Orders keep Tupelo hopping
Larry Thomas -- Furniture Today, September 3, 2011
Harden Mfg.’s new Kenner bedroom honors Kenner Vaughan, a 20-year driver for Harden who was killed during the tornado outbreak in April. The company donated $5 to tornado relief for every four-piece group sold at market and said it sold “well over 1,000.”
TUPELO, Miss. — Most exhibitors left the building with well-used order pads as the latest edition of the Tupelo Furniture Market came to a close.
Exhibitors said showroom traffic, for the most part, was light to moderate. But a heavy spate of order-writing largely made up for the lighter attendance.
"The people who were really serious about buying were here," said Gentry Long, vice president of motion upholstery producer HomeStretch. "The quality of buyers we saw at this show was outstanding."
Long and other executives said buyers from numerous Top 100 stores began shopping the market two days before the official Aug. 18 opening, and said order-writing continued at a brisk pace through the first two days of market.
"We were pleased to see so many of our Top 100 customers by opening day," said Glenn Wakefield, president of upholstery and case goods importer Largo. "It's a nice feeling when they come in early and commit to the items you have."
Christopher De La Guardia, East Coast vice president of sales for importer Coaster, said attendance appeared to be up from the February market and by and large, the dealers in the showroom were optimistic.
"This is always a good show for promotional items and we helped it by running some deep discounts on minimum-sized orders," he said.
De La Guardia added that business was helped by the fact that Coaster has seven large warehouses around the United States. "Dealers know that we are in stock and can get them what they need when they need it," he said.
Joseph Ngo, vice president of importer Crown Mark, was equally positive. "Considering the economy, this show was surprisingly good. We saw lots of dealers and even better, we wrote plenty of business."
The ability to ship in-stock items quickly was a major talking point in both case goods and upholstery showrooms. Most of the upholstery exhibitors here have domestic factories, and dealers were drawn to their ability to customize orders with a short turnaround time.
"We had a good market," said Bo Robbins, president of Fusion, a two-year-old fabric upholstery producer. "We had some new players (in our showroom) and they were all very interested in our line."
Sonny Cassady, owner of Beckham Upholstery and Cassady Closeouts, said the company's new selection of fabrics and frames was well received, but noted that demand was especially heavy for closeouts. The economy continues to affect retailers' and consumers' shopping habits, he said.
"The retailers are looking for dealers because their customers are looking for deals and this is a deal market," Cassady said.
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| Reid Davis, left, Terry Davis Associates; John Forbes,
Posturecraft; and Connelly Stong, Brooks Furniture. |
Liz Thompson, left, Stringer Furniture, Jackson, Miss.; Brittney
English and Michael English, Ross Furniture, Flowood, Miss.;
Suzanne Stringer, Stringer Furniture. |
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Rob Krause, left, and Randy Stewart, both of GE Capital;
Randy Lann, Arkansas Home Furnishings Assn.; and Randy
Butler, Butler Furniture, Mountain Home, Ark., at the Arkansas
HFA’s gala event during the Tupelo Furniture Market. |
Upholstery manufacturer Stacy Furniture showed in space provided by The Buying Giant, a buying group that has been working to get more of its suppliers to the show. Sales and merchandise manager Mickey Barber said a buyer from Russia was brought to the space, and he ended up placing an order for 22 stores that eventually will yield about 20 containers of furniture.
"That worked out very well. We were happy TBG gave us the opportunity to show down there," Barber said.
Business is still tough, which he believes took a toll on market traffic. However, the large contingent of dealers from Arkansas - some of whom were here because the Arkansas Home Furnishings Assn. decided to hold its annual meeting during the Tupelo market - helped build the crowds, Barber said.
Retailers, including Jimmy Jernigan of Chattanooga, Tenn.-based Factory Direct Furniture, gave the show high marks. "Tupelo, as always, is a great show to shop for upholstery. There is always plenty to see here and I can usually get product right away," he said.
Commenting on his business, Jernigan said, "Today, selling furniture means you better have an event to tie it to. Retailers have overplayed the percent-off sale to the point that consumers hardly blink anymore."
Editor-in-chief Ray Allegrezza and Staff Writer Heath E. Combs contributed to this story.
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