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April 12,
2012 by in UnCategorized 
By Home Furnishings Business in on April 13, 2012
HGTV celebrities will join the celebration when the HGTV Home Furniture collection debuts at High Point Market next week.
Emily Henderson of "Secrets from a Stylist" and Taniya Nayak of "House Hunters on Vacation" and "Designed to Sell," will be in the showroom at C1003 in the International Home Furnishings Center Monday, April 23.
We are extremely pleased to have two of HGTVs top designers in the HGTV Home Furniture collection showroom, said Renee Loper, Bassett vice president of independent retail business development and marketing. Emily and Taniya are trusted design experts watched by millions of people each month on HGTV. We are very excited to have them help us with our debut."
Bassett Furniture (NASDAQ: BSET) will also be hosting a design trends panel Monday in its auditorium in C1200 IHFC. Nayak will join Sara Peterson, editor of HGTV Magazine, and Nancy Fire, design director for the home collection, on the panel to discuss the HGTV customer and design trends.
RSVPs are required for the discussion.
The HGTV Home Furniture collection, produced by Bassett, has more than 300 pieces in four collections of case goods and upholstery.
April 12,
2012 by in UnCategorized
By Home Furnishings Business in Case Goods on April 13, 2012
Case goods manufacturer Linwood Furniture comes to High Point Furniture Market highlighting its custom capabilities, and renewing its emphasis on retail customers.
The privately held company is restructuring under voluntary Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection in order to realign its business model to focus on residential furniture, according to Jeff Schwall, who was named president of Linwood, Lexington, N.C., as part of the reorganization currently underway. Schwall, formerly executive vice president of sales and marketing, is credited with re-building and reinvigorating the company's sales force over the past year. He reports to Mike Mebane, chief executive officer.
"Simply put, to maintain efficiency in our 500,000-square-foot plant during the economic downturn of the past three years, Linwood made a concerted push into the hospitality business, which by its nature, demands high-volume production of low-cost product," Schwall says. "Unfortunately, we moved too far into this area, too quickly, and were not able to effectively service our growing dealer base of residential furniture customers with the quality product that has always set Linwood apart."
As part of its re-commitment to its residential furniture business, Linwood will show off newly refined product lines featuring the high-quality, bench-made, solid wood furniture, customizable by finish, for which the company is known. Thanks to the realigned strategy, the product line this Market will return to a four- to six-week delivery cycle.
Chief among the introductions in the bedroom category is the Newport Collection, featuring modular components that can be stacked, banked, or arranged to accommodate media, clothes storage and more, in soft transitional design.
The company is also following up its move into the customizable accents category with a dozen new additions to its Modern Bungalow Collection, available in 16 stock paint colors plus more than 500, special-order, custom-formulated colors. All of the decorative and functional designs, including occasional tables, media consoles and storage pieces, are cabinet-grade and domestically produced.
The new products will be featured in Linwoods High Point showroom, Market Square, spaces 307 and 309.
Linwood also will introduce in an adjacent showroom Basics by Linwood, a new division incorporating imported components and what Schwall calls "best practices in global manufacturing." Initially focused on production of a custom-color, casual dining program, Basics features globally sourced components coupled with American craftsmanship.
"Our new, customizable casual dining program is unique in the marketplace because its components are assembled to order," Schwall describes. "You can choose from multiple table styles and chair styles, and 16 in-stock, painted finishes, six wood stain finishes, or our Kaleidoscope Collection of more than 500, custom-formulated, special-order colors to create the ideal look, whether it be traditional, contemporary or transitional."
With solid maple tabletops sourced in North America, and components sourced from around the globe, the products are assembled and finished in Linwood's Lexington, N.C., facility, and delivered to retailers within six weeks.
Schwall believes the time is right this Spring for both the renewed emphasis on cabinet-grade, made-in-America product aimed at the middle to upper-middle consumer, as well as the blended strategy that Basics represents.
"We know from the sheer volume of inquiries to our Web site, that the American consumer wants the product that Linwood is building," he said. "With the reorganization, and our investors staying the course, we are ideally positioned to meet this demand. Simply put, the consumer is ready, and we are ready to commit to delivering our products on a four- to six-week cycle again. All we need now is the support of the retailers shopping Market."
April 11,
2012 by in UnCategorized
By Home Furnishings Business in Delivery on April 12, 2012
Import volume at major U.S. container ports should increase 3.2 percent in April 2012 compared with April last year, according to the new Global Port Tracker report.
The report predicted year-over-year gains will continue through the end of summer. Global Port Tracker is compiled for the National Retail Federation by Hackett Associates.
"Retailers are continuing to watch rising gas prices, but job gains and other indicators show the economy is strengthening," NRF Vice President for Supply Chain and Customs Policy Jonathan Gold said. "All of this should improve consumer confidence and lead to increased spending, so retailers are cautiously building up their inventories."¨¨U.S. ports followed by Global Port Tracker handled 1.04 million 20-foot Equivalent Units in February, the latest month for which after-the-fact numbers are available. With February traditionally the slowest month of the year, that was down 16 percent from January and 5.7 percent from February 2011. One TEU is one 20-foot cargo container or its equivalent.¨¨March was estimated at 1.19 million TEU, up 9.6 percent from a year ago, and April is forecast at 1.25 million TEU, up 3.2 percent from last year. May is forecast at 1.29 million TEU, the same as last year; June at 1.29 million TEU, up 3.6 percent; July at 1.35 million TEU, up 1.9 percent, and August at 1.42 million TEU, up 7.4 percent.¨¨The first half of 2012 should total 7.3 million TEU, up 2.2 percent from the same period last year. The total for 2011 was 14.8 million TEU, up 0.4 percent from 2010s 14.75 million TEU.
NRF continues to project 2012 retail sales will grow 3.4 percent to $2.53 trillion.¨¨"Our forecast for the remainder of the year has brought us back to the traditional peak season patterns," Hackett Associates founder Ben Hackett said. "Hopefully the importers and the carriers can work closely together to ensure sufficient capacity and a solid supply chain."¨¨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 and Savannah on the East Coast, and Houston on the Gulf Coast.
April 11,
2012 by in UnCategorized
By Home Furnishings Business in Leather Upholstery on April 12, 2012
Home office and home entertainment furniture supplier Z-Line Designs will unveil a line of leather upholstery at the upcoming High Point Market.
The collection will include a line of leather sofas, sectionals, recliners and chairs ranging from contemporary to traditional styling. The collection can be seen in Z-Line's showroom, space 206 in 220 Elm.
The line is being offered as a good/better/best program, with innovative design elements and styling details
throughout, created to appeal to today's lifestyle consumer.
"The Z-Line name is synonymous with great style, and our leather furniture collection takes that style to a whole new level," says Jim Sexton, president and CEO. "With styles that feature motion, such as tilt-up backs and reclining seats, and unique detailing, including chrome accents and iPod docking stations, our new leather line offers a 'coolness' and allure that consumers will be eager to show off in their home."
Justin Smith, vice president of sales for the new leather division, said the collection offers unique designs at attractive price points.
"We will offer a range of leather furniture that incorporates the finest top-grain leather with either eight-way hand-tied or coil spring system support and complemented by distinctive style details," he said. "The high level of quality and styling is maintained even at the lower price points."
April 11,
2012 by in UnCategorized
By Home Furnishings Business in Community/Charitable Support on April 12, 2012
Phoenix furniture retailer Del Sol Furniture and
Local First Arizona have teamed to expand the non-profit's programs to more Spanish-speakers.
Local First promotes the benefits of shopping locally owned businesses.
The new movement, branded
Fuerza Local, held its first event on April 2 at Del Sol Furniture's newest location on 83rd Avenue and Indian School in Phoenix. More than 50 business owners, community leaders and politicians attended the gathering.
With Hispanics forming nearly 30 percent of Arizona's population and growing, the future health of the state's economy depends ever more on the Hispanic consumer. The Local First Arizona/Fuerza Local movement seeks to promote the benefits of consumers shopping at locally-owned businesses. Some estimate that for every $100 spent at a locally-owned business, $73 re-circulates within the local economy; compared with $43 out of $100 when shopping at a national chain. This shift translates to more local jobs, higher wages, more donations to local charities and higher tax revenue in government coffers.
The April 2 event focused on introducing owners of Hispanic businesses to the Local First philosophy. Founder Kimber Lanning was on hand to tell how Fuerza Local came about.
"I made several presentations to Hispanic business coalitions, but my message wasn't resonating," Lanning said.
Rosa Macias, owner of Del Sol Furniture and member of the Fuerza Local steering committee gave a presentation on the topic of preserving family, education and culture, which resonated with the group of entrepreneurs.
"As an immigrant family, we have worked to adapt to this society through education and helped others do the same, as our own business has adapted, our customers are adapting to a new way to live, work and consume and I think Fuerza Local is a great opportunity to bring our community together and improve our economy," she said.
The Fuerza Local steering committee plans a routine of regular meetings, as well as more marketing through print and radio to grow the movement. Bilingual materials and campaigns are being promoted to encourage consumers to shift 10 percent of their purchases to local businesses to benefit the Arizona economy.
Opened in 1997 as Muebleria Del Sol by Venancio and Rosa Macias, Del Sol Furniture has grown to four valley locations including Red Tag Furniture at Arizona Mills Mall, which coincided with a rebrand from a mostly Hispanic market segment to a more general consumer reach. The company has evolved into a second generation family-owned furniture retail business with son Alex Macias and Daughter Minerva Macias-Maestas now at the helm.