Lacquer Craft’s milestone move

Everybody always talks about waiting for the other shoe to drop. I’m pretty sure I heard it last week. Well, maybe not literally, but when we broke the news detailing China-based Lacquer Craft’s acquisition of Craftmaster, a North Carolina upholstery maker, I knew, nonetheless, that shoe leather had hit the pavement. (see related story)

I think in years to come, we will look back at this announcement as being a true milestone event.

Some people see this is as the beginning of the end of U.S. upholstery making. Others see it as the beginning of a new era of domestic production.

I see it as a little bit of both. Mostly, however, I see this as proof positive of the global nature of our business. I also think we should expect to see more of these types of arrangements in the near future.

Based on everything I’ve seen, read and heard, our industry is going down the same road the domestic automobile industry went down not that long ago. First, it faced a wave of imports. Imports that, based on sales figures, clearly demonstrated an ability to better meet consumer expectations, I should add.

The success of those imports, particularly Toyota’s, prompted more than one observer to proclaim the death of domestic auto production. But that didn’t happen. As Toyota, Nissan and others began building factories here, the business simply morphed.

At least that’s the view of a host of observers in the auto arena, including Eric Noble of industry consultant Car Lab. In his words, “The domestic auto industry is as healthy as it has ever been. The names on the plants are just changing.”

It will take some time to tell for sure, but Lacquer Craft’s acquisition of Craftmaster could well have the impact on domestic furniture production that Toyota’s manufacturing model had, and continues to have, on Detroit.

After establishing itself as a primary supplier of case goods, China next set its sights on upholstery. The problem was never a lack of design or inadequate cut-and-sew capabilities or even an ample supply of carved wood. Upholstered goods simply don’t “cube” for shipment as efficiently as case goods do.

Much like Toyota, Lacquer Craft can now drive its upholstery business in any number of directions.
Stay tuned. This is just the beginning!