September 25,
2011 by in UnCategorized 
By Home Furnishings Business in Furniture Retailing on September 26, 2011
Stoney Creek Furniture has chosen BailComm to manage its e-newsletter marketing initiatives.
Stoney Creek Furniture, Stoney Creek, Ontario, owns the largest furniture showroom in Canada. BailComm, based in New York City, is a leading provider of e-marketing newsletter solutions in the home furnishings industry.
"We have enjoyed a successful e-marketing program for several years," said Stoney Creek President Dennis Novosel. "However, the one primary void in that program was the sending of relationship-building newsletters."
Michael Bailenson, a veteran industry newsletter publisher, heads BailComm.
"Michael managed our print newsletter program for several years and was the logical choice," Novosel said. "He and his team are not only content specialists, but also provide very strong analytics and measurements that help us create subsequent marketing programs."
September 25,
2011 by in UnCategorized
By Home Furnishings Business in Furniture Retailing on September 26, 2011
Standard Furniture has won a Silver Alabama Retailer of the Year award from the Alabama Retail Association and the University of Alabama at Birmingham.
Standard, Birmingham, Ala., won in the category for stores with sales between $5 million and $20 million.
"This award is truly a recognition of your hard work during a most difficult period," said Standard President Stuart Shevin in an announcement to Standard employees. " ... Thanks to all of you for everything you do on a daily basis to make Standard Furniture the best place in our markets for our customers to furnish their homes."
September 25,
2011 by in UnCategorized
By Home Furnishings Business in on September 26, 2011
A start-up company
Deal Décor is bringing a Groupon-like program to furniture buying.
The San Francisco-based company plans to connect consumers directly for furniture factory direct deals. Company founders Gregory Lok, CEO, and Craig Sakuma, president, were colleagues at Home Depot, and nine months ago thought of the idea of combining factory direct sourcing with the group-buying craze in the U.S.
Unlike other group-buying sites, Deal Décor is vertically integrated from the customer to the factory. The company has developed a supply chain that eliminates overhead and reduces transportation costs. This allows Deal Décor to offer 30 percent to 70 percent discounts and reduce the carbon footprint of a customers purchase.
The company's first deal is set to launch in San Francisco today and will run for a two-week period. The deal features a three-piece sofa sectional in a microfiber and polyurethane for $399the same item on Amazon that sells between $706 and $800.
At press time this morning, four deals had been bought. The Web site has a minimum number of deals of 30. It lists the regular price for the sectional as $949.
During the next six months, the start-up plans to refine its business model before expanding to the top 20 largest metropolitan areas in the next 18 months.
September 22,
2011 by in UnCategorized
By Home Furnishings Business in Legal on September 23, 2011
Canadian consumer watchdog group Option Consommateurs has filed a complaint alleging misleading business practices against eight major furniture retailers.
The Montreal-based group filed the complaint with the Competition Bureau, the Office de la Protection du Consommateur and Ontario's Ministry of Consumer Services against The Bay, Brault & Martineau, The Brick (including The Brick Clearance Centre), Dormez-Vous, Germain Lariviere, Leon, Mattress Mart and Sears.
The organization accuses the furniture stores of advertising items on sale so often that the "sale price" seems to be the current price; advertising an "introductory price" for an item that has in fact been available in store for a long time; for a mattress and box spring set, increasing the price of the mattress and then offering the box spring "free"; and selling "liquidation" articles at a higher price than when they were advertised on sale.
"These business practices seems to be misleading because they might lure consumers who are looking to take advantage of sales," said Jean-François Vinet, an analyst at Option Consommateurs, in a release. "Since the Competition Act was revised in 2009, any retailer guilty of such practices is liable to a fine of up to $10 million."
Click here for the research report, Genuine or Fake Sales? Review of regulatory frameworks in Canada and abroad and data collection study in the Canadian retail market.
September 22,
2011 by in UnCategorized
By Home Furnishings Business in High Point on September 23, 2011
Market Square & Suites will host a new Made in America Pavilion at the Oct. 22-27 High Point Furniture Market.
The 16,000-square-foot space will showcase American-made furniture, lighting, rugs, wall art and decorative accessories.
"As we saw more and more domestic and international buyers coming to High Point Market in search of American-made products, we realized there was an opportunity to assist the buyers by creating a single destination for domestically produced home furnishings," said Brian Bunch, vice president of leasing for Market Square AC Management. "I have to say, this initiative has absolutely taken off from inception. There is more interest than we even imagined."
Exhibiting Companies include: Amedeo Design, Arcanum Studio, Bedding by Design, California House, Century Furniture, Cord Coverup by A&M Designs Inc., Designs in Wood D.I.W., Eco-Leisure & Buck Stove, Green Gables Inc., Horse Trax by Golden B Farms, I Stand USA, J.L. Treharn Furniture, Key City Furniture, Leathercraft, Mixture, Regina Lorraine, Sedgefield by Adams, Signature Pillows, Sandy by the Sea Designs, Summit Surfaces, Sweetwater Trading Company, The Lauren Lachance Collection, Thomas Richard Collection, Tracy Krohn Designs, Troutman Chair Company, and ZWear.
The Pavilion also will feature a product showcase with examples of American-made furnishings from many existing Market Square & Suites tenants and exhibitors. This provides a good representation of the type of product these companies have to offer in the domestically produced category, so buyers can see a sample and then follow up by visiting the showrooms of these companies.
Showcase includes product from: Habersham, Itinerant Studio, White Linen, Charleston Forge, Beljen Mills, Beautiful Gems, Cabeen Originals, Doug Frates, Genesee River Trading, Traditions by Pamela Kline, John Lane Designs/Vintage Studio, Mosaic Goddess, San Souci Sisters, Art Addiction, British Traditions, Down Inc. Low Country Originals, CHCART, Hammock Source, Longleaf Collection, Primitive Twig, Taylor Group, Rustbelt Rebirth, Charles Harold, Rennie & Rose, Barloga Studios, R. Rogers, Hudson Valley Art, Steve Hayden, Hickory Manor, Temp Paper, Swoon, Sir Oliver, Diane Paparo, Jeff Jones Home, Pheromones, D'Kei, John Beard, Etoffe Makara, Jamie Dietrich, Grace & Blake, Linwood, Woodard, Millcraft, Paladin, Valley View Oak, DeKayu Home-Upholstery, Courtney Jack, Kevin O
O'Brien, RoSham Beau, vanCollier, Stone County Ironworks, Industrial Age Antiques, Karen Robertson Collection, Tara Shaw Maison, and Alchemy Designs.
A special highlight will be a display by Century Furniture, winner of the 2011 BEST Made: In America Award. Each year MADE: In America undertakes a search to identify a company that has made a significant long term contribution to our Nation. On July 4, 2011 at the annual Take Pride in America celebration at the United States Capitol, Century Furniture was bestowed this award that recognizes outstanding American-made products and creations. Now, High Point Market attendees can see the product that earned the company this designation at the Made in America Pavilion.