not take action on future market dates, but board Chairman John Bray of Vanguard Furniture said the organization already had a plan in place to have a third-party research firm launch a survey of attendees to gauge their feelings on a range of market-related issues, including future schedules.
Three exhibitors and a sales representative who addressed the board urged the organization to return to the event’s long-time April-and-October schedule and add additional days they say would make it easier for more designers to attend. This year’s event, which ended Sunday, is the first to shift to an earlier March schedule from the event’s traditional start in April. Several people, including retailer David Price of Toms-Price in Chicago, said the new schedule came during the same week many families were traveling during a spring break school holiday.
The new schedule also goes from Monday to Sunday rather than the event’s prior Thursday-to-Thursday timetable, which effectively stretched the event over two weeks since many showrooms opened days before the official opening.
Organizers made the switch after surveys indicated that many exhibitors favored the earlier schedule to enable retail stores more time to get products they ordered in their stores in time for Labor Day sales. The new schedule will also move some fall markets from October to September.
John Jokinen, president of E.J. Victor, said the market’s prior schedule gave designers, in particular, more time to attend the market, saying many prefer to attend on weekends. “We need more (buyers to attend) and we can’t get them with the compacted dates we have now,” he said. “We need more time to see more people and be under less of a tight time frame.”
Other representatives said designers prefer to shop on weekends and don’t want to take time away from their businesses in the middle of the week.
March 31,
2007 by in UnCategorized
By Home Furnishings Business in Furniture Retailing on April 2007
S
ecurity is one area of retail that’s typically benefitted from technological advances, and this has never been truer than right now. There are a number of new products and methods that have been developed in recent years to help prevent theft of your home
furnishing goods. Keep in mind, however, that in the post-911 world, the word “security” is no longer just about protection from thievery—modern security products are also intended to help guard against acts of terrorism.
Some of today’s security measures are already used daily in the retail world, while others are gaining acceptance gradually. And as we all know with technology, the more it’s used, the better—and cheaper—it gets. Here are some of the latest and greatest technological advances in retail security.
‘Smile! You’re on Caught-Red-Handed Camera!’
It’s a sad but true fact: retail stores are frequently plagued by theft—not just by outsiders, but also sometimes, unfortunately, by in-house staff. A whole industry has cropped up to offer tools that help stores prevent such thievery. While some products have been around for decades, the security industry is constantly developing new products that take advantage of modern technology.
Many of these new tools are actually revamps of traditional crime-fighting tools. For example, there are a number of new spins on that timeless classic, the security camera. This new breed of camera is typically smaller than conventional wall-mounted units, allowing for easy concealment, all the better to catch would-be thieves in the act.
One such product, the Mini USB digital video spy camera ($100) is about the size of a credit card, but can record about 3 hours of video, thousands of still shots, or up to 256 hours of audio onto the same SD cards used in digital cameras. This unit’s size makes it very handy in capturing proof of robbery from a storage space or store floor. Its USB output enables easy loading of digital media to a computer for secure storage and back-up.
The MicroEye hidden camera ($280) is a motion-activated all-in-one recorder that was developed as a “nanny cam” to enable parents to keep an eye on their children’s caretakers. But it’s proven useful in the retail world due to its small size (3-3/4” x 2-1/2”), which allows it be mounted on a wall unobtrusively so it can capture time-delayed video or up to 16,000 continuous frames when set off by motion. It reportedly has better picture quality than wireless units, and has a direct video out connection for TV or VCR hookup.
The Black & White Stealthcam Clock Camera ($500) offers the advantage of camouflage—it appears to be an ordinary clock radio, but is actually a self-contained camera/digital video recorder that doesn’t need to be concealed. The B/W Air Purifier Stealthcam ($500) works the same way, only it appears to be an everyday table fan. Each of these products is available from online retailer BrickHouse Security (brickhousesecurity.com).
The Next Evolution of
Security Cams
The aforementioned video devices may seem cutting edge, but they could soon become antiquated with the emergence of a new breed of surveillance cameras currently in development. These “intelligent video” cameras would not only watch your store, but only interpret what they see. For example, they could analyze the way someone walks to determine if they are hiding something.
“Intelligent Video” cameras could also detect facial features, so they could flag returning problem browsers as soon as they enter your store. The devices use computer algorithms to interpret what their cameras record. The systems can be programmed to watch out for particular things, such as unauthorized people in secure areas of your store.
These cameras could someday enable you to create a “watch list” that recognized the walks and facial features of certain people. This sounds promising, but such systems have their potential drawbacks—for one thing, they’ll need people to help interpret their findings so innocent customers and staff aren’t misidentified or wrongly accused. You can read more about these cameras at http://snipurl.com/intellcams.
Weighing in on Theft Prevention
While much of the new development in store security revolves around digital recording units, there are other new products approach theft prevention from different angles.
For example, Ohaus Corp. (ohaus.com) has developed a new counting scale to facilitate more accurate weighing of bulk products. While counting scales traditionally used in warehouses and stores aren’t necessarily pinpoint-precise, Ohaus’ product can reportedly differentiate weight discrepancies as small as .0002 pounds. This could be a big help when weighing bulk quantities of products to determine if something is missing. With this scale, your stock personnel can set a weight based on an individual item and then determine exactly how many of that item you have. If the count isn’t what it should be, they can follow up on the discrepancy.
Security systems have often revolved around store access—and the new generation of products offers its spin in this area, as well. EarthTech Products (earthtechproducts.com) offers a fingerprint door lock system ($259) that replaces conventional lock-and-key systems with a keypad that reads each individual’s index fingerprint, letting you know exactly who entered an area and how long they stayed.
Having such a system in place, besides providing records of who was where (and when) can act as a deterrent. Put simply, when your personnel know you’re on the case, keeping a close eye on your merchandise and store activity, they may be less likely to develop sticky fingers.
There are Other Ways
Of course, theft prevention entails more than just keeping tabs on your goods while they’re in your store. Ensuring that your products are secure before they reach your store can be key in protecting your interests. There are a number of new advancements in shipping security that are worthy of note (see “Secure Shipping the New-Fashioned Way” following this story).
In addition, there are also tried-and-true practical methods of theft prevention that cost little or nothing. For some ideas on these low-tech strategies, go to “Lesson Learned” on page 74. HFB
March 31,
2007 by in UnCategorized
By Home Furnishings Business in Furniture Retailing on April 2007
Home furnishings sales are tied to home purchases, it’s a given. Any industry veteran will testify that one of the prime motivators for furniture customers to shop is new-home decorating.
Does the new place have a formal dining room and all the consumer has is a 7-year-old dinette set from the last home’s kitchen? Or maybe the consumer has downsized to a retirement condo and the suite that “made” her last master bedroom won’t even fit into the new room?
So when the nightly national news programs lead with stories on the bursting of the housing bubble, furniture retailers feel a cold shiver running up their spines. But did anyone actually hear a popping sound?
At first glance, 2006 housing statistics look lean compared with 2005 results. So how do they measure up against 2004 and earlier numbers?
In 2006, nationwide sales of existing homes slipped 8 percent from 2005, but 2005 numbers were up 4 percent over 2004 figures. According to preliminary numbers released by the National Association of Realtors, January 2007 sales increased to 6.5 million, a 3-percent increase over December sales. One month doesn’t signal a trend, but it’s a good way to start the year.
Statistics on pending home sales, also compiled by NAR, are similar. Pending home sales (the contract has been signed, but the sale hasn’t closed yet) were down 10 percent, 2006 over 2005, but 2005 figures increased 3 percent from 2004.
New home sales, tracked by the U.S. Dept. of Commerce, fell 17 percent from 2005 to 2006. That’s following a 7-percent increase in 2005. Residential home construction starts—another statistic compiled by Commerce—fell 13 percent in 2006 on top of a 6-percent increase in 2005.
What it all means is that the housing industry may be slipping from its high watermark in 2005, but there is still strength in the market.
Compass Points
Regionally speaking, the South has remained the steadiest. Existing home sales were off 5 percent in 2006, following a 6-percent increase the year before. The area posted a 12-percent decrease in new home sales in 2006 after securing a 14-percent growth rate the year before.
Residential construction starts and pending home sales followed the pattern. Starts were down 9 percent in 2006, but up 10 percent in 2005, as pending sales slipped 6 percent in 2006 after a 6-percent improvement in 2005.
Hardest hit was the West. Declines in 2006 were 15 percent, 16 percent, 25 percent and 16 percent, respectively, for existing home sales, new home sales, starts and pending home sales, measured against 2005 increases of 3 percent, 3 percent, 2 percent and 5 percent, respectively.
Housing dollars are still in the market. According to NAR, average home prices for existing homes were flat or up slightly from 2005 to 2006. The national average selling price in 2006 was $268,200, compared with $266,600 in 2005.
Prices may not have made big gains in 2006, but they’re still significantly higher than in 2004. NAR statistics show 2006 average selling prices for existing homes were up 9.7 percent from 2004 nationwide, with Northeast prices up 9.5 percent, Midwest prices gaining 8.4 percent, South prices increasing 6.7 percent and West prices jumping 14.5 percent.
Bankers Weigh In
Experts in the field are far from putting the housing industry on life support. The Mortgage Bankers Association (MBA) projects 2007 housing numbers will follow 2006 trends, as the industry retrenches, but predict a slight uptick in 2008.
MBA also sees little fluctuation in home prices in the coming two years. Median sales prices for both existing and new homes are expected to be off 1 percent in 2007, but rising 2 percent in 2008.
Mortgage rates will be stable, too, according to MBA. Those 30-year fixed-rate mortgages are projected to have an interest rate of 6.4 percent in 2007, identical to the 2006 rate, and are expected to be up slightly—to 6.6 percent—in 2008.
Home ownership rates have steadily increased over the past decade. U.S. Dept. of Commerce statistics show a national home ownership rate of 68.9 percent at the end of 2006, up from 65.4 percent at the end of 1996.
In 2006, the Midwest region led the nation with a home ownership rate of 73 percent. Next in line were the South, 70.8 percent; the Northeast, 65.3 percent; and the West, 64.5 percent.
All in all, it looks as if the housing industry is going through the natural settling process following a boom period. And a settling process is not a gloom-and-doom disaster. 2005 was a good year for the industry—repeating it in 2007 should suit everyone just fine. HFB