New recliners keep showrooms rockin'
By Larry Thomas -- Furniture Today, April 24, 2005
High Point — A heavy round of introductions kept recliner and glider rocker spaces busy and order pads active during market.
Producers said traffic was especially brisk early in the market cycle, with dealers coming in as early as April 11, three days before the official opening. But traffic dropped significantly after Friday, and the weekend was relatively quiet. Most producers said overall attendance was about even with or slightly ahead of April 2004.
"The people who were here were buying ... but traffic hasn't been all that great," said Dominique Godbout, vice president of marketing and sales at Dutailier, a big glider rocker resource.
He and other executives said dealers reported that retail business is spotty, but they remain hopeful for a spring turnaround.
"A lot of people reported a soft January, but it got better in February and March," said Chuck Tidwell, product manager at Franklin.
But he and others said that, good business or bad, retailers clearly were in a buying mood. Many placed orders in the showroom.
Palliser reported brisk retail placements for its new reclining and specialty chair gallery program, while Catnapper saw heavy sales of an unorthodox recliner called the Glove.
"It was our best-selling new recliner by far," said Don Hunter, Catnapper's senior vice president of major accounts. "We wrote a huge number of orders."
Palliser's gallery effort, which requires a minimum of 250 square feet, was a hit with dealers because of its simplicity and the ability to increase special-order sales, said Kevin McGuiness, who oversees the company's chair business.
"We signed up 14 dealers for the program Monday morning, right out of the gate," he said.
The ability to boost special-order sales also proved key to the success of Berkline's new Three 27 collection. The group includes three chair backs, three seats and three arm styles, and allows consumers to mix and match elements to create 27 designs. The chairs start at $399 retail.
"This is how we can compete with what's coming out of China," said Kevin Armstrong, director of reclining chairs.
Flexsteel reported similar success with its introduction of more than a dozen recliners. Mark Hedden, merchandise manager for recliners, said some of the new chairs target price points of $499 to $799, but many others are tailored to help the company's gallery dealers, who do a large number of special orders.
While leather and faux suede covers continued to sell briskly, several producers said bright fabric colors took on greater importance, especially for transitional designs. Such colors were particularly evident at La-Z-Boy, Lane, Klaussner and Barcalounger.
"Our emphasis this market was on more color and smaller-scale designs," said Phil Cooper, vice president of merchandising at Barcalounger. "Although we've always specialized in leather, not everyone wants leather, and this (brighter colors) is a great alternative."
Lane unveiled 28 recliners at market, including several with a proprietary footrest that can be extended up to three inches.
Category sales leader La-Z-Boy, meanwhile, had seven new chairs, while promotional heavyweights Catnapper and Franklin each had about a half-dozen new models.
On the glider rocker front, major resource Brooks Furniture reported success with a 10-model lineup of imported components assembled domestically.
Gene Gathagan, vice president of sales and marketing, said, "It was an absolute home run."
The new models feature styles not previously found in Brooks' portfolio.
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Recliner orders perk up
May 1, 2005 -
Recliner orders perk up
Apr 16, 2005
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