"Sin" is in at El Ran Furniture

Upholstery producer promotes made-in-Canada

Ray Allegrezza -- Furniture Today, October 28, 2008

POINTE-CLAIRE, Quebec — While many upholstery suppliers are hell-bent on convincing buyers about the power of their brands, Sheldon Lubin, president of Canadian upholstery maker El Ran, is telling them about his new campaign encouraging consumers to believe in the power of "sin."

El Ran is running this ad in Canadian newspapers to promote its domestic manufacturing. The company is considering a co-op ad campaign on a similar theme with its American dealers, since many of the components in its products are sourced in the U.S.

In this case, "sin" stands for Sofa Identification Number, a mark on Lubin's products that assures consumers that El Ran's furniture is manufactured domestically in Montreal.

Lubin is running ads in Canadian newspapers saying that El Ran's S.I.N. "separates our locally manufactured motion furniture from some blue suede copycat that just came off last week's boat ... nine weeks later."

"Our little ‘sin' tells a big Canadian success story that includes state-of-the-art quick-ship-technology, innovation, employee loyalty and hard work," he said.

Each ad invites consumers to make comments. "I've been blown away by the hundreds of consumers who took the time to e-mail us and thank us for protecting local jobs," Lubin said.

Based on the success in Canada, he said El Ran is considering running similar co-op program ads with dealers in the United States, "in part, because much of what we make includes parts such as mechanisms, fabric, domestic wood and hardware that we source from the U.S."

Lubin added that as the economy continues to challenge retailers' financial resources, "more and more retailers are turning to us as a supply source because they can pick their frame and cover and receive the goods in a few weeks, not in few months."

At the recent High Point Market, El Ran offered a number of new upholstery frames, including traditionally styled sofas and home theater seating that had motion features.