Miles Talbott to produce Ruggiero upholstery line
By Gary Evans -- Furniture Today, August 11, 2008
HIGH POINT — Designer and television host Joe Ruggiero has signed on with upper-end manufacturer Miles Talbott Furniture to produce his line of upholstery, with the first introduction set for the High Point Market in October.
George Jordan, president of Miles Talbott, said the company initially will focus on seven or eight of the most popular designs in the Ruggiero portfolio plus a few new pieces.
In all, the line will have 38 SKUs, including those in the best-selling Tribeca collection, according to Jordan. The pieces will have a similar price structure as they did at Norwalk Furniture, where Ruggiero had licensed his collection.
Ruggiero said he terminated his partnership with Norwalk after nine years because “it was a point in my career and my time where I felt the mission for our brand was such it needed to take a more creative, energized route.… I've really enjoyed working at Norwalk and there are no hard feelings as far as I'm concerned.”
Jordan said the pieces at Miles Talbott will include eight-way hand-tied construction whenever possible.
“We are thrilled with this new association and have long respected Ruggiero's upholstery designs and fabric collection for Sunbrella,” Jordan said. “We see many opportunities with our two companies working together now and in the future. Miles Talbott and our parent company, Michael Thomas, have used Ruggiero's fabrics for many years and have been very pleased with their performance and design.”
Ruggiero's lines of indoor and outdoor furniture, lighting and textiles have won several design awards.
He also is designing a complementary collection of Sunbrella brand performance fabrics and Phoenix trims, both of which will be shown at the October market in Showrooms on English here.
Ruggiero's “Made in America” wood furniture designs are manufactured by Caperton FurnitureWorks in West Virginia. He also designs casual furniture for Terra Furniture and a wicker collection for Woodard and Viro.
