Share this on

Retailers go for variety in occasional furniture

Heath E. Combs -- Furniture Today, May 2, 2011

Four Hands did well in High Point with this Whitman coffee table in brushed steel, with leather and wood accent trim and handles.HIGH POINT — Occasional and accent furniture buyers at the market drifted toward driftwood looks, exotics, geometric shapes, neutral grays, antique metallic finishes and motifs like Greek key designs, according to suppliers in the category.

There were trunk cocktails at showrooms including Hooker and planked looks at Furniture Classics and elsewhere. Reptiling, or shagreen, gained traction as a style feature at sources such as Hekman, Four Hands and Lexington Home Brands.

Four Hands did well with pops of color, like multiple paints on an end table in the company's Whitman group, according to Cameron Cook, public relations manager. A silver shagreen cocktail table look and whitewashed wood finishes also were popular with dealers, she said.

Lexington, which arguably had the largest accent furniture introduction at market with its new Henry Link brand, turned heads with exotic looks. Table legs include gazelle, ball and claw, and lion's paw styles, while reptiled looks are prominent in the line. Drawer fronts feature raised carvings, and table tops are held in place by a Pegasus.

"We've always done accents but this is a very category-specific influx over and beyond what we really do," said Phil Haney, president and CEO.

Hooker reported a good response to its Melange accents including the Cache chest with artwork inspired by Asian styles, a warm color palette and resurgence of the gold colorway in soft metallics.

Jofran had success in occasional with its No. 091 group with a 36-inch, drop-in glass top, pull-through drawer and wenge finish at a $349 retail, said Joff Roy, president. It also did well with cocktails in the $199 range, including its No. 053 group with a solid wood frame, casters, a drop-in glass top and contemporary style in an elm finish.

Powell had great response to its new transitional Argyle collection of accent pieces with a high-end look, clean walnut finish and painted diamond motif, according to David Horvath, vice president of merchandising. He said the company also did well with mirrored accents, including some with a black and silver painted antique crackle finish.

Riverside did well with its Coventry Collection occasional, according to Mike Charlton, senior vice president of product development. The rustic group has a wire-brushed elm look, with prominent textured wood grains and light distressing. Pieces are in either a driftwood finish or whitewash and driftwood two-tone finish.

Pieces like a lift-top cocktail with casters also did well, Charlton said. Riverside continued to emphasize the $299 to $399 cocktail range.

Furniture Classics' re-engineered Cotswold collection with acacia veneers drew a good response, according to Alex Boyer, vice president of sales and marketing.

Like others this market, Furniture Classics added a light finish to a dark existing one, giving the Cotswold a new light natural glaze and wax with a chalky white hang-up. The company also added a black rub-through paint with a wax look and satin nickel hardware to some pieces.

Pieces using reclaimed materials continued to do well, and the company now has about 60 such items, Boyer said.

"Reclaimed is still exploding. Several customers are looking just for that and they've got excited about our broad and diverse selection of those pieces," he said.

And product support is a key selling point these days.

"Service is the most important factor right now," Boyer said.

Share this on

At High Point: Traffic lighter in occasional

Apr 6, 2011

Also by this author

Also by Heath E Combs

Featured Company

Brandwise Inc.

Brandwise serves a model - not just an industry - by integrating, automating, and optimizing the entire sales channel, from wholesale Suppliers to their Reps and the Retailers they service. In short, our software helps Reps and Suppliers sell more and create... more