Daily News Archive
Brought to you by Home Furnishings Business
July 21,
2011 by in UnCategorized 
By Home Furnishings Business in Las Vegas on July 22, 2011
World Market Center Las Vegas has announced eight new furniture and bedding exhibitors debuting at Las Vegas Furniture Market, Aug. 1-5.
Those new tenants signing multi-year leases include American Heritage Billiards, East End Imports, GBS Enterprises, Gotcha Covered, Home Accents LLC, MAC Motion Chairs, Med-Lift & Mobility Inc., and Rosetti Design Studio.
American Heritage Billiards, WMC-C1596, sells home entertainment furniture under the brands of American Heritage Billiards, Peter Vitale and Renaissance. Product offerings include kitchen bar stools, counter-height dining, home bars, billiards and many other assortments of game room furniture.
East End Imports, WMC-B624, designs and manufactures modern classic furniture, with a wider selection of colors and a large inventory.
GBS Enterprises, WMC-A536, is a supplier of mattress, pillow, eco-friendly upholstery protection and other products that provide for a healthier living environment. Products range from allergy encasements, protecting sufferers from allergens, bacteria and dust mites, to mattress and pillow protectors that create a breathable barrier from moisture, as well as offer quality protection for home furnishing upholstery.
Gotcha Covered, WMC-C1578, offers luxurious high-end sheets, premium mattress and pillow protectors, bed skirts, pillowcases for visco pillows, duvet covers, blankets and more. The companies products can protect bedding from stains and moisture penetration, as well as prevent breeding bacteria and dust mites.
Home Accents LLC, WMC-B135, makes quality furniture pieces using Sheesam and Acacia, accented with unique accessories. Indigenous to India, these hardwoods are known for striking grains and lifetime durability. Most accessories are made from kiln dried Mango Fruitwood.
MAC Motion Chairs, WMC-A1040, offers quality, European-designed motion chairs and ottomans as an alternative the conventional recliner.
Med-Lift & Mobility Inc., WMC-C1284 provides lift chairs and adjustable beds for both the medical and furniture industry. Lift chair frames are in kiln dried oak; and 600-pound, steel frames on deluxe adjustable beds create the strongest foundation, finished with top-of-the-line fabrics and plush, and industry-leading mattress components.
Rosetti Design Studio, WMC-B160 offers products ranging from an exclusively Italian collection of contract quality unfinished frames with full custom finishing and upholstering capabilities, to a semi-custom collection designed to ship out with ready goods prices and lead times. Products feature imported hardwoods such as beech, rubber and birch.
"World Market Center continues to offer depth and breadth for today's retailer by continually expanding its offerings with new home furnishings resources," said Tom Mitchell, home furnishings president of International Market Centers, parent company of World Market Center Las Vegas. "We are proud to have signed these long term leases in the furniture and mattress sector and look forward to partnering with these companies for a successful long term future in Las Vegas."
July 21,
2011 by in UnCategorized
By Home Furnishings Business in Executive Changes on July 22, 2011
Chas Sydney, who has lead the AmericasMart Atlanta area rug business for more than 30 years, has retired as senior vice president.
Sydneys retirement coincides with the conclusion of the July 2011 Atlanta International Area Rug Market and Atlanta International Gift & Home Furnishings Market and marks the completion of a successful 31-year tenure in which he led the area rug business through a succession of advances.
We were a very different company in 1980 when Chas first signed on," said Jeffrey Portman Sr., president and COO. "And we are a much better company today because of his incredible sales skills, his customer service commitment and his long, hard work over these last three decades. We would not be in the rug business today, let alone be the nations number-one area rug marketplace, if it were not for Chas Sydney."
Sydney leaves the area rug product center well-positioned for continuing growth with more than 350,000 square feet of space on floors three through six in AmericasMart Building One.
When you truly love what you do, how hard you work or how long you work doesnt matter, Sydney said. What matters is what youve accomplished, the differences youve made and what you leave. I want to thank AMC and the Portman family for giving me the opportunity to do my best for many years. Its been a great run.
Kevin Malkiewicz, AMCs newest vice president, assumes all area rug center leasing and management responsibilities at Sydneys departure. Mike Turnbull, AMC senior vice president for strategic relations, will continue in his role as area rug industry liaison with chief responsibility for sustaining the Oriental Rug Importers Association (ORIA)AmericasMart Atlanta alliance.
Kevin has helped lead our area rug and home furnishings business for more than 12 years," Sydney said. "He is well prepared for this role and will undoubtedly reinforce AmericasMarts commitment to the Oriental Rug Importers Association (ORIA), the rug business at AMC and the continued unparalleled customer service to the area rug industry.
Going forward, Sydney will work with AMC as consultant on a variety of initiatives.
July 20,
2011 by in UnCategorized
By Home Furnishings Business in Community/Charitable Support on July 21, 2011
Bob's Discount Furniture and Planned Furniture Promotions partnered to raise more than $400,000 for charity at a golf and dinner event Tuesday.
At the 24th annual golf tournament Tuesday for Bob's Discount Furniture Charitable Foundation, held at Tunxis Country Club in Farmington, Conn., followed by a dinner and awards ceremony with live auctions and silent auctions at The Farmington Club, hundreds of participants gathered to raise money for children's charities and other service organizations throughout New England.
"This has become an annual tradition, and we're so pleased with the turnout by our business partners and friends, because the non-profit organizations that will be helped by the event need it more than ever," said Gene Rosenberg, co-founder of Planned Furniture Promotions and Bob's Discount Furniture. "We're truly gratified by the generosity of all of those supporting this year's event."
Bobs Furniture, Manchester, Conn., operates 42 stores located throughout New England, New Jersey, New York, Maryland and Virginia. Through the Bob's Discount Furniture Charitable Foundation and Bob's Outreach program, Bob Kaufman, Cathy Poulin and all of Bob's Discount Furniture employees support hundreds of nonprofit organizations with sponsorships and charitable contributions.
Planned Furniture Promotions, an affiliate of Gene Rosenberg Associates, is the a furniture industry specialist in conducting high impact promotional sales.
July 20,
2011 by in UnCategorized
By Home Furnishings Business in Legal on July 21, 2011
The American Home Furnishings Alliance will host a compliance seminar on a California law governing slavery and human trafficking in manufacturer supply chains.
Beginning Jan. 1, home furnishings retailers and manufacturers doing business in California with global sales of $100 million or more must contend with the California Transparency in Supply Chains Act, which requires disclosure of a company's efforts to maintain a supply chain that is free of slavery and human trafficking.
To help home furnishings companies understand the law and its requirements, AHFA is sponsoring a one-hour webinar at 1 p.m. Eastern Standard Time on Tuesday, August 9. Registration is available on the AHFA website under EVENTS.
Under the law, any retailer or manufacturer selling product in the state of California--and with global sales of $100 million or more--must post a public disclosure on its Web site stating that the company and its direct contractors do not employ slaves or trafficked persons. Beyond this policy statement, the law requires companies to disclose how, if at all, they are working to make sure their supply chain remains free of slaves and human trafficking.
The webinar is open to all retailers, manufacturers and suppliers. The cost is $25 for members of AHFA, as well as members of the National Home Furnishings Association and Home Furnishings Independents Association. Registration is $55 for non-members.
The webinar will feature Susanne Gebauer, a corporate social responsibility expert with Specialized Technology Resources. Gebauer will walk home furnishings companies through the requirements of the California law. In addition to an in-depth explanation of the reporting requirements, she will explain how furniture companies can prepare themselves for the required disclosures.
Gebauer works on corporate social responsibility issues related to labor, health and safety standards in the United States, Western Europe, Canada and the Pacific. She provides project-based assistance to clients that are drafting or improving their social responsibility programs and is currently advising clients on steps for complying with the new California law and providing education on the risks of slavery and human trafficking in the supply chain.
Enforcement of the new Transparency in Supply Chains Act is expected to be similar to other California consumer legislation, most notably California Proposition 65, which provides a mechanism for private citizens to get injunctive relief and attorney fees from alleged violations. This effectively would allow a consumer (or other party) to sue a company for alleged false statements that a product was made "free of slaves or trafficked persons."
A federal version of the California law could emerge this year. Rep. Carolyn Maloney (D-N.Y.), co-chair of the Congressional Human Trafficking Caucus, has been a proponent of similar measures, having co-sponsored the Domestic Minor Sex Trafficking Deterrence Act last June.
Some of the supply chain tracking issues addressed in the California Transparency in Supply Chains Act are already being put into practice nationwide due to the Dodd-Frank Act, which passed last July. It requires that all companies using "conflict minerals" (tin, tantalum, tungsten and gold) from parts of the Democratic Republic of the Congo must report the steps they are taking to verify that the income from these minerals were not taxed or used to fund rebel groups.
July 20,
2011 by in UnCategorized
By Home Furnishings Business in Financial Reports on July 21, 2011
Stanley Furniture Co. (NASDAQ-GS: STLY) reported second-quarter 2011 sales of $27.4 million, a 3.1 percent increase over the prior-year period.
Net loss for the quarter ended July 2 decreased to $595,000, or $0.04 per share compared with a net loss of $3.9 million, or $0.27 per share, in the first quarter of 2011. Stanley lost $11.5 million in 2010's second quarter.
"Sales growth in the second quarter represented our first sequential quarter increase in over a year," said Stanley President and CEO Glenn Prillaman. "While we do not believe the slight increase represents any positive macro-level signs, our reaching a meaningful top line milestone is important given the recent changes in our operational model. We are still operating in a sluggish retail environment that continues to deal with a stagnant housing market. However, as our efforts to build our product offering and improve our service position continue to take hold, we believe we should recapture lost market share from our restructuring period.
"We are pleased with our continued progress towards reaching profitability. Our focus remains on regaining the confidence of our customers."
Click here for the complete Stanley Furniture second-quarter performance release.