What’s next for Furniture Brands International?

May 2, 2008

If Sun Capital did indeed win three seats on the board as it claims, the answer could be turmoil.

Furniture Brands, the parent of Broyhill, Lane, Thomasville, Drexel Heritage, Henredon and Maitland-Smith, says it needs until May 20 to verify the results of the proxy election votes that were submitted at this week’s annual shareholders meeting. Sun says its proxy vote consulting firm has already counted enough votes to assure a victory for its three candidates.

(Incidentally, this proxy stuff is big business. In its first-quarter earnings report, Furniture Brands listed $587,000 in financial and legal “costs associated with proxy contest,” and you can bet Sun has spent a bundle, too.)

So what does Sun Capital win with its victory, assuming it gets verified? It will have three seats on an eight-member board, which constitutes a large presence but not a majority. It would seem like three people might influence a debate but not force a decision.

One thing Sun is almost certain to receive, should its candidates be seated, is information. Sun Capital proposed to acquire Furniture Brands in February but didn’t make a specific offer, partly because it didn’t have access to non-public information. FBI usually doesn’t break out the results of its various operating companies in its public reports, and that would be high on the list of what I’d want to know if I was thinking of buying the business.

The turmoil part would come if that information were to enable Sun Capital to make a firm offer, or if the new board members proposed selling off certain operations that are either poorly performing or would fetch a good price. (With a guaranteed three votes, could Sun somehow get around or overturn the “poison pill” anti-takeover provision at Furniture Brands?)

The new board members also might want to tinker with the restructuring plan that Chairman and CEO Ralph Scozzafava unveiled last year, aimed at transforming Furniture Brands from a holding company into an operating company with more of a unified approach to running its various brands.

With Mickey Holliman’s retirement as chairman, virtually all of the company’s top management has been replaced in the past 18 months. The new executives were already on the hot seat as they are charged with executing the company’s plan and achieving ambitious goals. With Sun Capital’s claimed victory, the seats will get a little hotter.

Posted by Jay McIntosh on May 2, 2008 | Comments (7)

Industries: Business News

December 3, 2011

In response to: What’s next for Furniture Brands International?
Candy commented:

The purhcseas I make are entirely based on these articles.

December 2, 2011

In response to: What’s next for Furniture Brands International?
Chelsi commented:

Grazi for mkanig it nice and EZ.

August 18, 2010

In response to: What’s next for Furniture Brands International?
thruz1243 commented:

I was always under the impression that a husband & wife could not work in the same deptartment. Well I guess for certain e,ployees this rule is not "enforced." To me & somr of my co_workers this is a problem. I work in a department where is is allowed(Lenoir). This man is an assistant super and his wife works on the line. If she doesn't like you (even if u speak to him and she don't like you), he makes it hard on you. For example, not helping you find your parts, not allowing help, etc,. We are implying "team" effort at our plant, there is no team in this! There is too much that can go on when spouses are in the same department. There is fussing, yelling, crying, plain out drama!!! This is why this rule needs to be enforced!!! Also, someone really needs to check on the cabinet room overtime crew::::: nothing is being accomplished!!! People are allowed to "milk" the clock, some people really need & want to work for there o/t!!

October 31, 2008

In response to: What’s next for Furniture Brands International?
XN6CH commented:

How do you value a company that once had the best known brands in the world, that now has very few physical facilities producing Henredon, Broyhill,Lane and Thomasville on the same production line in the far east? Where do the assets of FBI come from? Brand name? The collateral of plants in the US are now non existent. Mickey Holliman orchestrated the demise of the US Furniture indusrty forever!

September 5, 2008

In response to: What’s next for Furniture Brands International?
fyshstyx commented:

Ido not think it much matters either way. With a simple sniff, the rotting corpse of FBI can be detected. The body just has not been buried...

June 8, 2008

In response to: What’s next for Furniture Brands International?
Joe Ritchey commented:

Jay, I would like to offer a proposition to you: Do you have employees that travel, do you get commissions from booking their travel or do you just forgo those funds? Here is a way for your company to develop its own website for a nominal fee and actually receive commissions from booking travel through it. If you suggest that your employees book the family travel that they are planning or other businesses that you interact with, you could have some commissions coming in where in the past you did not.

It is worth a look: www.gulliversusa.com/1223381

I would be happy to explain how this works if the website is not entirely informative.

Thanks for your time, Joe Ritchey

May 3, 2008

In response to: What’s next for Furniture Brands International?
FBI Customer commented:

It's sad to say, but I would prefer Samson Holding as a new owner. A manufacture has a better vested interest in our business than the marketing company that Furniture Brands is today.