Daily News Archive
Brought to you by Home Furnishings Business
June 7,
2006 by in UnCategorized 
By Home Furnishings Business in Las Vegas on June 2006
A new multi-use project in Las Vegas plans to offer 1 million square feet of showroom space to furniture companies within 14 months, according to developers of the World View Towers, a project set for construction a little over a mile away from the World Market Center.
The nascent Las Vegas furniture market doesn’t begin to compare with High Point in terms of showroom ownership variety, but World View Towers’ plans indicate that there are others out West who’d like to cash in on the momentum Las Vegas market has enjoyed through two editions at the World Market Center, and the concurrent Las Vegas Furniture Show.
The project, to be built on 7.8 acres southeast of the intersection of Interstate 15 and Charleston Blvd., includes two 650-plus-foot towers and other buildings, which also will hold more than 1,200 condominiums, almost 40,000 square feet of office space, and 23,000-plus square feet of retail and restaurant space, according to marketing materials.
Craig Katchen, a partner in Wall Street Nevada LLC, developer of the World View Towers, said the developers with High Point or the World Market Center, but will be signing six-month leases for potential furniture exhibitors.
“We want to lease to people in High Point who want a second (showroom) location,” he said. “The World Market Center has 350,000-square-feet of temporary space, and it’s obviously going pretty well for them, and we’re adding some permanent space. We’ve had some discussions with people in China, and they obviously find it a shorter distance (to exhibit in Las Vegas).”
Dana Pretner, director of marketing and public relations for the World Market Center, noted that World View Towers won’t have the furniture focus of the WMC.
“According to its Web site, the project referred to as World View Towers is seeking approval to build condos and retail showrooms open to the public,” she said. “This is proposed as a dense mixed-use development that has different purposes and users.”
World Market Center, she said, is focused on providing trade-only showrooms.
“Our 57-acre master-plan consisting of permanent and temporary showrooms allows the home furnishings industry to grow horizontally and vertically across 12 million square feet, making it the largest complex of its kind anywhere in the world,” Pretner said. “Our project is based on the principle of creating a critical mass for the worldwide home furnishings industry on one campus.”
June 7,
2006 by in UnCategorized
By Home Furnishings Business in Bedroom on June 2006
Hooker Furniture Corp. announced plans yesterday to close its 265,000-square-foot home office and home entertainment plant in Roanoke, Va., by the end of August. About 275 employees will lose jobs.
Hooker will continue to support and service all the products currently made in Roanoke by consolidating that production in its last wood plant, a 760,000-square-foot warehouse and factory next to the company’s corporate headquarters in Martinsville, Va.
The Roanoke shutdown is a result of decreased order and shipment rates for Hooker’s domestic line.
“The Martinsville plant is capable of producing our entire domestic line,” said Douglas Williams, president and chief operating officer. “It can build multiple products and apply multiple finishes at the same time.”
After the Roanoke closure, Hooker will have 2.6 million square feet of plant and distribution space in Virginia and North Carolina, including the Martinsville wood plant, two upholstery plants, two supply plants, a distribution center and several warehouses.
The move should bring the Martinsville wood plant to near full capacity, with new solid wood bedroom and home theater furniture geared toward the latest consumer electronics.
“We expect to continue expanding into these types of domestic products,” said Paul Toms Jr., chairman and chief executive officer. “We do not intend to exit domestic wood furniture manufacturing.”
June 7,
2006 by in UnCategorized
By Home Furnishings Business in Furniture Retailing on June 2006
Retail veteran Lee Goodman has joined Jerome’s Furniture as chief operating officer for the five-store, San Diego-based chain.
Most recently, Goodman had been running The Goodman Group, a retail consulting agency, he started in October after leaving his post at Bob’s Discount Furniture. Goodman had been chief operating officer for the Northeast retailer since 2002. He had been with Bob’s since 1994 when he started as a sales consultant.
In the new position with Jerome’s, Goodman is responsible for the day-to-day operations of the business and will be working with the company’s chief financial officer. Goodman reports to Jerry Navarra, president of Jerome’s.
Goodman said he was attracted to the position because of the retailer’s strong position in Southern California.
“It’s a third-generation business run by a warm, compassionate family,” he said. “They’ve turned Jerome’s into a household name in Southern California.”
June 6,
2006 by in UnCategorized
By Home Furnishings Business in Case Goods on June 2006
La-Z-Boy today reported a net loss of $10.3 million on sales of $508.4 million for the fourth quarter ended April 29.
The loss was attributed to a $23 million write down of intangible assets related to the consolidation of its upholstery operations.
For the year, net sales were $1.92 billion, down 6.4 percent from the prior year. The company posted a loss of $3 million for the year, compared to $37.2 million during fiscal 2005.
Kurt Darrow, president and chief executive officer, said the company’s upholstery operations hit an 8.9 percent margin and the case goods side of the business hit a 4.5 percent margin. Upholstery sales for the quarter were $361.6 million, a 12.5 percent decrease from the same period in 2005. Sales from the case goods segment were $113.4 million, down 8.2 percent from the comparable quarter last year.
“For the full year, our top line was impacted by two factors: supply chain challenges in the first half of the year when the hurricanes caused an industrywide shortage of foam and disrupted our operations; and macroeconomic issues which caused inconsistent demand in retail,” Darrow said. “From an operating margin perspective, although softness at retail persists, we gained traction in the second half of the fiscal year when many of the supply chain issues were behind us.”
Darrow said the company made progress in modifying its business model and the results are “coming to fruition.” He also said the company will focus on its retail side of the business with its network of La-Z-Boy Furniture Galleries.
For the quarter, sales from the company’s retail segment were $54.1 million, up 9.6 percent from the same quarter last year due to stores the company acquired. Sales for the year hit $213.4 million, an increase of 23.3 percent from fiscal 2005.
La-Z-Boy currently has 337 stores in its retail system, and the company owns 63. Darrow said the company plans to open seven new company owned stores and remodel and relocate 11 stores which will increase the number of its stores in the new footprint from 28 to 46.
“Retail remains an important element of our core strategy, and it will play an integral and additive role in our future, substantially impacting the earnings power of the company,” Darrow said.
June 6,
2006 by in UnCategorized
By Home Furnishings Business in Furniture Retailing on June 2006
Rooms to Go will pay $275,000 to settle a lawsuit charging the company with subjecting two sales associates at its Tampa, Fla.-area clearance center to racial and sexual discrimination.
The U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission announced the settlement with the Seffner, Fla.-based retailer last week. According to an EEOC release, the employees, Tammy Leigh and Tanya Shelton, said their immediate supervisor subjected them to highly charged sexual comments and inappropriate touching.
Leigh, an African-American, also testified that she was subjected to racial harassment, including racial slures and racially offensive references to African-American customers.
In addition to the monetary payment, RTG must enter a three-year monitoring period with the EEOC to ensure compliance with Title VII of the 1964 Civil Rights Act; provide annual training for managers and supervisors on Title VII compliance; and post an anti-discrimination notice affirming its commitment to comply with the law.