Daily News Archive
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October 11,
2010 by in UnCategorized 
By Home Furnishings Business in High Point on October 12, 2010
To celebrate the grand opening of the
Antique and Design Center of High Point, the showroom will host an opening night gala and silent auction benefiting
Triad Health Project.
The center, located at 229 W. Russell Avenue in High Point, features 55 exhibitors37 of which are new to the
High Point Market. The event, slated for 5-7 p.m. Friday, Oct. 15, is open to all market attendees and supporters of Triad Health Project.
Triad Health Project (THP), a nonprofit agency serving the needs of families and individuals infected and affected by HIV/AIDS, is serving as the premier sponsor of the Gala, and will be the beneficiary of the silent auction. Virtually all Antique and Design Center exhibitorsas well as some businesses not taking part in Marketare donating one-of-a-kind items to the silent auction, which will run from 5 p.m. on Friday, Oct. 15, through 2 p.m. on Wednesday, Oct. 20.
In addition to Triad Health Project, other Opening Night Gala sponsors include
Grove Winery and Vineyards,
Marias Gourmet Catering,
Grateful Bread, and
Swede Bread.
Like the Antique and Design Center itself, this not-to-be-missed event will be unlike any other at High Point Market this Fall, says Karen Luisana, managing director. We believe its important for the Antique and Design Center to be supportive of our local High Point and Guilford County communities, and since several of our exhibitors have donated merchandise to Triad Health Project in the past, we realized that partnering with THP to help with its fight against HIV/AIDS made perfect sense. Our exhibitors generously answered the call and the items that have been donated are, quite simply, extraordinary.
Silent auction items run the gamutfrom exquisite antiques to high-end reproductions and from Americana to 18th-century English, French, Swedish and Chinese pieces, as well as glamorous jewelry and gift certificates to area businesses.
Among the auction highlights are an English, 19th-century grandfather clock with shell motif and hand-painted face, valued at $2,500, donated by Luisana Designs; a one-of-a-kind octagonal wood mosaic inlay side table donated by Wunderley Inc., valued at $500; a pair of vintage French chalkware piano babies donated by Added Oomph, valued at $200; a Swedish Art Moderne open arm chair in Golden Elm valued at $1850, donated by Bjork Antikt; a pair of inlaid marble obelisks, valued at $1080, donated by Arcanum; late 1800s American folk art faux bois planters valued at $450 donated by Tuesdays on the Boulevard; and a pair of Chinese porcelain ginger jars donated by Mayfair Antiques, valued at $750. Exhibitor Crawford DePrince is donating a four-strand jade necklace with silver, circa 1950s-60s, valued at $2500.
Bidders may take a chance on winning an item by noting the amount of their bid on a bid sheet and waiting until the auction closes Oct. 20 to find out if theirs is the winning bid; if they dont want to wait until Wednesday, they may choose the buy it now option.
THP has strong ties to the High Point Market, whose exhibitors have supported the agencys annual Designers Care home furnishings and accessories sale for four years.
We are thrilled to be part of the Antique and Design Centers Grand Opening, says Addison Ore, executive director of Triad Health Project. The High Point Market has been so generous to THP, enabling us to raise money so we can provide necessary services to our clients and to our community. We hope that our sponsorship of the Gala will underscore our commitment to the Market and everyone associated with it.
Over the past four years, Triad Health Projects Designers Care events have raised more than $125,000, enabling the agency to deliver vital services to people infectedand affectedby HIV/AIDS.
October 11,
2010 by in UnCategorized
By Home Furnishings Business in Community/Charitable Support on October 12, 2010
Ashley Furniture Homestores has launched "A Hope to Dream", which seeks to provide less fortunate children with comfortable mattresses for a good night's sleep.
For every mattress purchased at participating Ashley Furniture Homestore locations, $5 will be donated to A Hope to Dream to provide beds to local children in need.
"Children are a vital part of a growing community. We believe by helping a child sleep well, they are poised to lead a healthier and more productive life," says Todd Wanek, president and CEO of Ashley Furniture Industries, Arcadia, Wis. "A child's bed also provides a safe haven at night and most importantly, a place to dream."
A Hope to Dream is just one of the company's many philanthropic efforts. Ashley Furniture Industries and Ashley Furniture HomeStore retail stores contribute several millions of dollars annually to local and national charities.
Community members are encouraged to refer a child for consideration to receive a kids' mattress set. To nominate a child, complete a nomination form and a short essay (100 words or less) explaining why the child should be given the kids' mattress set. Applications may be picked up at participating locations; or an electronic application may be requested by e-mail. The applications will be judged on the basis of originality, need and expression of thought.
Click here for more information about A Hope to Dream or to find participating stores.
October 11,
2010 by in UnCategorized
By Home Furnishings Business in High Point on October 12, 2010
Showplace is rolling out the red carpet for a 10th anniversary celebration that befits a building hailed as an architectural landmark from the day that it opened, complete with a cake to match.
The enormous caketo be constructed by
Greensboro baker Maxie Bs and designed to feed hundreds of Market attendeesis a representation of the futuristic, multi-tenant showroom building that first rose from the heart of Market a decade ago. A whopping five-feet long and two-and-a-half feet tall, the cake replicates the entire downtown property, right down to its loading docks and parking lot. Fittingly, the sugary structural wonder will be on view inside the soaring, glass-ceilinged Showplace atrium as
Fall Market 2010 opens, inside a specially constructed Plexiglas case.
A gala cake-cutting ceremony, heralded across the Market by buglers, and attended by High Points Mayor Rebecca Smothers, as well as a crowd of industry and community notables is scheduled for 2:10 p.m. on Monday, Oct. 18.
We invite all Market-goers to join us for champagne and the cutting of the cake, says Lisa Shankle, general manager of Showplace Properties. To further sweeten the celebration, which will begin with breakfast in the Atrium and live entertainment at 8:30 that morning, there will be cupcakes on every floor and we are giving away door-prizes
the new iPod Nanoat exactly 10 minutes after every hour beginning at 10:10 a.m. Then, at 2:10 p.m. when we cut the cake, well give away the grand prize to one lucky buyer:
a 32-gig iPad.
Market attendees are invited to mark the occasion by having a 10th Anniversary portrait taken between 1:30 p.m. and 5:30 p.m. by Freeze Photography. Pictures, shot against a green screen, and inserted in a souvenir folio, will make it appear as though each person is standing directly in front of the building.
The day-long celebration will continue throughout Monday afternoon with musical entertainment in the Atrium, and plenty of beer, wine and hors doeuvres until klieg lights illuminate the night sky and Sleeping Booty takes over the Stars Under the Stars stage.
In the design-driven home furnishings industry, Showplaces contemporary look has set the building apart from any other building on the East Coast from the day that it opened 10 years ago, Shankle said. This October, we celebrate another milestone in our history, but at the same time we are looking ahead. Were particularly focused on incorporating a variety of leading-edge technologies, such as the new Showplace Shopper app, which improve buyers shopping experiences and exhibitors selling experiences. Our goal is to ensure that Showplace is as futuristic on the inside as it is on the outside, and that the building continues to set the standard in High Point for years to come.
October 11,
2010 by in UnCategorized
By Home Furnishings Business in Business Strategy on October 12, 2010
Retailers attending a National Home Furnishings Association seminar at High Point Furniture Market could win a new iPad or $500 gift card.
Industry veteran Mike Root will present the seminar, "The #1 Secret To Grow Your Furniture Retail Business In A Down Economy," on Monday, Oct. 18, 8:30-9:30 a.m., on the first floor of the Plaza Suites in the NHFA Retailer Resource Center.
Root is president of Furniture Sales of Mid-America, a furniture wholesale and rep company in the Midwest and Rocky Mountain states; and founder of Get Customers Right Now, a marketing company designed to help small and medium sized retailers build their sales through the use of low cost and no cost direct response marketing strategies.
His market seminar addresses a fundamental shift that has occurred in the marketing of home furnishings businesses. Root will address the challenges retailers face to capture customers' attention and then provide real-world solutions that are working for astute retailers across the country.
Root will show that many of the tricks and techniques other industries are using to grow in tough times can be easily adopted for the furniture industry; and share specific strategies that are working along with low cost solutions that retailers can use easily and effectively.
For more information, contact Root at 402.301.9715 or by e-mail.
October 11,
2010 by in UnCategorized
By Home Furnishings Business in Executive Changes on October 12, 2010
Sleep to Live, a division of mattress vendor
Kingsdown, announced the addition of three senior associates to its growing sales force.
Bill C. Dynes comes to Sleep to Live as an account manager with 14 years of industry experience. In his most recent role as senior territory manager at
Sealy, Dynes was responsible for select national accounts where he grew the company's business.
Stewart Perry also joins Sleep to Live as an account manager. Perry, who is a 28year veteran in the bedding industry, has held the roles of regional vice president of sales, sales representative, district marketing manager and field sales manager for companies including
Spring Air, King Koil and Sealy. Perry has increased market share and created and executed aggressive growth strategies for his key accounts. He also served as owner and president of a specialty retail bedding operation and latex products company.
As the new key account manager at Sleep to Live for Sleepys, http://www.sleepys.com William G. Veitch is a senior executive with nearly 20 years experience leading sales teams for national and international companies. His proficiency for accelerating revenue and profit growth and recruiting top industry professionals is demonstrated through his strategic development of brands such as Latex International http://www.latexfoam.com and Sealy. During his 10-year tenure at Latex International, Veitch transformed the companys sales strategy by expanding retail sales training efforts, increasing fabrication sales dollars and reducing order fulfillment lead time. His nine-year term at Sealy included serving as district sales manager of New York and Ohio.
The combined achievements and strategic sales tenacity of Bill Dynes, Stewart Perry and William Veitch, give us a competitive advantage as we target new opportunities across the U.S., said Kevin Damewood, senior vice president of U.S. sales for Sleep to Live and Kingsdown. Our ability to attract such high caliber experience and talent is a testament to the strength of our brands and commitment to innovation.