July 11,
2012 by in UnCategorized 
By Aggregated Content in Furniture Retailing on July 12, 2012
from http://c.moreover.com/click/here.pl?z6817870547&z=1600249622
Furniture retailer Raymour & Flanigan has acquired the 892,943-square-foot Tri-State Logistics Center in Suffern, N.Y., with plans to renovate it into a regional distribution center.
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July 11,
2012 by in UnCategorized
By Aggregated Content in Case Goods on July 12, 2012
from http://www.newhampshirelakesandmountains.com/Articles-Coos-County-Democrat-c-2012-07-18-156735.113119-Brown-Street-Furniture-ceases-operations-owners-hope-to-reopen.html
Jointly owned bedroom furniture producers Brown Street Furniture and Vermont Tubbs suspended operations, citing financial difficulties from a lack of capital.
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July 11,
2012 by in UnCategorized
By Home Furnishings Business in sourcing/importing on July 12, 2012
Import volume at U.S. container ports should rise 1.6 percent in July compared with July 2011, according to the Global Port Tracker from National Retail Federation and Hackett Associates.
Whether consumers are going to have the confidence to spend during the next few months depends on what happens with employment, but retailers are being cautiously optimistic, NRF Vice President for Supply Chain and Customs Policy Jonathan Gold said. Sales can fluctuate from month to month, but these import numbers show that retailers are still expecting this year to be better than last year.
U.S. ports followed by Global Port Tracker handled 1.34 million 20-foot equivalent units in May, the latest month for which after-the-fact numbers are available. That was up 4.1 percent from April and 2.3 percent from May 2011.
June remained at an estimated 1.34 million TEU, the same as May but up 4.7 percent from June 2011. July is forecast at 1.38 million TEU, up 1.6 percent from last year; August at 1.44 million TEU, up 6.2 percent; September at 1.45 million TEU, up 6.8 percent; October at 1.47 million TEU, up 12.6 percent over lower-than-usual numbers last year; and November at 1.3 million TEU, up 2 percent.
The first half of 2012 totaled an estimated 7.5 million TEU, up 2.6 percent from the same period last year. The total for 2011 was 15.1 million TEU, up 0.6 percent from 2010. NRF projects 2012 retail sales will grow 3.4 percent to $2.53 trillion.
Numbers in this months report reflect the addition of Miami to the list of ports covered.
Economists and commentators are talking the economy down, Hackett Associates Founder Ben Hackett said. Despite the mixed signals, we remain optimistic that consumers will remain in the market.
Global Port Tracker, which is produced for NRF by the consulting firm Hackett Associates, 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.
July 11,
2012 by in UnCategorized
By Home Furnishings Business in Las Vegas on July 12, 2012
Twin-Star International has more than tripled the size of its Las Vegas Furniture Market showroom.
The new showroom is located in A-1036 at World Market Center Las Vegas. A grand opening ribbon cutting ceremony will be held at 9 a.m. Monday, July 30. A wine and light-fair reception will be held that afternoon, 3-6 p.m. in the showroom. The current Twin-Star family of brands to be showcased includes ClassicFlame electric fireplaces, Tresanti media units and thermoelectric wine coolers, as well as Duraflame Quartz Infrared heaters.
Earlier this year, Twin-Star doubled its High Point Furniture Market showroom space in Plaza Suites for the April show.
In order to keep up with customer demanded, mutually successful, unique and innovative furniture lines, Twin-Star needed a space that was not only large enough to accommodate our current product line, but also have enough space for our (Twin-Star) consistent product evolution," said Vice President of Sales and Marketing Bill Caples. "Doubling the size was not only the smart choice, but also a necessary one.
"There has been considerable industry discussion about whether the integration of the major show room buildings in Las Vegas and High Point under IMC has been a good thing. We have found working with IMC, with Tom Mitchells leasing team in High Point and Craig Staacks in Las Vegas, has been an advantage for us. They know us, they understand our business and showroom needs, and have been responsive to them."
Twin-Star also has added a new line of entertainment centers to the Tresanti product line. These new consoles feature multiple compartments for DVDs, video games, controllers, cord storage and vented shelving with integrated power and wire management. Made with the finest wood veneers and hardwood solids these media centers feature the latest in technology by offering Bluetooth wireless streaming, integrated iPod/iPhone dock and sound bar, optional electric fireplaces as well as thermoelectric wine and beverage coolers.
Also new this year are the coordinating occasional pieces.
July 11,
2012 by in UnCategorized
By Home Furnishings Business in Internet on July 12, 2012
The Western Home Furnishings Association and technology vendor Micro D will host a webinar on Web site best practices for home furnishings retailers.
The 30-minute webinar, set for July 17 at 3:30 p.m. EST, will help retailers create a more user and search engine-friendly Web site in eight simple steps.
We are excited to continue our partnership with WHFA by offering retailers relevant webinars, said Mona Nigam, MicroD vice president. The Internet is greatly changing how retailers do business, and by mastering their websites, they can gain more online traffic and visibility.
This webinar will explain the term best practices, will help you understand why it is important to use these practices, and will give you take-away ideas on how you can improve your website. The eight areas that will be discussed are: URLs, compatibility, layout, multi-media, content, graphics, standing out, being unique and maintenance.
Our first webinar series with MicroD was a hit, said WHFA Executive Director Sharron Bradley. Attendees gained valuable information on how to improve their SEO and SEM. Our goal is to continue providing relevant education in easy-to-manage bits for the busy retailer. The 8 Website Best Practices is a perfect session for retailers to receive quality information in a short amount of time.
This webinar series is open to all home furnishings retailers. WHFA members can watch webcasts of the presentation at a later date. To register for the July 17 webinar, click here or call 800.422.3778.