Spring squeeze is on for factories
By Joan Gunin -- Furniture Today, February 9, 2003
San Francisco — As anticipated, the early High Point spring premarket and market are putting the squeeze on upholstery manufacturers and others as they ready new collections.
With premarket beginning March 3 and the High Point market kicking off the week of March 31, producers exhibiting at last month's market here said they are taking shortcuts, cutting back on introductions and generally scurrying to get ready.
Compounding the time crunch is the Tupelo Furniture Market, which opens Feb. 20 and ends on Feb. 23, a week before High Point premarket.
"We just have to be that much more focused," said Mike Delgatti, senior vice president of upholstery at Broyhill. "We have to be that much more right in terms of what we bring to market."
At Flexsteel, executives cut their Showtime visit from four days to two. Keith Feuerhaken, vice president of sales, said the company held its fabric meeting before the January San Francisco market rather than after. And Flexsteel's spring line won't be as deep as usual, he said.
Lane is working three to four weeks ahead of its usual schedule.
"We had to choose all of our fabric and leather by Jan. 24," said David Wormald, Lane's merchandise manager for leather. The company also sent a smaller staff to the winter San Francisco market — some stayed home in Mississippi to get things ready for High Point.
At Palliser, the earlier spring market "puts pressure on production from Asia, with our importing business heavily reliant on case goods from China, Thailand and Indonesia, as well as cut-and-sew from China and Brazil," said Roger Friesen, senior vice president of sales, merchandising and customer relations.
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