Black finish emerges as 'new white' in juvenile
By Jane Kitchen -- Furniture Today, July 4, 2005
High Point — With consumers' sophistication levels on the rise, and more and more attention being paid to juvenile home furnishings, perhaps the unlikeliest of finishes has emerged as the hot new look for cribs — black.
While infant furniture has traditionally done well with lighter finishes such as white and natural, black provides a unique look for today's moms, and retailers report the new finish is spurring sales.
"For the same reasons we think there's a trend in black furniture for youth, there's a trend in black furniture in infant. Everybody's about 'whited out,' " said Glenn Prillaman, senior vice president of Young America, which launched its first black crib at April's market.
"To fight that sea of sameness on the retail floor, people want something different. They also want something that's easily decorated and easy to design around."
At the Juvenile Products Manufacturers' Assn. trade show in May, infant bedding manufacturers like Lambs & Ivy showed crib sets designed specifically to "pop" when dressed on a black crib. And glider manufacturer Chanderic, part of Shermag's juvenile division, saw a great reaction to its metal glider rockers in black, which coordinate with the hot new finish.
Black finishes work well for either boys' or girls' vignettes, and provide a good backdrop for some fashion-forward looks in bedding and other room décor. Another advantage to the black finishes in infant furniture, said Prillaman, is that some consumers worry that black is too trendy, and hesitate to buy it for youth pieces. But a crib is a more disposable item.
"People might be willing to get a bit more whimsical," he said.
Houston-based retailer Baby & Kids 1st Furniture reports that its best-selling crib is the Baby's Dream Generation Next in a black finish.
"Black is the new white," said owner Yvette Muller.
And even in Lincoln, Neb. — the heart of the Midwest — juvenile specialty retailer Kids Stuff Superstore has an entire section devoted to nursery furniture with a black finish, said owner Aaron Pederson.
Everywhere you turn, it seems that anyone who is in the crib business is offering a new take on black. While many of the first looks featured more distressed elements, Chanderic debuted a new Ebony finish at the JPMA show with a flat, even look — a finish borrowed from its adult line that gives the nursery pieces a sophisticated feeling.
Vice President of Sales and Marketing Alex Adimari said the Ebony introduction was spurred by customer requests. Reaction at the show was "great," said Adimari, and the new Ebony finish even did well in places like South Florida and Southern California — markets with large Hispanic populations that normally favor more traditional looks like solid white in infant furniture.
The key, he said, is that most black finishes on infant furniture are on very traditional pieces, giving them a nice warmth and comfort factor.
And while Young America's Prillaman agrees that black could be the new white, he also said he doesn't think the industry will ever see the same kind of volume in juvenile as it does in the most traditional of finishes.
"I don't know how long it will (continue)," said Adimari. "But it's fun while it lasts."
