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Ashley's Apt. 3-G to debut

By Joan Gunin -- Furniture Today, September 30, 2007

High Point — Seizing on young consumers' buying power, Ashley Furniture is rolling out a new line and retail concept here called Apt. 3-G, named after the popular comic strip.

Dedicated stores — as many as 300 eventually, the company says — and a Web site are envisioned as the line gathers steam. The concept includes merchandise tailored for a target demographic of consumers who are 25 to 35 years old.

Apartment 3-G, the serial strip created by psychiatrist Nicholas P. Dallis in 1961, portrays three single career women and their friends. Ashley says the new line will be positioned to cater not only to the buying habits of Tommie, Margo and Lu Ann, but also to that of the "Friends" crowd.

"We're looking at those consumers in between Ikea and Crate & Barrel — young people with some money," said Kerry Lebensburger, Ashley's president of sales and marketing.

Ashley plans to open stores under the Apt. 3-G name in 2009. Approximately 300 stores could open over a three- to five-year period in metro areas "where the kids are," Lebensburger said. Examples are cities such as Chapel Hill, N.C., Madison, Wis., and Austin, Texas, he said.

The company previewed the Apt. 3-G concept earlier this year at furniture markets in Las Vegas and Tupelo, Miss., and is rolling it out officially in High Point this week.

Apt. 3-G product represents a conglomeration of all of Ashley's divisions including small-scaled "loft looks" in leather and fabric upholstery, case goods, casual dining, bedroom, occasional and accessories. Paying tribute to the three occupants of the original Apartment 3-G, all of the sofas have female names.

Lebensburger said the assortment is moderately priced, but some starting price items will be included. The number of SKUs has not been finalized.

In High Point, the company is unveiling two floor plans for in-store presentations of 3,000 square feet and 4,500 square feet.

Ashley has obtained the rights to the Apt. 3-G domain name and will launch a companion consumer Web site at www.apt.3G.com in January, along with a marketing campaign.

The Web site will feature product only to start, but will add pricing by mid-year. The final online phase, combining product, pricing and ordering capability, will be fully operational online by the end of 2008.

Merchandise also will be sold through in-store galleries in the Ashley dealer network and at other stores.

"This is all being marketed on the Web, rather than through circulars or TV," Lebensburger said. "We are using the same technology as they use. Anyone can put product in stores but we are hitting them where they live."

"They," of course, are the young consumers who can't imagine life without the Internet.

Meanwhile, Ashley Furniture HomeStores is preparing to offer a gallery program tailored for these same kinds of consumers, called Metro Living, also targeted to launch in 2008. The program will contain a product line separate from Apt. 3-G, although similar in spirit.

The proposed freestanding Apt. 3-G stores would be unlike Ashley HomeStores.

"They will be run with a different mindset," Lebensburger said, indicating the sales staff would mirror its edgier, more youthful shoppers. He expects the stores to measure less than 10,000 square feet "as dictated by the real estate."

"And they won't close until 11 o'clock," he mused. "They will have wine tastings ... and serve tea."

He envisions something akin to an early Crate & Barrel store, like when the lifestyle retailer first opened on Rush Street in Chicago.

Styles and colors showcased in Apt. 3-G will address the lifestyles of these young urban professionals, the company said. The colors reflect the tastes of a younger-skewed audience with solids, neutrals, stripes and corduroys, enlivened with shots of color from such accessories as pillows, chenille throws or accent rugs.

Styles also will be offered to appeal to varying tastes in different regions of the country.

"While largely a contemporary assortment, it will be a big enough of a smorgasbord to offer something to all," said Lebensburger.

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