Brazilian sources showing at International Furniture
Thomas Russell -- Furniture Today, April 27, 2006
AT THE MARKET -- Brazil-based International Furniture’s showroom for the April market here will feature three Brazilian manufacturers of youth furniture and other goods.
The company has shown some Brazilian-made product here, but mainly offered Chinese-made bedroom, living room and dining room furniture under the name Mobilia S.A.Now, the 3,000-square-foot showroom, space 210 in the CenterPoint building at 401 S. Hamilton St., will display all Brazilian-made furniture, and feature Brazilian coffee and artifacts, with walls and flooring made from Brazilian logs.“We want people to feel like they made a voyage to our country, and not only see but experience what we are all about,” said International Furniture President Eduardo Herscovitz.Most Brazilian-made youth and kitchen items heretofore have had a rustic look, but this market will feature more sophisticated finishes and designs, Herscovitz said.The company will show three collections of juvenile furniture and a line of upscale bunk beds. It also will have entertainment armoires and some kitchen furniture such as solid-pine cupboards and corner nooks.The juvenile furniture mixes solid pine and medium-density fiberboard, Herscovitz said, and will be available in multiple finishes by Glascor, a Brazilian-based finishing company, including lacquered surfaces.He didn’t name the manufacturers, but said they are all in the Sao Bento do Sul region of Brazil. A typical captain’s bed would retail between $399 and $699, while bunk beds will retail between $199 and $499.International Furniture has an alliance with New Jersey-based Select Sales, which will have representatives on hand to market the goods to mail-order catalogs and Internet companies. Select Sales CEO Ken Debiak said he was impressed with the products.“I am very excited about what Eduardo and the Brazilian factories have done with this particular product,” he said. “They have gone out and researched designs and finishes that I think are very exciting. It adds another dimension to Brazilian products.”Debiak believes the product has a lot of potential with mass merchants and specialty stores.
