Daily News Archive
Brought to you by Home Furnishings Business
December 3,
2012 by in UnCategorized 
By Home Furnishings Business in on December 4, 2012
Reanna Rieman has been named to the design team at home furnishings retailer Clive Daniel Home in Naples, Fla. She previously provided administrative assistance in several departments at the store.
The newest addition to the Clive Daniel Home design team believes combining art with fine furnishings can enhance the living experience.
Reiman has been dishing out genuine customer service for the past several years as the banquet and event coordinator for Angelina's Restaurant in Bonita Spings, Fla., where she lives. As part of her work at the restaurant, she also was responsible for server training and procedures, helping to win the famed eatery praise and respect for its wine and customer service focus.
"Reanna has already made a very positive impact with many of our customers,"
said Bonnie Kern, Clive Daniel Home general manager. "Her expertise in the world of art in an invaluable asset to our design team."
December 3,
2012 by in UnCategorized
By Home Furnishings Business in Financial Reports on December 4, 2012
Hooker Furniture (NASDAQ: HOFT) reported fiscal 2013 third-quarter sales of $56.8 million, a 4.8 percent rise over the prior year.
Net income for the period ended Oct. 28 rose 7.7 percent to $2.4 million, compared withn last year's third quarter.
Through fiscal 2013's first nine months, net sales were $158.7 million, a 5.6 percent drop; but net income rose 11.3 percent to $4.9 million.
Improved profitability in both 2013 fiscal periods was driven by lower sales discounting, reduced costs and greater domestic manufacturing efficiency. In case goods, higher revenues were driven by improved shipments of backlogs and a better in-stock position. Upholstery sales improvements, especially at Sam Moore and at Bradington-Young's import division, were driven by higher demand.
"Across both segments in the company, orders and shipments increased this quarter over the prior year," said Paul B. Toms Jr., chairman and chief executive officer. "We were able to increase net income over 11 percent for the first nine months of the year on lower sales, which indicates greater efficiency, particularly in upholstery manufacturing. We believe there's room for further improvement," Toms said.
In the upholstery segment, Bradington-Young has "achieved sustained profitability for several months as well as increased sales and order rates," said Michael Delgatti, president of Hooker Upholstery. "Sam Moore, on the other hand, came close to break-even as we work through a short-term profit challenge that relates directly to the most robust incoming order rate at Sam Moore in several years."
Brisk demand for Sam Moore's fully upholstered sofa line and other new product lines has necessitated a ramping up of production with accompanying higher labor rates and costs of goods sold.
"We expect to have our incoming order rates and production capacity better aligned by the end of our fiscal fourth quarter," Delgatti added.
Moving forward, Toms said that improved service levels and in-stock position in the third quarter bode well.
"Our improved in-stock position should also drive higher sales from special orders at retail," he said. "We've also been gratified that the Rhapsody Collection we introduced last spring has been performing very well at retail since it began shipping in September, and other collections are also retailing well. Demand is positive in every segment of our business, with our consolidated incoming order rate up just under 5 percent for the third quarter versus the same period last year.
"Our outlook is more bullish looking out to the second quarter of our next fiscal year and beyond than in the shorter term. Longer term, there are many positive signs from the housing sector, with increased housing activity, prices stabilizing and the highest home builder sentiment in six years. Consumer confidence is improving to more historically healthy levels driven by improvements in housing and gains in the stock market this year. All this bodes well for our industry longer term. In the shorter term, we believe the uncertainty around negotiations in Washington, D.C. regarding the so-called 'fiscal cliff' may create enough uncertainty for consumers to postpone big-ticket purchases."
Internally, Toms referred to successful implementation of Phase 1 of Hooker's enterprise resource planning system over Labor Day weekend.
"While we are still working through numerous issues, we were pleased to have had a normal shipping month in September given the magnitude and scope of the project," he said. "We plan to begin Phase 2 in our upholstery segment in January with full implementation scheduled for late in the fourth quarter of fiscal 2014."
December 3,
2012 by in UnCategorized
By Home Furnishings Business in Business Strategy on December 4, 2012
Home furnishings vendor Abbyson Living is in the first phase of a rebranding and marketing campaign.
The move includes a new logo, tagline and Web site, and an intensified social media strategy that leverages the celebrity following the firm's products have developed.
"Abbyson Living has always been dedicated to building our brand name in the market," said Yavar Rafieha, vice president of Abbyson Living. "As we looked to expand our presence we realized that we needed to modernize and more clearly define our identity and position."
Abbyson Living, which focuses on transitional to contemporary living and dining room products, brought in Los Angeles-based MVC Agency, a specialist in brand building and marketing for upscale furniture brands, to spearhead the initiative.
"Our first goal was to reposition and redefine Abbyson's brand to better communicate their customer-oriented values, establishing it as a lifestyle-centric brand," said Jason Pires, MVC's president and brand director. "Abbyson Living has now established a more meaningful connection with its audience, based on core values, which in turn supports their retailer partners."
The new brand position focuses on Abbyson's heritage as a long-time family owned and run business, including featuring the family signature in the new logo. The company also worked with MVC to develop its new tagline "Inspired Elegance, for the Way We Live" to communicate values such as quality, style and familiarity.
The new marketing campaign includes an online social platform that highlights Abbyson's growing celebrity following, including Howie Mandel, Virginia Madsen and Jennie Garth of Beverly Hills 90210 fame.
Abbyson Living also has launched a redesigned Web site to offer an engaging and informative experience.
"We want to reward our customers, in appreciation of the time and attention they have given Abbyson Living," said Rafieha. "We want to offer a memorable experience through great imagery and information, but also to tell the Abbyson story. The new Web site triumphs in many respects."
December 2,
2012 by in UnCategorized
By Home Furnishings Business in sourcing/importing on December 3, 2012
The National Retail Federation wants President Obama's help in stalled contract negotiations between management and striking union workers at West Coast ports.
The International Longshore and Warehouse Union Local 63 Office Clerical Unit has established pickets outside a majority of terminals at the Ports of Los Angeles and Long Beach.
A prolonged strike at the nations largest ports would have a devastating impact on the U.S. economy, read a letter last week from NRF President and CEO Matthew Shay to Obama. We call upon you to use all means necessary to get the two sides back to the negotiating table.
In its appeal to the president that the administration directly engage in the ongoing labor dispute, NRF noted the outcome of the 2002 West Coast ports lockout. The 10-day lockout led to significant supply chain disruptions, which took six months to remedy, and cost the economy an estimated $1 billion a day.
An extended strike [in Los Angeles and Long Beach] this time could have a greater impact considering the fragile state of the U.S. economy, the letter stated. The two sides must remain at the negotiating table until a deal is reached.
December 2,
2012 by in UnCategorized
By Home Furnishings Business in High Point on December 3, 2012
The High Point Furniture Market is changing its logo to a more up-to-date image that uses the Markets hashtag, #hpmkt.
The change makes the High Point Market one of the first organizations in the United States to incorporate a hashtag as a main element in its business identity.
The High Point Market is the premier destination for design enthusiasts, both in retail and in the decorating world, said Tom Conley, president and CEO of the High Point Market Authority. The Markets brand is a solid one, but the former logo didnt accurately reflect the brand. This new logo showcases something unique, modern, strong, and ahead-of-the curve. Those are words that accurately describe the High Point Market as well.
According to a recent New York Times article, hashtags are becoming the new URLs and are one of the top search tools on the Internet and social media, accelerating search functionality.
The Markets hashtag #hpmkt was already being used on social media as a replacement for the full High Point Market name, said Cheminne Taylor-Smith, vice president of marketing for the High Point Market. That gives the HPMkt acronym in the Markets new logo an immediate recognition factor. And as the logo is used online, it will help increase the SEO for the High Point Market and its Web site.
The new logo, designed by the Market Authoritys agency, Emisare, offers several styles that showcase the hashtag, as well as the Markets tagline The Worlds Home for Home Furnishings. The logo is being unveiled Monday on the Web site and throughout all the marketing and collateral for the Market. It also will be used for the High Point Market Authority, the official sponsor and organizer of the High Point Market.