June 25,
2012 by in UnCategorized 
By Aggregated Content in economic news on June 26, 2012
from http://www.baltimoresun.com/news/maryland/baltimore-county/towson/bs-bz-furniture-retailers-expansion-2-20120625,0,6242184.story
When Kevin Luskin decided to fill a vast, long-vacant spot in a shopping center he owns in Towson, Md., he envisioned a "category killer" store that would specialize in sofas and other seatinga store that would defy customers to leave without finding what they wanted.
Luskin and his brother, Cary, opened the Sofa Store in April in a retail center that was once the site of a Luskins, the now-defunct TV and appliance chain founded by their father, Jack Luskin, who is now retired.
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June 25,
2012 by in UnCategorized
By Aggregated Content in Upholstery on June 26, 2012
from http://c.moreover.com/click/here.pl?z6724624734&z=1600249622
California lawmakers may seek a new furniture fire-safety standard that avoids the use of toxic chemicals.
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June 25,
2012 by in UnCategorized
By Home Furnishings Business in Las Vegas on June 26, 2012
Las Vegas Furniture Market will debut a new trend-setting destination at summer Market.
The new destination at World Market Center, located in Building B on the third floor, will be a combination of new lines to Las Vegas and hand-picked showrooms relocated from other buildings. The goal is delivering a fashion-forward collection of home décor resources for its growing retail and designer attendee base.
Several educational and networking events will also be held throughout the week in B-3 showrooms.
Bringing together this caliber of resources in one easy-to-navigate area of the Las Vegas Market truly elevates the experience and offerings for design-centric buyers, said Lee Hershberg, vice president of Home Décor for International Market Centers, parent company of World Market Center Las Vegas. We have a growing collection of better merchandise in Las Vegasand concentrating these resources together on one floor will give buyers looking for the most up-to-date, on-trend presentation a fantastic experience. We believe this vibrant destination will attract additional trend-setters across all categories to Las Vegas and will be an immediate catalyst for growth.
B-3 showrooms new to the market include: Wendover Art, a maker of unique and high-quality wall décor; Daniel Stuart Studio, a purveyor of fine furnishings for the home with a specialization in high-end upholstery, bedding and decorative pillows; Best Slip Cover, a family owned company with more than 50 years experience in the furniture and slipcover industry; Pacific Green Furniture, the worlds leading pioneer in Palmwood technology; Made Goods, a leading provider of fine furnishings, lighting and accessories, with a specialization in mirrors; Furniture Classics, a maker of solid wood, antique reproduction furniture; LuLu & Co., a wholesale distributor of the fine French products including linens, furniture, accessories, glassware and ceramics; and Blue Ocean Traders, a wholesale importer of unique items and furnishings from all over the world.
Las Vegas has always been a good market for us and we are thrilled to be a part of this new initiative. The community of high design that is being created on B-3 will benefit both vendor and visitor and we believe, will make a good market, great, said Daniel Penciner, CEO of Daniel Stuart Studio.
Tenants relocating to B-3 from other areas of Las Vegas Market include: Lazy Susan, an innovative home accessories company focusing on clean and simple design aesthetic; Noir, a manufacturer of home furnishings that emphasize natural, simple and classic designs; GO Home, a maker of vintage inspired home furnishings, giftware and accessories; Bougainvillea, a luxury wholesale distributor of preserved botanicals, fragrant candles, ladies apparel accessories, home accessories and jewelry; D.B. Imports, Ltd., which bills itself as the source for store fixtures and home accents for the wholesale and retail trade markets; Artisan House, which designs and creates unique, high-quality metal sculptures for wall, floor and tabletop; Arteriors Home, a manufacturer of accessories, furniture and lighting designed to have timeless appeal with a nod to the latest trends and Brownstone Furniture, a manufacturer of high-end furniture with innovative and timeless design.
Existing showrooms already located in B-3 and will be integral to this new collection of vendors include Chandra, a maker of high-design rugs; Paragon, an award-winning wholesale supplier of wall décor and its sister company, Propac, featuring a vast wall collection including matted framed and textured art, canvas transfers, metal collections and mirrors; and Surya, a high-end manufacturer of wool rugs and complementary accessories.
June 24,
2012 by in UnCategorized
By Home Furnishings Business in Executive Changes on June 25, 2012
Industry veteran Dan Baker has joined bedding vendor Glideaway Sleep Products as vice president of sales.
He will oversee Glideaways entire sales force and will assist in the overall marketing and merchandising of the Glideaway brand and product lines.
With more than 15 years of industry experience, Baker most recently led sales for the U.S. division of Natura Worlds NexGel brand. He had joined NexGel's founders in 2008 as general manager and vice president. Baker is credited with setting up the companys Utah manufacturing facility, merchandising a complete line of products and hiring more than 20 U.S. sales representatives who collectively opened 250 doors. His initiatives propelled the brand to the forefront of the emerging gel category' and after six months, Natura World purchased NexGel. Baker stayed with the company as the vice president of sales for the United States.
Were excited to have someone with Dans extensive sleep products experience on our team, said Ron Fredman, executive vice president of sales at Glideaway, St. Louis. Through his past work with major brands, Dan really understands the category and what retailers are looking for, which will greatly enhance our abilities to serve the market.
Previously, Baker spent more than a decade in key sales positions with leading bedding sleep products companies, including one year at Southerland. In 2006, he joined International Bedding as vice president of sales for the companys southwest division. Prior to that post, Baker spent five years as executive vice president of sales and marketing at Spring Airs Salt Lake City licensee, where he delivered a 47 percent increase in sales through the strategic implementation of unique marketing strategies. Baker started his bedding sales career in 1997 with a six years stint as key account manager at Simmons.
Glideaway has developed one of the nations finest value-added sleep products brands, said Baker. They provide customers with a one-stop shop because they have the unique ability to fill up a truck with various components of the sleep system--from mattress protectors to bed frames--which is a really innovative service in the industry.
June 24,
2012 by in UnCategorized
By Home Furnishings Business in Retail Technology on June 25, 2012
A new Profitsystems Users Group held its first meeting this month during retail automation vendor Profitsystems' Profituniversity conference in Colorado Springs.
Several software users and members participated in the meeting round table to discuss the purpose of the group, present enhancement requests for the development of the software and exchange operational ideas. The User Group invited all Profitsystems software users to join the group to share insights on how to maximize profits, drive traffic to the stores, reduce overhead and streamline operations; all from an IT/Operations perspective.
The User Group is independent of Profitsystems Inc. and is maintained entirely by the softwares retail users. The goals of the group moving forward are to share system needs, submit requests and issues, and to provide an excellent opportunity to network with other retailers and users of Profitsystems software.
The group hopes ultimately to use its member numbers to influence the direction and priorities of the software provider's overall research and development. In the immediate future, the group hopes to provide training by software users, outside vendors and other consultants at annual User Group meetings.
Paul Sherman, acting board member said" The plan in this coming year is to increase membership therefore becoming a more influential voice and discuss Profitsystems or external sharing and co-funding of custom projects with the member users base.
Anyone using PROFITsystems software is invited to be part of the user group and attend all future user group sponsored conference calls and events. For more information contact the groups administrator, Phyllis Zaepfel.