Metal bed producers showcasing unique looks
By David Perry -- Furniture Today, April 14, 2002
HIGH POINT — Metal bed producers are once again touching a variety of style bases as they roll out new models for the spring show here.
From a leather-metal marriage to kid-friendly camouflage, producers are showcasing some unique looks designed to set their beds apart on retail floors.
Entries are strong in all major categories: contemporary, transitional and traditional. Some say the transitional segment is showing the most vitality nowadays.
Count Eddie Alala Jr., national product manager of Hickory At Home, in that group. "I'm seeing more transitional (styles) in the marketplace," he said.
Hickory At Home is fueling that trend with Arches, a designer metal bed in transitional styling, with a gunmetal finish and solid castings. It retails at $399. "The gunmetal finishes are very popular," Alala observed. "They offer a strong, eclectic look that works in any décor."
The producer is also expanding its offerings in the growing futon category, where it offers both frames and futons.
"There has been increased interest in our 'transitional' designs, like our Iron Art collection," said Darien Chung, national sales manager at Elliott's Designs. "We will be adding several new styles to that collection. Our hand-applied finishes continue to do well, especially the 'metal' finishes (gold, copper, iron, bronze and pewter) and the 'crystal' high-gloss finishes."
Elliott's Designs offers Marseilles, a hand-forged and hand-crafted transitional style offered in a variety of finishes. It will retail at $799. The producer goes uptown with Urban, a lifestyle look available in more than 40 custom finishes. It will retail at $499 in queen.
Traditional styles are the key story at Largo International. "Most of the metal beds we are doing are lighter in scale and have castings, which makes them more traditional in feel," said Dick Yargus, vice president of sales and marketing.
Among the six new metal beds is a design statement offering a low-profile footboard, which targets the $599 retail price point.
And Largo is not neglecting the daybed category, where it is showing six new models. Four metal daybeds will retail from $299 to $399, while a wood daybed with metal accents will retail at $499, as will an all-wood model.
"Daybeds haven't necessarily lost their luster," Yargus noted. "The question is: Are (retailers) offering the right products?" Better-end daybeds are a growing category, he asserted.
Fashion Bed Group is focusing on filling holes in its line at various price points and styles. Ron Ainsworth, president, said that contemporary and transitional styles, in both wood and metal, will receive added emphasis.
A unique product will be a metal and wood bed with a choice of finishes on the wood post and metal grill, offering a mix and match opportunity for eclectic selling.
Fashion Bed Group will also be expanding its juvenile offerings, showing a hand-painted juvenile bed to retail at $199.
CYM is introducing three juvenile bunkbeds, including one called Camouflage that is done in olive drab styling.
"These are unusual items," said David Economon, vice president. "They are fun and functional." The bunkbeds retail from $399 to $499.
Wesley Allen is covering all the style fronts in its broad package of introductions. Lewiston and Venice are contemporary statements. Lewiston literally employs X-motifs on the headboard and footboard. The company says of this bed: "A Generation X bed fighting with tradition to set a new trend. Expressing our three dimensions with bands of parallel lines, this bed takes contemporary to another level, one with energy and strength."
Sheffield and Cumberland make traditional design statements, while Hillsdale and Croswell, in transitional styles, showcase the marriage of leather and metal, an emerging trend. Hillsdale uses pillow leather inserts, while Croswell uses saddle-style leather encased in a square frame with architecture that symbolizes the framework of a horse ranch.
April Hessel, Wesley Allen's director of marketing and advertising, said leather and metal are a good team. "It adds a softer element to the bedroom," she said. "Leather is timeless, and it's stately. It also lasts a lifetime."
Comfort Designs showcases the combination of fabric and metal in L.A., an upholstered and metal bed in clean, contemporary styling in polished steel with upholstered panels done in suede cloth.
Powell is bringing out a variety of new metal and wood beds. Three casted metal beds, in painted and antique brass finishes, will retail from $99 to $199.
Two new wood and metal beds feature heavy turned posts and wood accents with iron details, retailing from $199 to $499. And the Teluride daybed, a wood and metal design in transitional styling, will retail for $199.
French accents can be heard at Corsican, where the Paris Collection is featured. Solid iron and aluminum castings are highlighted.
That producer also strikes a whimsical cord with its Garden Fairy bed, showcasing a handpainted garden scene. That bed will retail at $1,250.
| Spindle, by Metropolitan Designs, makes an ultra-contemporary design statement in steel. It is available with or without footboard. IHFC D337 |
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