March 18,
2012 by in UnCategorized 
By Home Furnishings Business in Business Strategy on March 19, 2012
The buying group
Furniture First held its two-day regional member meeting in Phoenix last week with members from the group's board of directors and West, Southwest and Northwest regions.
The event included a best idea session, networking and a live bulletin board discussion during which retailers debated the merits of online pricing of furniture. The group also held a best sellers session with members sharing their best-peforming products.
More than 3,000 square feet of products from Furniture First supplier partners was on display at the meeting. Emphasis was placed on products developed exclusively for Furniture First Members, as well as on power buys, developed by the group's merchandising team.
Roundtable sessions allowed members to learn more about the group's service partners with retail industry topics such as "Adverting Promotions That Work", "How to Follow Up with Customers from Your Web site", "Consumer Financing Trends and Improving Sales on Protection Plans."
Representatives from several of Furniture First's supplier partners that sponsored the event also attended. Sponsors included Ashley, aspenhome, Banner Marketing, Flexsteel, Intercon, Legacy Traditions, Legends, Leggett & Platt, MFS, MicroD, Palliser, Sealy, Serta, Southern Motion, Surya, TD Retail Card Services, TSYS Merchant Solutions and Wells Fargo.
This year, Furniture First will hold three additional regional meetings:
* Northeast Region, April 4-5, in Philadelphia;
* Midwest Region: May 15-16, 2012 in St. Louis, and;
* Southeast Region: July 11-12, 2012 in Charlotte, N.C.
Furniture First is a 17-year-old national buying group serving the retail home furnishings and mattress industry with 188 company members representing 402 store fronts and $1.4 billion in retail sales.
March 18,
2012 by in UnCategorized
By Home Furnishings Business in Home Theater on March 19, 2012
Home theater and electric fireplace supplier Twin-Star International will unveil LED inserts for its ClassicFlame line at this weeks premarket in High Point.
In addition to the LED component, Twin Star will showcase new technology for its Tresanti media consoles that will be integrated, not just with iPod capabilities, but with full-home audio bars as well.
The company will also give attendees a sneak peak at its newly expanded presence on the first floor of Plaza Suites. The full space will be revealed during the market next month.
March 15,
2012 by in UnCategorized
By Aggregated Content in economic news on March 16, 2012
from http://www.cnbc.com/id/46759231
U.S. consumer sentiment dipped in early March as rising gasoline prices pushed Americans' inflation expectations for the next year higher, according to the Thomson Reuters/University of Michigan's preliminary consumer reading.
The survey showed consumer sentiment slipped to 74.3 from 75.3 in February, shy of economists' forecasts for a gain to 76.0. Even so, consumers did not expect the run-up in gasoline prices to last very long and anticipated further gains in employment this year.
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March 15,
2012 by in UnCategorized
By Aggregated Content in on March 16, 2012
from http://c.moreover.com/click/here.pl?z6114783234&z=1250249032
NEW YORK, March 16 (Reuters) - U.S. consumer sentiment dipped in early March as rising gasoline prices pushed Americans' inflation expectations for the next year higher, a survey released on Friday showed. The Thomson Reuters/University of Michigan's preliminary reading on the overall index on consumer sentiment slipped to 74.3 from 75.3 in February, shy of economists' forecasts for a gain to 76.0. Even so, consumers did not expect the run-up in gasoline prices to last very long and anticipated further gains in employment this year. "Overall, the data indicate that $4 gasoline has lost its shock value, although the
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March 15,
2012 by in UnCategorized
By Home Furnishings Business in Green on March 16, 2012
Full-line home furnishings vendor Abbyson Living has launched Abbyson Comfort, an eco-friendly mattress division.
Abbyson Comfort debuts with the "Sleep Green" collection of memory foam mattresses. The mattresses are made from eco-friendly natural materials and designed to provide a complete sleep experience including innovative sleep safety and superior comfort.
"Sleep Green" uses palm-based memory foam (a renewable sustainable raw material), and a new line promotes a cleaner, odorless sleeping environment.
Rodd Rafieha, vice president of Abbyson Comfort, said in addition to the green philosophy, the most important aspect in designing the new Sleep Green line was comfort.
"Our team has spent years creating a new innovative series of mattresses to set ourselves apart in a competitive industry," he said. "The mixture of palm visco memory, high resiliency foam base, and a custom designed thermic fabric cover will provide the ultimate and relaxed sleeping experience. We are confident that our quality, comfort, affordable pricing, and love for the brand will please our consumers. By the end of 2012 we plan to launch around 50 new additional collections to our Comfort line."
The first Sleep Green collection features a 7 inch model designed with kids in mind, 8 & 10 inch, and a 12 inch pillow top design. The Abbyson Comfort line will be available for purchase through select online e-tailors starting March 23.
The company also launched a brand new Web site on March 1, with detailed product images, company information, and restful sleep tips.