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Harlem's updated look paying off

By Clint Engel -- Furniture Today, April 14, 2002

AURORA, Ill. — Harlem Furniture has opened a 27,000-square-foot store here, the first in a series of expansions and remodelings this year.

The new store replaces a smaller unit in nearby Naperville, Ill., and is the third for the 13-store Chicagoland retailer to feature an updated exterior and interior.

Bruce Berman, chief executive officer of the Top 100 company, called the new look "almost the polar opposite" of what the retailer was going a decade ago.

"The dark and romantic look we strove for then became dated," he said.

The new store, developed by Harlem and local architects, has a light ceiling rather than the dark one of a few years ago. Accents are more monochromatic, without the busy wallpapers of the past. Overall, Berman said, the interior is less abstract and designed to resemble a home setting.

One key element in the new design is the expanse of wood floor, used as a focal point in a central area featuring leather upholstery.

Key suppliers for the promotional to midpriced player include San Giacomo, Natuzzi, Corinthian and Ashley, and Simmons and Sealy in bedding.

The Aurora store's exterior features a distinct curved facade to help create an upscale and visually arresting contemporary feel, Berman said.

Consumer response to the design has been positive. At the updated stores — in Aurora, Chicago and Morton Grove, Ill., where Harlem opened its 13th store early last year — sales are tracking 15% to 20% ahead of the double-digit increases for the chain overall, Berman said.

The new Aurora store is about 40% larger than the former Naperville unit. It's in a better location, near a regional mall, and pulls from both Naperville and Aurora suburbs, which form the largest Illinois market outside of Chicago, Berman said. He expects sales to be up $2.5 million to $3 million, or 40% to 50%, over the former location.

Harlem Furniture had estimated furniture, bedding and accessory sales of $108 million last year, up nearly 14% from $95.1 million in 2000. This year, Berman said he expects sales of $120 million to $125 million.

Separately, the company has acquired a former HomeLife Furniture lease in Orland Park, Ill., and plans to open its 14th store, a 28,000-square-foot unit, there in mid-June after a complete renovation. Harlem will bring its new look to at least one more existing store this year and plans to update all remaining stores over the next five years.

The curved façade of Harlem's new 27,000-square-foot Aurora, Ill., store creates a distinct, upscale, contemporary feel. The store replaces a smaller unit in Naperville, and is the third unit sporting Harlem's lighter, more homey look.

Store Manager Azad Talabani sits on a Corinthian chair in the contemporary area of the new showroom.

A Louis Philippe dining room and bedroom from Lifestyle is in an area of the new store featuring complete collections. The bedroom is Harlem's No. 1 seller, featured in its grand opening circular at $399 for the bed and $899 with the dresser and mirror.

Ashley's Biltmore collection of wood-trimmed transitional upholstery is a best seller for Harlem Furniture and is among the first vignettes consumers see upon entering the new store. A Rivers Edge china cabinet is at back right.

A contemporary leather group from DeCoro is featured in the leather area, a focal point of Harlem's new interior design, with hardwood floors. The glass tables with multi-colored wood accents are from Progressive.

A focus on rooms

Aurora, Ill. — As Harlem Furniture grows, it is adopting a new name — The Room Place at Harlem Furniture

It began rolling out the new identity in September through advertising, its Web site and in-store signage at all locations, just about everywhere but on the store exteriors.

Marketing Manager Brian Grabowski said the company is waiting for the exterior rollout "to make sure our customers grasp that brand and (associate us with The Room Place) before we make the investment," he said.

While the rebranding may seem like a tip of the hat to industry giant Rooms To Go, Bruce Berman, Harlem's chief executive officer, said the move plays up what has always been Harlem's biggest selling advantage — selling furniture by the room to save customers money.

Harlem has sold room packages since the 1950s, he said, and has increased the practice over the years but never made it a key focus of its advertising and marketing strategy.

With the huge success of others selling room packages, Harlem decided to underscore what it offers.

"We have always saved the customer the most when they've purchased furniture by the room," he said. "So why not put it in our name and let them know we can give them more?

"Thus far, it's been doing very well and we plan to build on it," Berman added. He said some people have suggested that The Room Place eventually will replace the Harlem name, "but I'm not ready to confirm that."

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