Daily News Archive
Brought to you by Home Furnishings Business
January 27,
2013 by in UnCategorized 
By Home Furnishings Business in on January 2013
Known as The Sleep Doctor, Dr. Michael Breus, Ph.D. certainly has substantial cred to justify that title. A clinical psychologist who has specialized in sleep disorders, Dr. Breus is a Diplomate of the American Board of Sleep Medicine and a Fellow of The American Academy of Sleep Medicine. His 2011 book, The Sleep Doctors Diet Plan: Lose Weight Through Better Sleep, details the connections between sleep and metabolism, and he has appeared on a variety of TV talk shows, including Oprah and Dr. Oz.
Dr. Breus has applied his expertise to a mattress collection, The Dr. Breus Bed, now at retail. He recently spoke with Home Furnishings Business about his beds, their benefits, and their retail potential.
HFB: Lets say Im a new customer walking into a store. Youre a retail sales associate. How do you guide me to your beds?
Dr. Breus: I would say that probably the most salient points of the beds are, warm people sleep cool and cool people sleep warm. So one of the first questions that I teach RSAs about, is to ask people ,How did you sleep last night? Not what price they want to pay or what sizewell get to those questions later. I really want them to get into a conversation about health. And there are some easy questions to ask:
How many times did you hit the snooze button? Thats actually a telltale sign of how sleep-deprived somebody is. If you hit the snooze button more than once, your body doesnt want to get out of bed, which means you havent gotten enough sleep yet.
I ask people questions like, How long did it take you to fall asleep? Somebody will say, Oh, less than five minutes. Thats actually not a good scenario. Your body should take somewhere between 15 and 20 minutes to fall asleep. So if its not taking that long, again it means youre sleep-deprived and your bodys forcing you into sleep very quickly.
We ask consumers if temperature is a problem for them. Also, Do have any pain when you sleep? So again, were talking about physiology-based questions. How old is your mattress? sometimes is a very interesting sign. I dont believe theres a particular number of years a mattress should be held onto by a consumer. I think your body tells you when you need a new bed. So when you wake up with aches and pains, its probably time to think about a new bed. I will say, I think theres an upper-level limit, but I dont like people holding onto their beds more than seven years.
HFB: Price is going to be a part of this conversation, especially in a tough economy.
So how do RSAs get past that and sell the benefits youre trying to bring to this industry?
Dr. Breus: One of the things that I always talk to with RSAs is that we have to give people an understanding of what the value of sleep really is. For me, I think it is immeasurable, but Im a sleep doctor, right? I understand that people have a fiscal responsibility that they have to know and understand. These products were designed to help you sleep better and sleep longer and deeper for an extended period of time.
This is not a product that youre going to buy again in two years, three years, four years. Its really an investment in sleep, so thats how we have people talk about it. Price is really the last thing that they come to. Its really about, How important is sleep in your life? And if sleep is important in your life, then this makes sense. Its like eyeglasses to me.
This absolutely has been effective so far. There are definitely consumers out there who say Im not spending more than $599 on a bed. I understand that. Im responsive to that. Thats not where these products lie. Will we ever get there? Maybe. Im not sure. Heres my problem: The materials in these beds are so specific, and I spend so much time finding the right (ones), that if I actually get the right material in the bed, the raw materials cost more than $599. So I cant get down to that price unless I cheapen the materials, and Im just not going to do that.
HFB: How has the response been at retail for your line?
Dr. Breus: Its been excellent. Weve been thrilled with whats been going on with people. ¦ Weve been very thrilled with the responseand its interesting, people are much more interested in selling health as opposed to selling a puffy rectangle.
And I like that idea. Im here to try to change the industry, with the industry. I want to educate the industry and all of the RSAs out there. I believe that everybody who owns a sleep shop or a furniture store that sells mattresses is actually a healthcare professional. This is a piece of healthcare equipment, thats how I look at it. I always say, If you were going to run a marathon, you wouldnt do it in flip flops, right? Youd do it in good shoes. The same holds true for a bed. The people should be matchedthe right bed for their sleep needs, and they will perform better and be healthier. HFB
January 27,
2013 by in UnCategorized
By Home Furnishings Business in on January 2013
Most of you know that I love a great meal. Im not too shy to admit it. Whether it be at home or out. I dig cooking a big meal for family and friends and gathering everyone around the table. Im not partial to preparing any particular mealbreakfast, brunch, lunch or dinner all suit just fine. The key is that good food brings folks together. And a cozy dining spot, furnished and decorated just so, makes the meal and time together even better.
Lately in my travels, as well as here at home, Ive been to a few restaurants. Some of them new; some of them well-established spots. Each of them sport their own special slant on eats, and some offer drop-dead, gorgeous décor. The design in a few give you the feel of walking into a RH catalog or, better yet, someones well-appointed, comfortably dressed home. How welcoming and calming.
While in Philadelphia for a team pow-wow last month, we went to a relatively new spot, Route 6 (Route6Restaurant.com) named after the highway that begins in Provincetown, Mass., and meanders through Cape Cod. The restaurant is located just South of our offices in Philly, in an area that is undergoing a resurgence. A number of great eateries have popped up and more are sure to follow.
Walking through the door, it hit me that there is an abundance of decorating ideas staring every one of Route 6s diners in the face. Cozy, linen covered banquettes coupled with a feast of blond wood and metal accents. The welcoming décor makes you want to move right in. Its an upscale beachy feel, without being kitschyor sandy.
Another favorite in the city of Brotherly Love is The Continental Mid-Town (ContinentalMidTown.com) on Chestnut Street, not far from the famed city hall. A small-plates joint with a great mix of food to meet a variety of tastes.
Both restaurants are owned by Starr Restaurants, but the vibe of each is quite different. The Continental Mid-Town offers a more retro feel with 1960s-era chairs, curved banquettes and brightly colored tables. Upstairs youll find hanging wicker swing seats that allow diners to gently sway while dining.
Its just a hip, relaxed space that serves a mean lobster mac n cheese and scrumptious Thai chicken wraps. Never a bad meal.
On the West Coast in Rancho Santa Fe, Calif., I was fortunate enough to dine with a great old friend recently at Veladora, (RanchoValencia.com/Dining)the stunning restaurant at the newly renovated and recently reopened Rancho Valencia Resort & Spa.
A spectactular farm-to-table menu and a beautiful hacienda-style setting with open ceiling beams and dramatic metal chandeliers make diners want to linger long over drinks, dinner and dessert.
So what the heck do restaurants have to do with furniture retailing? In addition to the fact that consumers spend a lot of change on dining out these days, restaurants have become another space for consumers to turn for inspiration in home decorating.
Your stores should be the first stop in finding that inspiration. Well-merchandised stores tend to be more successful that those that just toss the sofas on floor and line them up like soldiers waiting to march out the front door.
In this issue, we talk merchandising. Most specifically the marriage of a well-merchandised floor and a well-merchandised Web site. The two must go hand in hand, working together to entice consumers.
Enjoy the read, and we all look forward to seeing many of you at the market in Las Vegas.
January 27,
2013 by in UnCategorized
By Home Furnishings Business in on January 2013
How many of our readers had their first date with their future spouse at High Point Furniture Market?
We dont expect a lot of affirmative answers to that question, but High Point is where contemporary home furnishings retailer PerLoras founders, Perry and Lora Sigesmund, first started hanging out with each other.
Both our parents were in the industry, mine from a small town (Steubenville, Ohio); and her family had a small store in Pittsburgh, said Perry Sigesmund, who owns PerLora with wife, Lora.
Perry had worked for a year at his parents store in Steubenville before going out on his own to open a storefront carrying traditional lines such as Drexel Heritage and Pennsylvania House. Loras parents had a store in Pittsburgh.
I went to open an interior design studio in Pittsburgh, Perry said, and thats where the couples paths crossed.
Our first date was in High Point, Lora said. Wed opened another store in Florida, so I was going to the market with another furniture retailer from Pittsburgh.
As luck would have it, Perry and Lora ended up spending time after hours in High Point, and the rest of their personal history is, well, history. The couple dated for five years and got married in 1990. Four years later they opened the first PerLora store on Pittsburghs South Side.
Now the couple own and operate the original PerLora for Perry and Lora, of courseon Pittsburghs South Side, which has a decidedly contemporary ambience; and PerLora Leather, located in a former leather retail store and which has transitional looks to round out contemporary offerings.
DEVELOPING A NICHE
The vision consumers see in PerLoras stores developed over time.
When we first opened, PerLora, believe it or not, was funky contemporaryall the velvets and contrasting weltswe had clothing, candles, all sorts of stuff, Perry said. As the industry changed, we got out of that funky mode and moved to cleaner lines.
It took us a while to get away from that (funky) style. It was like when Ethan Allen started to sell contemporary furniture. It was hard to shake off that original image and change direction.
How does that clean, contemporary vision translate on PerLoras showroom floors?
We want it to look, smell and feel like no other store, Lora said. Now the contemporary style is chic and trendy, but at the time we started it wasnt. Originally we wanted to have something for everyone, from jewelry to food to furniture. And many of our employees have been with us from the beginning.
Perry said the store segued away from some of those ancillary items for a long time, but has brought back in more home accents in recent years.
In the last year-and-a-half weve been reading articles about some stores that are even carrying clothing, so weve moved back into some candles, accessories and jewelryweve definitely gotten back into some of that.
There are certain lines you know you wont do huge volume with, but they make the store an inviting placethough we do concentrate most of the space on what moves.
BEST FOOT FORWARD
The Sigesmunds leave no doubt as to the strongest way to communicate to consumers the clean, contemporary lifestyle projected on their floors.
Your Web site is gold, Perry said. Right now its the most important thing for bringing people into your store, and your Web site had better reflect whats in your store.
The worst thing you can do is make your Web site very cool, very inviting, and have people not get that same feeling once they get into your store.
PerLora concentrates hard on making customers who find the store online have an experience in the showroom that matches up to the promise made on the Web.
The experience they have on your Web site should match the experience they have in your store, Lora said.
DONT BACK DOWN
PerLora also has been very consistent in keeping its promotional budget to between 5 percent and 6 percent of sales, and that paid off during the recession and furniture retailings slow recovery from a nosedive overall in 2009.
We didnt back off advertising, Perry said. We didnt want to fall off peoples radar.
In fact, 2011 ended up the stores best year yet, and 2012 beat the previous years performance, Lora noted.
There was another key to PerLoras continuing to thrive in a tough retail environment for home furnishingsthe stores membership in the Contemporary Furnishings Group retail buying and networking association.
When youre in a group like that, there are commonalities, even though were all different stores, Lora noted. Were contemporary, Circle (in Boston) has traditional, but we all are trying to reach the same people.
That networking helped us find ways to save money, Perry said. We feel its kept us alive through those difficult times. HFB
January 27,
2013 by in UnCategorized
By Home Furnishings Business in on January 28, 2013
Lifestyle home furnishings retailer
I.O. Metro will open its 18th store, in Dallas, Texas, in late March.
The store, I.O. Metro's second in North Texas, will be located at 4531 McKinney Avenue, centrally located within the Knox-Henderson neighborhood. I.O. Metro had opened its first Texas location in December 2009 in the Village at Fairview.
We couldnt be more excited to share our eclectic style and unique vision with the residents of Dallas, said Christine Howard, Co-Founder and Creative Director, I.O. Metro. "We are thrilled about the opportunity to assist our clients in discovering the potential of their homes, by creating beautifully designed spaces."
With 17 stores nationwide, I.O. Metro has become a one-of-a-kind shopping experience offering furniture and décor for the home and office. The company offers products with vivid colors, materials, textures and designs. In addition, a special line of customizable furniture offers customers more than 12,500 ways to customize select pieces, providing a seamless process for shoppers in finding the best furniture to suit their design needs. The store will also display furniture and accessories in room settings, allowing customers to visualize exactly how the furniture will look in their homes.
January 27,
2013 by in UnCategorized
By Home Furnishings Business in on January 28, 2013
Premium Italian mattress vendor
Magniflex has named home furnishings industry veteran Billy Curtright U.S. national sales manager.
Curtright will oversee the organization's efforts to expand its retail relationships throughout North America.
Curtright brings 20 years of sales management and marketing experience in the furniture business to his new position. Before joining Magniflex, Curtright served as director of sales for furniture and specialty sleep products manufacturer and brand Human Touch(http://www.humantouch.com). Prior to that, he was account manager of Norwegian furniture manufacturer Ekornes(http://www.ekornes.com/us) and national sales manager for Standard Furniture(http://www.standard-furniture.com).
Billy brings a wealth of retail experience to Magniflex, particularly with quality furniture retailers who have historically done well selling our brand, said Magniflex USA President Marco Magni. He will play a crucial role in positioning Magniflex in the United States as the innovative mattress manufacturer synonymous with Italian craftsmanship and cultivate relationships with retailers who want to offer sophisticated consumers high-quality and distinctive sleep products.
Curtright received his bachelors degree from the University of Alabama's College of Arts and Sciences in Tuscaloosa. He and his wife have a daughter.