Archive for May, 2009
May 30th, 2009 at 07:25am
Under Furniture News
The first quarter of this year hasn’t been a good one for Chromcraft Revington. The company has reported a decline in sales of almost 40 percent and a loss of over $3 million, $1 million above the losses for the first quarter of 2008.
In an effort to restructure, the company has been transitioning over to lower cost globally acquired products. And, has been discontinuing products that are slow moving and unprofitable. They’re hoping to achieve a distribution base that is much more efficient and improve the companies profitability.
Chairman and CEO, Ron Butler, said that their new Southern Living line was well received during the High Point Market. And, the newly licensed furniture line will begin arriving in stores later this fall.
Although the company expects even lower profits for the second quarter, Butler says that the balance sheet still remains stable and strong. At the end of the quarter the company had over $5 million in cash and have not had to result from and bank loans.
By slone
May 30th, 2009 at 07:00am
Under Furniture News
The abandoned Wickes building on Interstate 15 in Victorville, California might soon be the newest addition to Ashley Furniture. The company is in negotiations to take over the large building that was only open for just over a year before Wickes filed bankruptcy.
The 39,200 square foot building is located on Amargosa Road just north jof the Victor Valley Mall. Before deciding to try to acquire the building, Ashley Furniture was considering building a brand new building for the new store. Ads searching for a store manager have already been listed on job related websites.
By slone
May 29th, 2009 at 07:00am
Under Medical Furniture
The Guardian wall mounted computer station is the perfect addition to any medical environment where you need quick and easy access to a computer. The unit provides excellent protection from theft, vandalism or any accidental damage that can occur to your computer system.
The entire unit is made from 100 percent American steel and is designed to conveniently hold all of your components in a modern, ergonomic enclosure that is ergonomically designed for comfort. And, each unit has a built in heat vent to keep your components from getting too hot.
The station has a turn key lock for security, a keyboard platform that folds out and a fully adjustable monitor bracket. It also includes a closed in CPU holder for added protection. And, you even get cable management and all the necessary hardware to securely attach the unit to any wall.
By slone
May 27th, 2009 at 07:00am
Under Furniture News
Bob’s Discount Furniture has just opened two new stores in New York making a total of 33 stores for the company. The new stores slated for, Yonkers and Poughkeepsie, will bring over 120 much needed jobs to the areas.
The Yonkker’s location is located in a former Levitz store that provides a 64,000 square foot showroom. The Poughkeepsie store is a little smaller with 34,000 square feet and is located at the South Hills Mall.
Bob’s Discount Furniture was named Retailer of the Year in 2008 by Furniture/Today and has plans to open and additional two new stores in the Northeast sometime later this year.
By slone
May 26th, 2009 at 07:00am
Under Furniture News
Dallas based bedding retailer, Sleep Experts was awarded the Greater Dallas Business Ethics award for 2009. Sleep Experts took the award for the small company category along with one other winner.
The award honors the company for it’s excellent examples of operating a business using ethical principals and for not only doing what is right for the company, but also their customers.
Sleep Experts operates 33 stores and participate in over 20 of the areas nonprofit organizations that sever both families and children in a time of crisis. The company utilizes the Rest Assured program that recycles consumers old mattresses and donates them to a organization. To date, over 6,000 old matresses have been recycled through the program.
By slone
May 24th, 2009 at 07:25am
Under Furniture News
Just weeks after opening a new store in Maryland, Thomasville furniture has cut 150 jobs from their Lenoir, North Carolina plant. Like many other retailers that have had to eliminate countless jobs, Thomasville cites a soft retail as the reason.
Furniture Brands International, the parent company has also announced that around 100 jobs would be cut at their Drexel Heritage plants in Mount Airy and Morgantown. Some of those 100 jobs will be eliminated from the Lane division located in Mississippi as well.
The loss of these jobs will add heavily to an already high unemployment rate of over 15 percent in Caldwell County. In a one year period from March of 2008 and March of this year, 7,000 manufacturing jobs were eliminated in the Greater Hickory Metro area.
Being a major furniture manufacturing state North Carolina has been on of the worst effected by the recession. Since the economy started declining, the state has lot 76,000 jobs according to the Employment Security Commission.
By slone
May 23rd, 2009 at 07:01am
Under Furniture News
The Institute of Scrap Recycling Industries recently honored Herman Miller with the 2009 Design for Recycling award. The award represents the collective voices of over 1,600 members companies, many of whom have global operations.
The award is given in recognition of an excellence in innovative design and an advancement in recycling waste materials through both the design and manufacturing processes. Herman Miller was nominated for the award by Louis Padnos Iron & Metal, a recycler based in Michigan.
By slone
May 23rd, 2009 at 01:55am
Under Furniture News
In follow up to a previous post, new standards have been issued by ASTM an international development firm, to attempt to prevent injuries from furniture that is tipping over. The new standard is a voluntary measure in which furniture manufacturers are simply urged to include anti-tipping devices and proper installation instructions with an case piece that measures more than 30 inches in height.
The standard also suggests that manufacturers should place a visible warning sticker on the piece warning consumers of the potential dangers. Information included on the warning label would tell consumers not to place heavy objects such as televisions on top of furniture such as chests and dressers. ASTM hopes that the labe will also include a warning that parents shouldn’t let children climb on furniture.
The new industry standard went into effect on May 15 and places more responsibility on furniture manufacturers to help prevent injuries caused to children from furniture that turns over easily. It is applied to all bedroom furniture including dressers, door chests and regular chests or any piece that has a tendency to fall forward.
By slone
May 21st, 2009 at 09:13pm
Under Furniture News
Earlier this month, Thomasville Furniture announced the opening of their newest store in Rockville, Maryland. The new location has 10,000 square feet of space and brings the companies total location count up to 136. A subsidiary of Furntiure Brands, Thomasville now owns and operates a total of 45 stores that are dedicated to the Thomasville brand.
Thomasville has over a century of experience in bringing traditional style to consumers. The company is well known for offering classic home interior products that never go out of style. Like their other stores, the Rockville location will offer the guidance of an in store professional designer, inspirational room decor idea and great furniture and home decor accessories for every room of the home.
Just last month, Thomasville announced their commitment to stand behind their consumers by offering the Thomasville Promise. The company will pay up to six months of payments for purchases made using the Thomasville credit card in the event that a consumer loses their job. Payments will be honored if the consumer has an involuntary loss of their job within the first year of the purchase.
By slone
May 16th, 2009 at 07:00am
Under Uncategorized
The amount of injuries caused by falling furniture has drastically risen. While it might just sound like a really bad joke, over 14,000 people are injured each year from falling furniture in the United States alone.
Researchers from the Center for Injury Research and Policy went over the records for injuries caused by furniture that had fell, or tipped over for a period of 18 years. Their research found that this type of injury has increased about 40 percent.
Most of the reported injuries were children that were from the age of 6 and younger. The injuries most commonly involved televisions, many of which were placed on furniture that wasn’t made to hold a television set. In some cases, the children had pulled furniture over on top of them, or furniture tipping over when it had been bumped into.
In any case, the study has caused questions to be raised as to whether or not the home furnishings industry is taking enough steps to make furniture more safe. While some items such as shelves and entertainment centers can often be secured to a wall, there are many items that just can’t be completely child proofed.
There are things that parents can do to make their homes much safer for young children. Shelves, dressers and chests can be secured to the wall with simple brackets. Never place items like televisions on unstable furniture and don’t put childrens toys or books on a shelf that is too high for them to easily reach.
By slone
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