Abuzz over brand-name lines
Gary Evans -- Furniture Today, April 24, 2005
High Point — The buzz over branded collections boosted traffic in a number of upholstery showrooms during the spring market here.
"It far exceeded our expectations," said Lew English, vice president of marketing for Hickory Hill, which premiered Jaclyn Smith upholstery, the first branded collection for the Norwalk division. The company saw a 25% increase in traffic, he said.
"We can put our fabrics out and the reaction is, 'Oh, that's nice'," English said. "We can put our fabrics out and say that Jaclyn chose them, or that they're Jaclyn's colors, and people perk up."
At Southern, President Ken Church said he was elated with the new Cristina Ferrare collection of traditional upholstery. "It was a soft introduction, but it became the focus of our presentation," he said. "The response was very favorable."
He said people relate to Ferrare, a former model, actress, TV personality and author. With the full introduction set for October, Southern had just four Ferrare frames on display here.
Bruce Birnbach, president of Rowe Furniture, said the company's Jonathan Adler introduction exceeded expectations and brought in customers the company wouldn't ordinarily see.
They were attracted to the moderately scaled, softly modern collection, a new upper-end price point for Rowe, he said. Pieces drawing the most response included the sculpted Woodhouse sofa, the three-over-two Harrington sofa and the Lampert sofa, a high-backed, plushy white design with a Hollywood flair.
This was the first branded name for Rowe, and the company is betting on its success by turning it into a company on its own.
Another key player in the brand game this market was the Barbara Barry collection for Henredon, which included case goods and upholstery. Barry gave many of her 26 upholstery pieces a touch of whimsy, with such names as the Sitwell Lounge Chair, the waist chair (with a curvy back), the Bracelet Chair (shaped accordingly) and the Drop-Shouldered Couch.
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Branded lines connect with upholstery buyers
May 1, 2005
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