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May 14,
2013 by in UnCategorized 
By Home Furnishings Business in Bedding on May 15, 2013
Furniture Brands International and Boyd Specialty Sleep will partner on a licensed line of mattresses and sleep accessories.
The line will include broad assortment of high quality and innovative specialty bedding collections, pillows, toppers and adjustable bed bases across multiple constructions, styles and price points under the Broyhill, Lane, Drexel Heritage and Thomasville brands. The Thomasville licensing rights are only for Air Beds and Latex Mattresses.
The new sleep products will range from mid- to ultra-premium retail price points and will be marketed across multiple bedding distribution channels.
The Broyhill, Lane, Drexel Heritage and Thomasville names represent iconic brands that resonate extremely well with affluent consumers in the 25 to 64 age range, said Denny Boyd, president of Boyd Specialty Sleep, St. Louis. These revered brands transfer seamlessly to the mattress and sleep accessories category and speak to consumers who are interested in a quality nights sleep. We are confident the combination of our high quality offering under these well-recognized furniture brand names on mattresses, top-of-bed products and adjustable bed frames will greatly enhance the shopping experience and elevate the concept of a total sleep experience in the consumers mind.
Boyd Specialty Sleep is a well-respected leader and a pioneer of innovative sleep products in the industry," said Mark Wiltshire, president-special markets at Furniture Brands International, also based in St. Louis. "They have a shared commitment to successfully develop each branded collection to reflect the positioning and heritage of each of our brands and we are very excited to have them as a new licensing partner.
Boyd Specialty Sleep will make its first FBN brand introductions at this summers Las Vegas Furniture Market, which will include air and latex bedding collections under the Thomasville brand, and foam/gel bedding collections under the Broyhill brand. The presentation also will involve memory foam and gel-based pillows and toppers, plus adjustable bed bases. Mattresses and sleep accessories under the Lane and Drexel Heritage brands will be introduced at subsequent markets.
All licensed products will be promoted to retailers and consumers using extensive Internet marketing campaigns and social media vehicles.
May 14,
2013 by in UnCategorized
By Home Furnishings Business in Bedding on May 15, 2013
Bedding major Kingsdown has a new licensing deal with the Massindo Group, a leading Indonesian mattress and furniture manufacturer.
The move marks Kingsdowns first entry into Indonesia.
The partnership plans to open five retail Sleep Centers this year featuring Kingsdowns MySide product line and bedMATCH sleep diagnostic technology. With 11 state-of-the-art manufacturing facilities in different cities in Indonesia, Massindo Group is fully equipped to produce Kingsdown branded product. Massindo already has one factory outfitted with Kingsdowns exclusive Inline Comfort Support Analysis machine designed to test each finished mattress to ensure it meets strict support standards. That facility is now fully operational and making five innerspring MySide product lines to service its first two Kingsdown retail locations, which opened this year in Indonesias capital city, Jakarta.
Indonesia is a key market for Kingsdown as we continue our growth in Asia, so were thrilled to be working with the Massindo Group. As one of the fastest growing bedding manufacturers in the country, it is a great ambassador for our brand, said Kingsdown President and CEO Frank Hood. U.S. products and brands are truly prized in Indonesia, and with the science behind MySide, we offer some great points-of-difference from our competitors, which we believe consumers will appreciate.
Massindo also will promote MySide outside of its retail locations. The company will reach consumers by participating in 50 to 60 exhibitions throughout the country annually, which includes bringing the product into luxury shopping malls for special events.
Right now, the market in Indonesia is flooded with low-end and low-quality mattresses, said Hood. "Were really reaching an underserved market with the introduction of MySide. This is a premium bedding line backed by science that will appeal to the upper and middle classes that are seeing strong growth and increased purchasing power."
May 14,
2013 by in UnCategorized
By Home Furnishings Business in on May 15, 2013
Import volume at major U.S. retail container ports should rise 3.3 percent in May, according to the latest Global Port Tracker report, but slow down after that.
Import traffic could trickle to a standstill by the end of the summer, according to the monthly report released from the National Retail Federation and Hackett Associates.
The weak cargo increases expected over the next few months are consistent with other signs that the economy is slowly improving but show that retailers remain cautious, especially when it comes to stocking their inventories, NRF Vice President for Supply Chain and Customs Policy Jonathan Gold said. Were looking at barely 1 percent of year-over-year growth through the early summer, and August and September are expected to be basically flat even though theyre supposed to be two of the busiest months of the years.
With consumer confidence low, employment struggling to recover, and less money in shoppers pockets because of the payroll tax hike, we need to see action from Washington that will provide some fiscal certainty for families and businesses alike.
Cargo import numbers do not correlate directly with retail sales or employment because they count only the number of cargo containers brought into the country, not the value of the merchandise inside them. But the amount of merchandise imported nonetheless provides a rough barometer of retailers expectations.
U.S. ports followed by Global Port Tracker handled 1.14 million 20-foot Equivalent Units in March, the latest month for which after-the-fact numbers are available. That was down 10.9 percent from February and 8.6 percent from March 2012. One TEU is one 20-foot cargo container or its equivalent.
April was estimated at 1.29 million TEU, down 1.4 percent from a year ago. May is forecast at 1.42 million TEU, up 3.3 percent from last year; June at 1.4 million TEU, up 1.4 percent; July at 1.43 million TEU, also up 1.4 percent; August at 1.43 million TEU, up 0.1 percent, and September at 1.41 million TEU, unchanged from last year.
The first six months of 2013 are expected to total 7.8 million TEU, up 2 percent from the first half of 2012. The total for 2012 was 15.8 million TEU, up 2.9 percent from 2011.
Despite the Fed pumping liquidity into the market, consumer confidence still has not turned the corner, Hackett Associates Founder Ben Hackett said. We need to see the economy strengthen in the coming quarters before we can begin to see the threat of a further economic downturn dissipating. Trade will remain at low growth levels until we reach this stage.
May 14,
2013 by in UnCategorized
By Home Furnishings Business in Bedding on May 15, 2013
Luxury mattress brand Pure Latexbliss has named winners of its online "Learn and Earn" program's "Cruise for Bliss."
Since its launch in August, the Learn and Earn program, designed to educate and inspire retail sales associates to live latex, has seen RSAs qualifying for more than 800 awards.
The winners are: Kyle Laudone, and Russell Edwards, both of Bed Pros in Tampan and Clearwater, Fla.; Kyle Zerbe of K.W. Smith Furniture & Mattress in Lafayette, La.; Glen Doering of Mattress Land in Visalia, Calif.; and Sandie Czarnick of Amish Furniture Outlet in Grand Island, Neb.
Learn and Earn, designed in collaboration with Incentive Team, is an online training portal featuring a series of short videos that works to educate RSAs on Pure LatexBLISS key messaging and branding, along with the product benefits of latex. Following each video, participants complete a quiz on the content covered and collect points that are then redeemed for prizes including electronics, jewelry and the top ticket item cruises.
The Learn and Earn system provides incentives for RSAs to improve their work and really shine in the field, said Atlanta-based Pure Latexbliss President Kurt Ling. Since the training program was implemented, weve seen a clear increase in product sales and the number of RSAs cashing in for high-level prizes proves their passion and enthusiasm for success.
May 13,
2013 by in UnCategorized
By Aggregated Content in Markets on May 14, 2013
from http://www.interiorsandsources.com/article-details/articleid/15750/title/interzum-2013-kicks-off-in-cologne.aspx
With more than 70 percent of visitors coming from abroad, interzum is a trade show that combines a strongly international feel with a unique breadth and depth of offerings.
In order to make it easier for visitors - and particularly foreign guests - to navigate the exhibition, Koelnmesse has developed the "Follow the red line" concept. This "red line" runs through the entire exhibition site, enabling visitors to view all exhibition segments and special areas in a systematic way: ideal for a compact and comprehensive overview of the industry.
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