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March 11,
2012 by in UnCategorized 
By Home Furnishings Business in Accessories on March 12, 2012
Continents Apart has released this year's drop-ship lineup for home decor vendor Zodax.
Continents Apart, a Sarasota, Fla.-based national rep group specializing in drop shipping for home, gift and lifestyles, has the complete Zodax drop-ship catalog here. This year's release of 362 items is several months earlier than in previous years and features the largest lineup ever.
"Zodax is such a magnificent line for us year in and year out," said Continents Apart CEO Steven Husak. "Coupled with the fact that they change up the line yearly to stay fashion forward while working with top designers such as Barclay Butera, our products are featured editorially in publications such as Rachel Zoe's Newsletter (The Zoe Report), Elle Decor and People Magazine, providing a great deal of prestige, product recognition and great sales volume to our retailers. This year having the new line available five months earlier and with almost three times the selection of past years makes that appeal even more exciting."
March 11,
2012 by in UnCategorized
By Home Furnishings Business in Upholstery on March 12, 2012
Upholstered furniture manufacturer Lazar plans to expand its Siler City, N.C., factory.
The company has applied for grants from the state and city of Siler City to help with the expansion. Upon approval, Lazar plans to add approximately 30,000 additional square feet of manufacturing space, bringing the total to just over 125,000 square feet; and create more than 40 new positions.
Lazar will maintain its California facility to service its West Coast, Western Canada, Hawaii and Alaska customers.
"We are firmly committed to servicing our West Coast customers from our Los Angeles facility, but we need to adapt to where we are seeing growth happen now," said Lazar President Rob Luce. "Costs in California continue to escalate, and we are taking advantage of an ample labor force, favorable business climate and competitive tax advantages offered by the state of North Carolina. Maintaining the two factories gives us total flexibility to grow our business nationally and to direct the production where needed."
The company reports sales increases in the first two months of 2012 of 32 percent over the same period last year.
March 11,
2012 by in UnCategorized
By Home Furnishings Business in Bedding on March 12, 2012
Foam products producer FXI has opened its new Research and Innovation Center in Ashton, Pa.
The state-of-the-art facility will employ chemists and engineers who will support and sustain the growth of FXI in the home furnishings, healthcare, electronics, industrial, personal care and transportation markets.
This is the first phase of a two step process to invest in automated facilities on both the East and West coasts to drive growth and innovation in bedding, including toppers, pillows and other sleep accessories.
"We are excited about the opportunity for innovation in this fast-growing segment of the market and intend to leverage our experience to a broader retail base," said John Cowles, president and CEO of FXI, Media, Pa. "Our mission is to develop solutions that meet customer needs. Based on our technological leadership and our planned investments in our facilities, we believe that we are well-positioned to succeed in enhancing our capabilities in the sleep accessories area."
March 11,
2012 by in UnCategorized
By Home Furnishings Business in Community/Charitable Support on March 12, 2012
Art Van Furniture is donating one million dollars to Focus: Hope and is challenging other businesses and individuals to match its contribution.
This past weekend, Art Van served as the title sponsor at "The Light for Hope Eleanor M. Josaitis Tribute." More than 900 prominent Metro Detroiters gathered at the Detroit Marriott to the kick off a $10 million fundraising campaign in honor of Focus: Hope co-founder Eleanor Josaitis, where Art Van Elslander, founder and chairman of Art Van Furniture, pledged one million dollars and appealed to others to donate.
"Eleanor Josaitis had such a strong impact on so many lives. Keeping her spirit, her legacy and her work alive is imperative," says Van Elslander, who was a close friend and colleague to Josaitis' pursuit.
Eleanor Josaitis was dubbed Metro Detroit's Mother Theresa, who dedicated her life to uplifting the less fortunate for nearly more than 40 years. Josaitis fought to breakdown racial and economic barriers, providing better lives for thousands of Metro Detroiters in need. Prior to her death last August, she and her family requested that a fund be established to make her work to live on.
As part of the Art Van Million Dollar Charity Challenge, the company donated $50,000 to the non-profit last year. The furniture chain is now making Focus: Hope its number one charitable initiative for 2012 by donating $1 million, donating over $20,000 in food, books, art supplies and mattresses plus holding quarterly fundraising events in its stores.
Josaitis' work with Focus: HOPE included a food program which provided the equivalent of 500 million meals for children and senior citizens, workforce training programs helping 12,000 of the program's graduates secure jobs, plus comprehensive child care services. Money collected from the fund will benefit these and other programs.
March 10,
2012 by in UnCategorized
By Aggregated Content in Business Strategy on March 11, 2012
from http://blogs.wsj.com/digits/2012/03/11/one-kings-lane-adds-a-marketplace/?mod=google_news_blog
One Kings Lane is becoming the latest e-commerce site to expand from its flash-sale roots.
The furniture and home-goods site on Monday plans to launch an eBay-like marketplace called Vintage and Market Finds. It will let third-party designers post antique and vintage products on the site, but unlike eBay, all the items will be at fixed prices and will be vetted by a One Kings Lane team.
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