Youth category sparkles in metal bed showrooms
By David Perry -- Furniture Today, April 14, 2003
High Point — Metal bed producers turned up the heat in the already hot youth furniture category, rolling out new colors, styles and marketing programs to get their share of a growing market.
They also gave retailers products that help put more sizzle in their stores, and increase the size of sales tickets, an important consideration in a tough business climate.
Youth metal and wood beds were showcased in several showrooms this market. Sales leader Fashion Bed Group, for example, had a Fashion Kids program complete with a new logo and a kid-friendly line of products.
"We have an opportunity to market to our existing customers and to get a foothold with stores that specialize in the youth category," said Ron Ainsworth, president of Fashion Bed Group.
Fashion Bed showed several new wood youth beds in finishes that range from walnut to white. Dual function is important to consumers, and the beds can accommodate trundle units.
Hickory At Home showed a number of new youth beds, including bunk beds. "Bunk bed sales are strong and they are growing," said Eddie Alala Jr., national product manager.
Corsican did well with its Corsican Kids program. "More furniture stores are getting into this category rather than leaving it for the specialty stores," said Marvin Alperin, director of sales and marketing.
Hillstreet Beds and Powell also brought out new youth metal beds.
"Retailers like the youth category because it adds style and color to their floors," said Sean Slack, executive vice president of merchandising and marketing at Powell, which showed six youth metal beds this market. "The category is benefiting from an expanded base of younger kids, and a growing number of younger grandparents."
Grandparents, he said, often want to buy nice home furnishings for their grandchildren.
Powell's newest offering is Safari, a metal headboard featuring a parade of animals, including a tiger, an elephant, a camel and a giraffe.
Retails in the Powell line range from $59 to $119 for a headboard only. Half the beds are available in both twin and full sizes, and Slack noted that interest in full-sized beds is on the upswing.
"What we are hearing from our retailers is that consumers are increasingly buying the full size," Slack said. "They want a bigger bed for their children."
Largo also sees growing interest in youth metal beds. "The youth market is big," said Dick Yargus, vice president of sales and marketing. "We are focusing on tweens, who are out of their beginning sleep set and are moving into something they can grow with."
Largo added a new color, silver, to its youth metal headboard program. "Silver is a good color for a boy's room," Yargus said.
The other colors offered in the program, with headboards retailing at $59, are red, white and blue. The headboards are available in twin and full sizes.
Elliott's Designs groups its youth beds in its Fun Beds program, which offers an assortment of twin-sized beds in a variety of colorful finishes.
"We've been able to get into some juvenile stores and departments," said Darien Chung, national sales manager, who sees more growth ahead for the youth category. "This is a growing category and it has room to get even bigger," he said.
Wesley Allen showed a dozen youth metal beds, retailing from $299 to $999.
"The twin-size business has been very steady," said President Victor Sawan. "But we have seen that when full-sized beds are displayed next to twins, retailers can show consumers how they can get a much bigger sleep surface — a lot more bang for the buck. That helps retailers upsell consumers."
