Leather ready to dress up, and bond, for fall
By Joan Gunin -- Furniture Today, September 3, 2007
High Point — Apparel styling and a new material, bonded leather, offered design inspiration for some of the new leather upholstery shown at premarket here two weeks ago.
Traffic was light in the few showrooms that were open, but several manufacturers offered previews of goods they'll introduce when the High Point Market starts Oct. 1.
Luana Living is taking its cue from apparel this season, featuring a pared down, less fussy version of opulence. Significant looks include a black-and-white story from women's wear and tweeds, and herringbone and plaids from menswear, mixed with textured and crocodile-embossed leathers from designer handbags.
"The product styling is vintage (English/European) to modern, influenced by '60s retro with plinth bases," said Luana Davis, the company's president.
Natuzzi will add 15 to 20 stationary, motion and sectional pieces to its Natuzzi Living and promotional Italsofa lines, said Fred Starr, president of Natuzzi Americas. Italsofa will offer three new leathers while Natuzzi Living adds six.
Bradington-Young's leather entries include chairs, stately library lounge groupings, and recliners with starting retails of $1,500. Among the latter is a big man's recliner, with styling borrowed from Bradington-Young's No. 2 bestselling stationary group, according to National Sales Manager David Hicks.
Bernhardt is featuring clean, contemporary looks, many with low or "relaxed" profiles, as well as the addition of Dunemere, the latest Martha Stewart collection, which features a strong coastal influence but only a nominal leather presence.
Bernhardt's market offerings will include leather and fabric combinations, many with contrast welting, and such warm pastels as tea green, coral and blue.
Manufacturers here said most retailers they saw expressed little resistance to Chinese imports, despite this year's recalls on toys, fish and other foodstuffs from the country.
Such manufacturers as Chateau d'Ax and Natuzzi said they don't worry about such problems in China because they own their factories there and adhere to strict quality procedures.
"We are a slice of Italy; we run our own factory there (in China)," said Cam Creech, advertising manager for Natuzzi.
Gentry Long, vice president for reclining chairs and motion upholstery at Lane Home Furnishings, said the company continues to benefit from its two-pronged approach of manufacturing upholstery domestically (in Mississippi) and offshore (in China), which it has done since 2005.
"It allows us to offer quick turnarounds (domestically) to those retailers who don't want container loads, as well as to ship containers to those that do seek competitively priced imports," Long said.
Lane has added imported motion seating to its stable of stationary imports. The new Continental Collection has sofas, sectionals and matching recliners in each seating group. The assortment is offered in leather, vinyl or fabric to meet pricing requirements.
The company's High Point introductions will feature six stationary leather groups, five motion, plus two additions to its Continental Collection and 12 reclining chairs.
Among those showing at premarket, new leather articles included hand-wiped and metallics as well as protected anilines, all antidotes for the crush of bonded leather.
The new leather-like substance — a blending of leather remnants and polyurethane fixative, which looks like leather but costs less — poses a dilemma for some. Manufacturers including Bradington-Young, Chateau d'Ax and Natuzzi are not offering it, but others have turned to it — reluctantly, many say — as a hedge in the competitive pricing game.
Product using bonded leather (there is debate over whether it should even be called leather) hits retail floors this month.
"We are selling leather only — no fabric, no combinations, no bycast, no bonded," said Harry Cierler, director of North American operations for Chateau d'Ax. He did admit, however, that he will offer bycast leather upon request, to meet a price.
Peter Robinson, group president of Robinson & Robinson, parent of LeatherTrend, said, "We continue to show bonded leather here. We've still got our toe in the water. Retailers are asking about it. They want to know about it because it's still very new."
For High Point Market, LeatherTrend will introduce 25 to 35 stationary and motion models, as well as new leather articles.
"We are trying to introduce as much design and creative elements into the leather as we can," Robinson said. "A lot of things at the moment are 'same old, same old' so customers appreciate that we are being very different with our leathers and our finishes, especially with hand-antiquing applications."
Luana Living is showing bonded leather in combination with fabric primarily on small accent chairs and a few leather/fabric groups. The company is offering items in a choice of matching bycast leather or top grain.
"Rather than pre-judge my customers," President Luana Davis said, "I prefer to let them make their own decision as to whether they want to promote this article in their stores."
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