Daily News Archive
Brought to you by Home Furnishings Business
August 27,
2012 by in UnCategorized 
By Home Furnishings Business in Upholstery on August 28, 2012
Upholstered furniture manufacturer Massoud Furniture has named independent sales executive John Harmon to represent its line in Kentucky, Ohio, Western Pennsylvania, Michigan and Indiana.
In his new role, Harmon joins the companys growing sales force whose efforts are focused on further strengthening Dallas, Texas-based Massouds position as a leading national resource for high quality, domestically-made designs in an abundance of frame styles, fabrics, leathers and custom options. Harmon will work closely with Massouds established account base in his assigned states to ensure they have the products, service and marketing support needed to maximize sales of the line. In addition, he also will work to open and develop new accounts in his respective territories.
Here at Massoud, were not just selling a commodity--but design, quality, value, choice and a whole list of business solutions for our retail and designer partners that only the sales representative can effectively communicate and deliver, said CEO Chuck Massoud. Johns proven industry experience, together with his solid understanding of the sales/marketing partnership relationship between a manufacturer and its accounts, will certainly help us as we continue to build our brand, our customers business and our sales.
Harmon brings more than 25 years of furniture industry product line sales experience to his new position. He has represented a number of companies in the industry, including C.R. Laine Furniture, Hooker Furniture Corp., Michael Thomas Furniture and Harden Furniture. He graduated from Appalachian State University with a B.S. in Business Administration and a Minor in Economics.
August 27,
2012 by in UnCategorized
By Home Furnishings Business in Social Media on August 28, 2012
High Point Furniture Market and collaborative online community Decor Mentor will co-host their second global Twitter chat on Tuesday, Sept. 11.
The chat will preview new products for the upcoming fall Market, Oct. 13-18. High Point Market exhibitors are invited to submit photos of their October introductions to editorial@highpointmarket.org by Thursday, Sept. 6. Submissions are limited to two photos per company.
The Decor Mentor ambassadors will curate a collection of their top picks on Twitter at 6 p.m. on Sept. 11, using the official High Point Market hashtag #hpmkt. The ambassadors also will discuss new trends, Market tips, and events.
In a new twist, all product photos submitted for the chat will be featured on a Sneak Peek pinboard on the High Point Furniture Markets Pinterest Page. The Decor Mentor curated selections will also be posted to a Pinterest board. A link to all of the Pinterest boards will be posted on Twitter throughout the chat.
We had an amazing response to our first Twitter chat for the April Market, said High Point Market Authority Vice President Cheminne Taylor-Smith. We had such an overwhelming response that we almost took down Twitter. This Market, we wanted to make the event faster paced, but still allow all exhibitors to participate. Adding the Pinterest boards to our sneak peek of Market products will make this a much bigger event, and will allow participants to see a lot of new products before the upcoming Market.
The Twitter chat is open to everyone on Twitter, and will offer inside information and special previews for the October High Point Market.
August 26,
2012 by in UnCategorized
By Home Furnishings Business in Executive Changes on August 27, 2012
Furniture Brands International (NYSE: FBN) has named Dan Masters president of Lane Furniture.
Greg Roy, who was president of Lane Furniture, now is vice president, business development for Furniture Brands, Masters' prior post.
Before joining Furniture Brands, Masters most recently served as President of Hekman Furniture. Prior to that, he held various positions with increasing responsibility in general management and sales at Riverside Furniture and Flexsteel Industries, where he had extensive experience in the motion upholstery business.
Roy now is responsible for new business development across all wholesale brands. Roy has had a long and successful career with Furniture Brands, built on his strengths in sales and customer development.
Both Masters and Roy continue to report to Ralph Scozzafava, Furniture Brands chairman and CEO.
With Dans new focus on Lane Furniture added to Gregs concentration on building distribution, we are confident we have defined the sales strategy that will drive our Lane business and provide growth for our entire company, said Scozzafava. Both Dan and Greg have excellent relationships with retailers and extensive knowledge of the furniture industry. We are excited about this change and how it will strengthen our sales efforts going forward.
August 26,
2012 by in UnCategorized
By Home Furnishings Business in Social Media on August 27, 2012
Home furnishings buying group MEGA Group USA will offer its retailers an incentive on its new social media program at its Sept. 6-9 convention in Louisville, Ky.
The consortium teamed with online ad technology company Netsertive to develop Social Extend, a turnkey social media program. At the core of this powerful program is a dynamic library of professionally curated, relevant content posts, auto-published to a retailers Facebook and Twitter channels.
As a special offer, the first 100 dealers to sign up at the convention will receive 2 free months of the Social Extend service from Netsertive.
Social Extend also synchronizes social marketing with overall marketing campaigns to ensure consistency of targeting, branding and messaging. Additionally, the program delivers reporting of social media results and interactions, plus access to monthly online training classes for local business owners.
Netsertive Marketing Manager Tim McLain, who also heads up the Social Extend program, will demonstrate the program to MEGA Group dealers at the convention on Friday, Sept. 7 during a Social Media Seminar. Many MEGA dealers have been using Social Extend for months.
Today, retailers are busier than ever before and often struggle to consistently be active on their various social media sites, said McLain. With more than 93 percent of Facebook pages being updated weekly, Social Extend takes the burden off of retailers so they can focus on closing sales.
August 26,
2012 by in UnCategorized
By Home Furnishings Business in Bedroom on August 27, 2012
Bedroom furniture vendor Folio 21 has expanded its High Point Furniture Market showroom by more than 30 percent, bringing its total space to 15,100 square feet.
The company, which sources upper-promotional to mid-moderate priced bedroom furniture on a direct-container basis from Vietnam, will use the added space to expand its style offerings and show more pieces within existing collections. The company exhibits in Space 647 of the Wrenn wing of the International Home Furnishings Center(http://www.ihfc.com).
With some of our groups, the larger-scaled pieces are generating the best results, said Sean Slack, executive vice president of merchandising. Having the added space in our showroom will enable us to show a great range within these collections, including the well-received contemporary bed wall program that we introduced in April, along with a variety of exciting new introductions.
The company will present a preview of its October introductions to retailers at the Sept. 13-14 fall Premarket in High Point.
Folio 21s original showroom, formerly the Martha Stewart space, has some tremendous architectural details, said Slack. The new area is more open with a distinct contemporary feel.
A number of our best-selling bedrooms are transitional or contemporary, making this the perfect setting, he added.
Like Folio 21s existing space, the expanded showroom features an interior design fashioned by Connie Post of Affordable Design Solutions. A well-known visual marketer, Post has created store interiors for a long list of leading furnishings retailers worldwide.
Connie has a knack for making products stand out at an affordable cost, said Slack. Our retailers always come away from market with creative ideas for their own stores.
Celebrating its one-year anniversary this market, Folio 21 is a joint venture between industry veterans Bill Benton, Sean Slack and James Martin Jr. and the owner of a leading OEM producer in Vietnam.
We launched this company to address the void in the marketplace for quality features at affordable price points, said Slack. Our focus is on providing original styling and exceptional construction, including sophisticated, multistep finishes and unique veneers not usually found in goods at this price level.
The industry has been chasing cheap goods for far too long and we all know it has had a negative impact on gross margin dollar contribution, said Benton, president and CEO. Costs are continuing to rise, while most average-unit dollar sales are dropping. Our mission is to give consumers a compelling reason to step up with superior quality and visible features that the retail sales associate can easily demonstrate.
The margin opportunity with Folio 21s line is significant and our 100 percent mixing capabilities allow dealers of any size to leverage this opportunity, Benton added.
Folio 21 produces and warehouses its entire line of fresh and unique designs at a 3.5-million-square-foot facility in Vietnam.