Daily News Archive
Brought to you by Home Furnishings Business
August 15,
2012 by in UnCategorized 
By Home Furnishings Business in Executive Changes on August 16, 2012
Pure LatexBliss Co-Founder and Vice President of Sales Joe Hunt has left the company to pursue other interests, effective immediately.
Hunts duties will be assumed by Co-Founder and President Kurt Ling and other members of the sales team.
We are grateful to Joe for helping build one of the fastest growing luxury brands in the world and ignite the latex category, said Latex International President and CEO Dave Fisher. Pure LatexBliss is a wholly-owned subsidiary of Latex International.
No one has worked harder to grow Pure LatexBliss than Joe. His dedication to this brand has been unparallel in the industry, said Ling, Joe helped execute our vision with excellence. He hired a sales team that sets our brand apart from other mattress brands, establishes it as an alternative to memory foam brands on a retail floor and introduces a sales process that can change dramatically change a retailers business. All of these will continue to move our brand forward at a record pace.
Atlanta-based Pure LatexBliss is one of the fastest growing luxury mattress brands in the world. Today, the company does business in 14 countries and recently expanded from one fabrication site and warehouse in Atlanta to four with regional distribution centers in the United Kingdom, France, Canada, Atlanta, Miami, Phoenix, Texas, Connecticut, and Portland, Ore.
August 15,
2012 by in UnCategorized
By Home Furnishings Business in sourcing/importing on August 16, 2012
Import volume at major U.S. container ports should rise 6.3 percent in August compared with the same month last year, according to the Global Port Tracker report.
The National Retail Federation and Hackett Associates produce the monthly report, which indicates inbound container volume is tracking to increase 4.8 percent in 2012 over last year.
These numbers all show significant increases for the months when retailers will be bringing merchandise into the country for the crucial holiday season, and were also expecting an increase for the full year, NRF Vice President for Supply Chain and Customs Policy Jonathan Gold said. Actual sales will depend on how consumers react to employment levels and other indicators, but retailers are clearly stocking up and hoping for a stronger fall and winter than they saw last year.
U.S. ports followed by Global Port Tracker handled 1.41 million 20-foot equivalent units in June, the latest month for which after-the-fact numbers are available. That was up 4.7 percent from May and 10.7 percent from June 2011. One TEU is one 20-foot cargo container or its equivalent.
July was estimated at 1.39 million TEU, up 2.6 percent from last year. August is forecast at 1.44 million TEU, up 6.3 percent; September at 1.46 million TEU, up 7.3 percent; October at 1.47 million TEU, up 13.2 percent; November at 1.3 million TEU, up 2.4 percent; and December at 1.23 million TEU, up 2.4 percent.
The first half of 2012 totaled 7.6 million TEU, up 3.8 percent from the same period last year. For the full year, 2012 is expected to total 15.9 million TEU, up 4.8 percent from 2011.
Indicators are mixed, and analysts are getting nervous and expecting the U.S. consumer to retrench and reduce consumption, Hackett Associates founder Ben Hackett said. But we continue to believe that trade will not weaken as much as expected by others.
Global Port Tracker covers the U.S. ports of Long Angeles/Long Beach, Oakland, Seattle and Tacoma on the West Coast; New York/New Jersey, Hampton Roads, Charleston, Savannah and Miami on the East Coast, and Houston on the Gulf Coast.
August 15,
2012 by in UnCategorized
By Home Furnishings Business in Las Vegas on August 16, 2012
Former Ambassador to China Jon Huntsman Jr. and former U.S. Secretary of Labor Robert Reich will speak at International Market Centers' first Gift+Home CEO Summit at the January Las Vegas Furniture Market.
Drawing on extensive experience on the world stage, Huntsman and Reich will address issues such as geopolitics, labor and currency, which are impacting and influencing gift and home industry businesses today.
Both keynote sessions will be followed by a Q&A session moderated by Bob Maricich, CEO of International Market Centers. The two-day conference also will present a series of breakout sessions, panel discussions and other topical presentations, with all content geared towards CEOs, presidents and owners of gift and home businesses. Co-produced by International Market Centers and Eller Enterprises, the event will take place Jan. 31-Feb. 1, during the Winter 2013 market.
No other industry conference or marketplace offers industry leaders exposure to U.S. economic strategists and thought leaders of this caliber, said conference organizer Randy Eller, president of Eller Enterprises. These men, who have served presidents and influenced international policy, will offer exclusive insights into the issues and opportunities our industry faces today and into the future.
On Thursday, Jan. 31, former U.S. Secretary of Labor Robert Reich will address international currency and geopolitical issues--including the Euro crisis and Chinas economy--impacting the gift and home industry. Reich, an economic analyst, CNBC contributor, and author of 14 books, has served under three national administrations, most recently as Secretary of Labor under Bill Clinton. He also served on President Barack Obama's economic transition board.
Currently a professor of public policy at the University of California at Berkeley, Reich has written more than 200 articles on the global economy, the changing nature of work, and the centrality of human capital. In 2003, he received the Vaclev Havel prize for his original contributions to economic thinking. In 2004, he was named one of America's three most influential opinion leaders on business and the economy, based on a study by Accenture. In 2008, The Wall Street Journal named him one of the nation's top 10 thought leaders.
On Friday, Feb. 1, former U.S. Ambassador to China Jon Huntsman Jr. will present a keynote address on the topic of China, one the worlds largest product manufacturers. His remarks will focus on how issues affecting that country, such as labor and currency, presently impact the gift and home industry. Huntsman, who served as U.S. Ambassador to China from 2009-2011 and U.S. Ambassador to Singapore from 1992-1993, was also the governor of Utah from 2005-2009.
Huntsmans public service career began as a White House staff assistant to President Ronald Reagan, and has since included appointments as Deputy Assistant Secretary of Commerce for Asia, U.S. Ambassador to Singapore and Deputy U.S. Trade Representative. He is a founding director of the Pacific Council on International Policy and has served on various boards, such as the Brookings Institute Asia Policy Board, the Center for Strategic and International Studies Pacific Forum, the Asia Society in New York and the National Bureau of Asian Research.
The launch of this top-level conference is an important part of our transformation and differentiation of Gift + Home at Las Vegas Market, said Dorothy Belshaw, president Gift + Home Décor. As the first-of-its-kind executive-level conference for the gift and home industry, the Gift and Home CEO Summit is an important element of our three-phase plan to transform Las Vegas into the preeminent gift and home marketplace for the Western United States.
August 15,
2012 by in UnCategorized
By Home Furnishings Business in Business Strategy on August 16, 2012
Home furnishings industry veteran Ron Downs has launched The Downs Group, a new financial consulting firm.
The Downs Group will provide services to the furniture and home furnishings industry working with manufacturers, distributors and its suppliers. The Downs Group specializes in corporate finance and restructuring, financial planning, reporting and analysis, interim c-level management, internal audit and control framework, licensing agreements and requirements, mergers and acquisitions advisory, operations audits and analysis, planning and control systems and business development.
Im taking my experience and expertise to the next level," Downs said. "My unique combination of strong, hands-on expertise, combined with significant senior executive management and consulting experience in the furniture and home furnishings industry makes me a perfect fit for a broad range of consulting assignments for any size business. I swiftly analyze the current situation and provide value-added, cost-effective, timely and quality solutions."
The Downs Group brings five key factors to each assignment: confidentiality, experience, expertise, results and follow-up.
The Downs Group is the cornerstone, driving superior results and functioning as a trusted advisor at any stage of the business life cycle, Downs says.
Downs has more than 35 years of strong, operations-oriented senior financial executive and consulting experience in the home furnishings industry at the corporate, group and business unit levels working with more than 75 public and privately held companies, ranging in size from start-ups to $1 billion facing critical issues, including industry consolidation, technology changes, governmental regulations, distribution channel changes, sales and margin erosion, asset re-deployment and global strategic alliances. Downs has long-standing working relationships with many attorneys, auditors, bankers, brokers, c-level executives, factors, private equity groups and extensive furniture and home furnishings industry contacts.
Prior to launching The Downs Group, Downs was treasurer and chief financial officer at Taylor King Furniture, helping achieve record-high profitability levels through many aggressive actions, including the implementation of excellent business planning and control systems, cost reduction programs and product pricing improvements and superior asset and risk management strategies.
Before Taylor King, Downs had a successful senior management consulting company, providing financial and operational advisory services to more than 50 companies, including many major furniture and home furnishings industry manufacturers, distributors and suppliers.
Previously, Downs held senior financial and planning executive management positions with Ayers Furniture Inds., Alexvale Furniture Inc., Hickory-Fry Furniture Inc., Congoleum Corp. and operational finance positions with Hammary Furniture and Stanley Furniture.
Downs has served multiple terms on the Finance Division Board of Directors of the American Home Furnishings Alliance and its predecessor associations. The Downs Group is a current member of the American Home Furnishings Alliance Suppliers Division. Downs is also a member of APICS-The Association for Operations Management, Financial Executives International, Institute of Management Accountants and Turnaround Management Association.
August 15,
2012 by in UnCategorized
By Home Furnishings Business in High Point on August 16, 2012
Full-line furniture vendor Highland House will move its High Point Furniture Market showroom to a new location on the first floor of Market Square.
The new showroom for Hickory, N.C.-based Highland House, a division of Century Furniture, is Market Square 142, located just inside Market Squares Century Courtyard entrance. The showroom will be completed and open in time for the upcoming Sept. 13-14 Premarket, when the company will offer dealers a preview of its new licensed Candice Olson collection of upholstery and case goods. Highland House had occupied a longtime space on Market Square's fourth floor.
The new first-floor Market Square showroom should be a good move for us on many fronts, said Parker Goss, Highland House president. Having this first-floor location, formerly the Habersham showroom, offers us increased visibility and traffic, plus the general layout of this new showroom allows us to better organize and display our product line. We are doubly excited about the upcoming High Point Market because were celebrating the opening of our new showroom as well as the Candice Olson product launch.
Candice Olson will be in High Point at the new Highland House showroom during the two days of the September Premarket as well as the first days of the October High Point Market to work directly with dealers. On the opening day of the High Point Market, Saturday, Oct. 13, Olson will be the featured speaker at an IFDA-sponsored luncheon seminar entitled Modern Meets Traditional in the main ballroom at the top of the IHFC. In addition to her appearances at the Highland House Market Square showroom and her other licensed product showrooms, Highland House also will show Candice Olson upholstery and case goods in a condensed display at the IHFCs Interhall space IH607, where the popular designer will make an appearance on Sunday morning, Oct. 14.
The Candice Olson collection, with more than 80 pieces of the designers stylish new upholstery and case goods in the initial launch, will be featured front and center in the new Highland House showroom in October at the High Point Market. This will be the first time that the renowned interior designer/HGTV personality will have her branded upholstery and case goods produced and showcased by a single manufacturer. In addition to the companys new Candice Olson furniture, Highland House plans to incorporate a broad range of Candice Olsons other branded home products--from paint and wall coverings to rugs, lighting and decorative accessories--into its showroom presentation to fully capture the essence of the popular interior designers distinctive philosophy and iconic modern-meets-traditional style.