Daily News Archive
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December 5,
2012 by in UnCategorized 
By Home Furnishings Business in Executive Changes on December 6, 2012
GET Interactive CEO Rick Harrison has been named president of Eyeconic, a multi-media technology company offering turn-key digital signage solutions and menus, and interactive kiosks.
Industry veteran Harrison will continue in his role at rich media specialist GET Interactive.
According to Jeremy Jacobs, chief executive officer of Eyeconic, Glasgow, Ky., he and Harrison, who have worked on a variety of projects together serving both global and domestic clients, recognized a tremendous synergy between their respective concerns.
In joining forces with Rick, we are seeking to leverage the strengths of both Eyeconic and GET Interactive for our existing clients and future customers, Jacobs said. Rick has an unparalleled ability to work with clients in identifying critical issues and how technology can be deployed to solve those issues to improve their businesses. In formalizing the relationship with our company, Rick will lead sales and business development for all Eyeconic product, allowing me to focus exclusively on continued product design and development.
In describing the new relationship, Harrison said: I see tremendous growth opportunities in the digital space now, specifically in the area of in-store environments, which I believe will be the next frontier from a digital perspective. Brick-and-mortar retailers cant manage the volume of product and information that an online merchant can, and they cant train their people to become experts in every product category for every brand. Our goal is to provide retailers with selling tools that replicate the online experience for consumers and move them quickly and effectively through the purchase funnel in order to drive sales.
"Walk into any store today and you will see a lot of consumers 'showrooming,' looking at one product and then searching for another on their mobile devices. Interactive kiosks and other digital tools allow consumers to research product and brand information, as well as features and benefits, right there in the store.
Harrison added that leveraging the strengths of both companies will enable them to address every aspect of digital strategy for retailers and manufacturers, ranging from local and international interactive ad technology to delivering a compelling and interactive in-store experience in a complete, turnkey solution.
"Working with Eyeconic tremendously expands the breadth and scope of what we are able to accomplish for our brand partners," Harrison said. "We can deploy any volume and variety of content, product or brand information anywhere that a consumer will encounter the product or brand, whether it be an interactive banner ad via GET Interactive, or an interactive sign and/or native app that is developed through Eyeconic. I am very pleased to be working with Jeremy in this new position because we can offer clients a truly robust digital solution that accomplishes all of the objectives they wish for a consumer to experience, regardless of how the consumer comes in contact with the brand or the store.
December 4,
2012 by in UnCategorized
By Home Furnishings Business in economic news on December 5, 2012
The Furniture Buying Index head steady this month at a reading of 71, according to America's Research Group.
"Americans are cautious right now about how they spend their money," said Britt Beemer, chairman of the research group. "Christmas spending is a higher priority than things for the home at this time. Consumers are in 'hibernation mode' with their Christmas purchasing with many waiting until the final weekend, or even Dec.r 24, to finish their shopping in hopes of getting a great deal."
Beemer said consumers have moved big-ticket items for the home farther down the shopping list.
The Furniture Buying Index is compiled each month by America's Research Group from interviews with between 5,000 and 8,000 consumers across the country. In a typical month, 80 percent of the consumers interviewed can name a specific furniture item they intend to buy. The Index's mark signifies what percent of the benchmark 80% actually have a particular item in mind.
December 4,
2012 by in UnCategorized
By Home Furnishings Business in Bedding on December 5, 2012
Eco-chic interior designer Sarah Barnard will moderate a panel on the value of consumer disclosure labeling in specialty sleep at Las Vegas Furniture Market.
"What's in Your Mattress," created to raise awareness for how using truth in marketing of sleep products can help to grow sales among specific groups of consumers, is set for Monday, Jan. 28, 4-5 p.m., in space C176 of the World Market Center; and is sponsored by the Specialty Sleep Association. The event is open to all market attendees.
Barnard, of Sarah Barnard Design in Santa Monica, Calif., is recognized by the International Institute for Bau-Biologie & Ecology as a Building Biology Practitioner and by the United States Green Building Council as a Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design Accredited Professional. She serves on the Santa Monica Conservancys board of directors and specializes in green interior design and historic preservation.
Panel participants will include Chris Chamberlain, cofounder of The Clean Bedroom, a leading organic bedding retailer with stores in Maine, California, Massachusetts, Rhode Island, Connecticut and New York; Barry Cik, founder of Naturepedic, an organic bedding manufacturer with an active product labeling program; and a Las Vegas consumer who places a high value on transparent communications when deciding which products to purchase for her home.
The panel will discuss how identifying whats in a mattress can be a powerful selling tool for retailers. The group also will provide tips on how stores in the specialty sleep arena can prepare for the emerging product labeling trend.
Purchasing safe and environmentally friendly products for the home is a growing priority for many consumers, especially for mothers of young children, said SSA President Dale Read. With the SSAs Environmental & Safety Program, weve done the leg work for the manufacturer and the retailer.
The SSA program currently has three levels of bedding product seals that build upon each other with increasingly demanding levels of requirements. The seals, plus a required SSA Consumer Disclosure Label, appear on mattresses from manufacturers who comply with requirements of the program and serve to inform the consumer about the minimum environmental and compliance levels to which a manufacturer claims its particular products adhere.
This is a seal and label consumer disclosure program that relies on existing certifications and standards already established by independent agencies, adds Read. With product seals and tags, consumers will understand the environmental and safety attributes of participating manufacturers products at the point of purchase.
Participating manufacturers complete an extensive application process, providing documentation to back up claims. Any mattress currently manufactured is potentially eligible for inclusion in the program, but higher levels of classification require compliance with requirements for third-party certifications and increased use of natural/bio-based or renewable content.
In addition to moderating the Whats In Your Mattress educational event, Barnard is currently designing the new headquarters of Life Rolls On, a subsidiary of the Christopher Reeve Foundation. Other recent projects include the new corporate offices of National Geographic Entertainment, a Backstage Celebrity Eco-Lounge for the Academy of Country Music Awards and the Teen Choice Awards, and a sustainable penthouse.
December 4,
2012 by in UnCategorized
By Home Furnishings Business in Green on December 5, 2012
Luxury mattress brand Pure LatexBliss has signed an exclusive partnership with Yulex Corp., a manufacturer of bio-rubber latex derived from the guayule plant.
Offering an additional option to Pure LatexBliss other latex products derived from Hevea rubber trees, the company will be the first manufacturer in the sleep products industry to create latex mattresses and pillows with Yulexs biorubber material made from guayule, a renewable, non-food crop grown domestically in the United States.
Yulexs biorubber is desirable for its eco-friendly properties; and has a natural elasticity, durability and softness. Those same qualities make Yulex appropriate for a range of consumer, industrial and medical markets. The company has strategic partnerships in other consumer categories, including with Patagonia sportswear and Ansell Medical in the medical device market.
This is a new to the world latex technology that has never been used before in our category, said Pure LatexBliss President Kurt Ling. "When we discovered Yulex, we were convinced that this was an innovation we needed to bring to our product collections. Not only does Yulex produce a high-performance biorubber, we were excited to learn that it is derived from a plant grown in the United States."
Yulexs partnership with Pure LatexBliss represents a new standard for creating sustainable, renewable, and low carbon footprint sleep products, said Yulex Corp. CEO and President Jeff Martin. This validates the growing demand from manufactures to use renewable, health-friendly materials in product design which are produced locally.
Guayule is a new industrial crop and the only species other than Hevea that has been used for rubber production on a commercial scale, according to Pure LatexBliss. Guayule is a non-food plant that requires very little water, is grown domestically, uses no pesticides and has a clean manufacturing process. Rubber is found primarily in the bark of this desert shrub. To extract the rubber, the branches are ground, releasing intact rubber particles and an aqueous suspension. The materials are separated in a centrifuge, and the rubber mixture is culled of the top and purified.
Pure LatexBliss plans to unveil its Yulex collection of mattresses, toppers and pillows at the Jan. 28-Feb. 1 Las Vegas Furniture Market.
December 4,
2012 by in UnCategorized
By Home Furnishings Business in Green on December 5, 2012
The Sustainable Furnishings Council will host a free Sustainability Essentials webinar, Thurs., Dec. 13, noon-1 p.m. (eastern time).
Next week's event feature's special guest Frank Reed of Habitat for Humanity Restores, which has more than 800 retail outlets across North America. The discussion covers the role that social responsibility plays in promoting the sustainability cause in our industry. Restores promote reusing, repurposing, upcycling, and recycling--all of which save energy as well as natural resources.
This webinar is intended to give participants useful information they can begin using in their business immediately; and provides a grounding in the environmental issues related to home furnishings, including the factual basis for climate change, problems with indoor air quality, toxic waste, and water conservation. Questions are answered about getting the most out of SFC membership and participating in GREENleaders certified sustainability training program to receive credentials as a local expert in green furnishings.
Click this link to reserve a seat.