Design maven helps Raymour

By Clint Engel -- Furniture Today, February 23, 2009

Liverpool, N.Y. — Liverpool, N.Y.— Don't call her a spokeswoman.

Television personality and design expert Kristan Cunningham is expected to be a much more important figure to Raymour & Flanigan and its customers under a three-year deal she recently signed with the Top 100 company.

Energetic and charismatic, Cunningham, known for her regular appearances on the "Rachael Ray" show and HGTV's "Design on a Dime," is now offering design suggestions to Raymour & Flanigan's customers. She's developing new types of materials that will show customers a variety of rooms they can create with the retailer's furniture and accessories. And she's working to develop new tools for Raymour that will be used to advise and instruct its sales team.

The financial terms of the agreement were not disclosed, but what's clear is both Raymour and Cunningham have high hopes and big plans for this business marriage.

In the short time since the deal was signed in December, Cunningham has shot television commercials and appeared in magazine inserts that show how she "puts the pieces together." In each, she offers her take on some of the retailer's stylish furniture and makes suggestions on how to match it with other pieces and even what wall colors and window treatments might make for the best fit.

When Cunningham talked to Furniture/Today about the program, it was as if this were the best project she's ever worked on — even after all the recognition for her work on "Design on a Dime" and "Rachael Ray and all the media coverage, including a People magazine piece in 2006 that included a mention in its "100 Most Beautiful People" listing.

Getting on a plane to return home after the first Raymour commercial shoot, Cunningham spoke on the telephone so quickly it was difficult to keep up, practically apologizing for her enthusiasm over the new program.

"It really is like coming off of a high," she said. "It's amazing how beautifully our brands align."

The special thing about Raymour & Flanigan, she said, is how it's trying to enhance its customers' experience by asking what more can it do for them.

"I love this company," she said. "I'm so happy to get involved."

Raymour & Flanigan's move toward the project has been brewing for quite some time. The retailer started by conducting research to better understand some of the elements that cause consumers to become stressed during the furniture-buying process, said Lisa King, senior vice president of marketing.

"They are uncertain about their own ability to put a look together," she said. "It's a big commitment, something you'll be looking at and living with for a long time."

"We really stepped back and tried to understand what we could do to overcome that obstacle," King said. Raymour realized it needed a design expert, preferably someone with outside credibility, to provide practical decorating advice.

Cunningham's exposure on HGTV and through the "Rachael Ray" show made her very recognizable. But King said it what really appealed to the retailer was "her expertise, credibility and excitement" toward the program and for her craft.

The company wasn't looking for a spokesperson, King said, nor does it expect Cunningham to become one. The commercials already shot for the stores and airing beginning this month focus on design. She is working to develop content for the store that helps teach consumers about trends, color and coordination. But she won't be doing Raymour's Memorial Day or Labor Day ads.

There may be consumer events with Cunningham down the road in Raymour's 87 stores, and the two are discussing possible collaboration on her future television work, but nothing has been ironed out yet.

Even before this deal was consummated, the two parties collaborated on an October 2008 segment of "Rachael Ray" in which Raymour & Flanigan provided the home furnishings for the den of a big New York Yankees fan.

Cunningham told the retailer that the recipient of the makeover was so excited about how the space came together and how well his memorabilia was displayed, "he was overwhelmed with emotion," said Vicky D'Agostino, Raymour's director of communications.

Cunningham and Raymour started talking to each other early last year and both say one of the things that made the partnership possible was the quick realization that they were both on the same page when it came to core values.

"There is a complete alignment between Kristan's do-it-yourself design philosophy and Raymour & Flanigan's vision to enhance the customer's shopping experience," said Raymour President and CEO Neil Goldberg.

"By providing knowledgeable sales associates, a broad array of style, affordable price point, financing options, quick delivery and now the new free design service, we believe we are raising the bar on the service experience for our customers."

Cunningham said consumers can think of her as "their own personal designer."

"I'll be giving my two cents about all of the pieces — what they work with and why, color suggestions and more. I'll work to keep them filled in on the trends that I'm seeing in the design world and seasonal ideas that they can apply at home easily."

Short of being able to drive a designer to each customer's home, Cunningham said, "the goal is to have these style guides and columns available so they feel they have access to the designer."

She said her own goal has always been to teach people how to do it themselves — not to design it for them. And savvy consumers, she said, are hungry for good information.

In the first 16-page shelter magazine insert that arrived in homes in January, Raymour & Flanigan introduced Cunningham and the new design service to millions of subscribers in its Northeastern markets. The piece showcased several of the retailer's collections, with design tips from Cunningham and additional material that aimed to place Raymour furniture into the context of consumers' homes.

For the Cindy Crawford Home Metropolis upholstery collection, Cunningham asks readers if they want to know what she loves about it.

"Absolutely everything!" she says. "I'd choose it for a family with kids (it's got stain-resistant microfiber!), for a young single gal since it's totally trendy and for a guy because of its scale and proportions. I'm also a sucker for its slightly arched arms, subtle tufting, contemporary grids and dark wood base."

Cunningham's casual, enthusiastic and approachable style is evident throughout the insert. Two more examples:

• The curved arm Visanti sofa, by Schnadig, $999: "Put her in front of a peacock blue wall to show your glam diva side, or surround her with barely there shades like white or beige walls to drive home a quiet, classic look. For tables, keep her in the company of other 'ladylike' pieces." Across from the main images are four dark wood occasional "pieces that fit," and another note from Cunningham: "For bold sophistication, go high contrast. Rich, dark woods pop against the luxurious texture of this posh living room set."

• The Sonoma upholstery collection by HM Richards, with a five-piece sectional, $2,214 or $2,594 depending on configuration: "My home has a strict 'dogs allowed on all furniture' rule, but it also has to look perfect — in a real- life sorta way — when friends stop by. If you live like I do, the Sonoma collection is the answer to all your decorating prayers." She goes on to describe the ease of cleaning microfiber, the two neutral shades it's available in and how Sonoma can be paired "with warm, earthy neutrals like pumpkin and coffee and a fresh leaf-patterned rug," for example.

All of the product shown in the insert includes pricing information. And, on the insert's back, Raymour offers $100 and $200 savings on purchases of $1,000 or more and $2,000 or more, respectively, as well as a deferred payment and financing offer.

Cunningham already has made an impression on Raymour & Flanigan's employees. Late last month, she returned for its annual "Celebration of Champions," honoring top employees from 2008 across sales, operations and customer service. During the two-day event at a resort in the Poconos, she mingled with some 300 people — mostly Raymour's honorees and their guests — and talked to them about the program, what it was trying to accomplish and how they could work together to help build consumer confidence in their "fashion and financial investment," D'Agostino said.

At the event, she also greeted the sales associate who was partly responsible for introducing Cunningham to Raymour. A while back, Cunningham got a call from her brother-in-law, who she described as having "great design sense, but young and poor." He was calling to tell her about a great experience he had just had at this store, from the financing to the delivery to the sales help. A week later, Cunningham's agent called to tell her about this same company interested in possibly working with her.

Cunningham and Raymour both say they recognize the stress consumers are under these days and say the new program addresses this as well.

"In this economic climate, every penny you spend has to matter," Cunningham said. "When someone is buying a sofa or a bedroom set, it's a major investment. We want people walking out of the store falling in love (with their furniture) and being satisfied with the purchase they just made."

"And to get our customer to that place, the goal is to educate them, to help people do that by giving them this beautiful program.

"At the end of the day, that's what Raymour & Flanigan (and I want to do)," Cunningham said. "Help people live the most beautiful life they can within their means."