Daily News Archive
Brought to you by Home Furnishings Business
February 18,
2007 by in UnCategorized 
By Home Furnishings Business in Upholstery on February 2007
Paul Peters has been named president of Cochrane Furniture, a case goods and upholstery brand owned by Chromcraft Revington, the company announced Friday.
Peters, who had been vice president of sales and marketing, reports to David Corbin, Chromcraft Revington corporate senior vice president.
Peters’ appointment is part of Chromcraft Revington’s transformation from the more traditional divisional structure to one driven by a functional leadership and management team.
“This new leadership role offers me as well as Cochrane Furniture further expansion opportunity,” said Peters. “I welcome the chance to be involved with a dynamic leadership team and new corporate structure that is driven by expertise from both outside and inside the furniture category, and bonded by an overriding commitment to producing consumer-focused styles and responsiveness.”
Corbin said Peters brings perspective and leadership Cochrane and the Chromcraft Revington management team.
“His experience in the category and his background in both sales and marketing will help us leverage the strengths of the company, particularly as we shift our focus to be more market driven and responsive to both consumers and customers,” Corbin said.
Also on Friday, Chromcraft Revington named Boyd Barnhardt director of creative services, a new position reporting to Corbin. Barnhardt will develop and manage retail programs as well as coordinate marketing support for all Chromcraft Revington companies.
Prior to joining Chromcraft Revington, Barnhardt was director of marketing services at Broyhill Furniture Industries. During his 11-year tenure at Broyhill, Barnhardt developed and executed marketing programs for Broyhill, including integrated dealer marketing campaigns and the company’s notable retailer guide to advertising. He also developed and managed Broyhill’s in-house advertising agency, Web site development (B2C and B2B), media planning and buying, creative and art direction, production and market research.
“We welcome the experience Boyd brings to our new directions and programs at Chromcraft Revington,” Corbin said. “His experience in furniture and his background in both business management and marketing will help us to leverage the strengths of the Company, particularly as we shift our focus to be more market driven and responsive to both consumers and customers.”
Chromcraft Revington’s brands include Chromcraft, Peters-Revington, Silver Furniture, Cochrane Furniture and Sumter.
February 15,
2007 by in UnCategorized
By Home Furnishings Business in Case Goods on February 2007
High-end case goods and occasional importer J.D. Young & Sons has opened a new showroom in High Point, more than doubling the square footage of its previous space.
The debut of the company’s 3,200-square-foot showroom, located at 119 North Hamilton St., provides additional floor space as well as higher visibility to High Point Market attendees because of its ground level, street-facing locale. The company’s previous showroom was located in Hamilton/Wrenn.
“We are extremely excited about our new showroom and the opportunity for additional growth this strategic location provides,” said J.D. Young, founder. “Positioned between the Marge Carson and Leather Craft showrooms, retailers and designers alike will find the J.D. Young & Sons showroom convenient for their market schedules.”
In addition to showing during the semi-annual High Point Market, the new showroom will be open to the design trade throughout the year by appointment.
J.D. Young & Sons designs, imports, and distributes individually crafted, high-end home furnishings. The company’s product line includes bedroom, dining room, home entertainment, home office, occasional, and home accent furniture.
February 15,
2007 by in UnCategorized
By Home Furnishings Business in Bedding on February 2007
Wholesale fourth-quarter 2006 revenues for 19 leading U.S. mattress producers rose 2.1 percent to $970 million compared to the same period in 2005, while unit shipments of 4.6 million were down 1.8 percent.
That’s according to the International Sleep Products Association’s December industry survey released Thursday.
Complete details on the full industry’s performance for ’06 will be available in ISPA’s 2006 Mattress Industry Overview, due out this spring. Based on the survey results, unit shipments for the full-year 2006 were down 1.1 percent from 2005, offset by a healthy increase of 6.4 percent for wholesale revenues. These results suggest average annual growth rates for the three-year period 2004 through 2006 totaled 2 percent for unit shipments and 9.7 percent for wholesale revenues, continuing a strong industry trend whereby wholesale revenues have increased every year since 2001.
ISPA credited that performance to increased demand for high-end products priced above $1,000, plus other favorable economic and demographic trends.
The decline in unit shipments for 2006 reflects negative year-over-year unit comparisons in six of the 12 months, including a five-month trend beginning in August. This trend suggests consumer demand for durable goods purchases such as furniture and bedding continues to be squeezed by economic factors, such as increased mortgage rates, a recession in the housing sector, higher energy prices and increased interest rates.
Compared to 2006 results, ISPA’s latest forecast predicts higher growth rates for 2007 and 2008. Unit shipments for 2007 and 2008 are predicted to grow 1.5 percent and 3 percent, respectively; and growth value of bedding sales is projected at 8.5 percent and 8 percent over this two-year period. Economic factors including more stable gasoline prices and expected decline in interest rates are forecasted to improved consumer demand for new bedding products.
“The general picture is one of steady growth, with average annual dollar growth rates of 6.5% for the last 20 years,” said Dick Doyle, ISPA president and CEO. “This latest report is consistent with the trends predicted by our econometric model for the entire industry, which statistically links the bedding industry to the larger home furnishings market and the national economy.”
According to the latest report, the leading producers shipped 2.1 million innerspring mattresses versus 259,000 non-innerspring products during the fourth quarter of 2006. The dollar value of those mattresses was $529 million and $218.1 million, respectively. Shipments of innerspring mattresses dropped 3.8 percent, while non-innerspring product shipments grew on average nearly 8.3 percent when compared to the fourth quarter of 2005.
In regional terms, the South continues to lead in number of units shipped and wholesale dollar value, followed by the West, the North Central and the Northeast regions. The South and North Central regions experienced a decline in shipments for the 12 months of 2006 (compared to full year 2005), but all regions enjoyed dollar growth in mattress shipments for the same period.
February 15,
2007 by in UnCategorized
By Home Furnishings Business in on February 2007
Merchandise Mart Properties Inc. has promoted Edward J. Collins to vice president and general manager of the Washington Design Center and the Federal Center Southwest in Washington D.C. In his new role, Collins will be responsible for all building support for the 60 design showrooms and office tenants housed at the 800,000-square-foot design and government office complex.
“Ed Collins is a highly experienced executive who has worked directly with leaders in the residential design industry as well as diverse office tenants throughout his career,” said Chris Kennedy, president of MMPI, owner of the WDC and FCS. “In both Chicago and Washington, D.C., Ed has demonstrated strong operational skills focused on serving the needs of the designers and their clients who shop our Design Center showrooms as well as the government agencies and businesses located in the office center.”
Collins has served as interim general manager of the Washington Design Center and Federal Center Southwest since May 2006. Previously, he was vice president and property manager of a high-end office complex owned in Chicago. Prior to that assignment, he was vice president of leasing for the residential and casual furniture industries at the Merchandise Mart in Chicago. Collins also was the executive responsible for four major trade shows produced by MMPI, including: the Architectural Digest Home Design Show in New York City; the Chicago International Antiques & Fine Art Fair; the Chicago Design Show; and the International Casual Furniture and Accessories Market at the Merchandise Mart in Chicago.
February 14,
2007 by in UnCategorized
By Home Furnishings Business in Accessories on February 2007
Fast-growing Decorize, Springfield, Mo., which provides home accents to furniture retailers and department stores, announced that it saw revenues increase 180 percent in its second quarter results, which it filed Wednesday.
The company’s second quarter revenues of $4.5 million resulted in net income of $52,000 compared to an operating loss of $731,000 in the same period last year. In the first half of fiscal 2007, company revenues increased 105 percent to $7.68 million, with an operating profit of $112,000 versus a year-ago loss of $1.04 million.
Founded in 2000, the company serves more than 3,000 retail accounts, including Broyhill Furniture, Bombay Co., Neiman Marcus and Rooms To Go. “We are pleased with our progress in building the leading vertically integrated home accents company,” said CEO Steve Crowder. “The investments we have made over the last two years in our supply chain management are beginning to produce positive financial results... Demand for the company’s products continues to strengthen as evidenced by the triple-digit growth in sales both in the quarter and the first half of this year.”