Archive for July 9th, 2007
Furniture Row Companies of Denver, Colo., which currently owns and operates 330 stores in 32 states, plans to open four jointly located home furnishing and bedding specialty stores in Chattanooga.
To house the stores, the furniture retailer plans to build a one-level, 53,440-square-foot Furniture Row Shopping Center.
Crews have begun erecting the structural steel for the new Center located at 2035 East Polymer Dr. Construction is anticipated to be completed by this fall.
The Center will contain four specialty furniture stores in one convenient location. The stores brands include Oak Express, Bedroom Expressions, Sofa Mart and Denver Mattress Company.
The Oak Express and Bedroom Expressions stores currently located at 30 Northgate Park will move into the Center when construction is complete.
“The Center will bring a unique furniture shopping experience to the area,” said Bill McKendry, marketing director for Furniture Row Companies. “Unlike other furnishings retailers, our centers have four specialty stores at one destination. Each store focuses on a particular category and each store is managed and staffed with people who are extremely knowledgeable about their specific lines. And, best of all, they all guarantee their prices to be the lowest.”
Here’s a run down on each store brand and their specialty:
Denver Mattress Company is considered unique among its competitors in the bedding industry because it is both a mattress manufacturer and mattress retailer. It manufactures, distributes, and retails its own private-label, ultimately providing full control over how its products are priced and sold.
The company uses the same components and materials as the leading brand-name manufacturers, but because it manufactures and sells its own mattresses, it has eliminated the middleman markup. Therefore, Denver Mattress customers get brand-name quality mattresses for as much as 50 percent less, officials said.
Sofa Mart specializes in casual leather and upholstery home furnishings, as well as accent pieces such as occasional tables, armoires, and home accessories. The kind of furniture you would use in your living room and family room areas of the home, it was stated.
The chain provides a large variety of styles, some of which are reminiscent of those found in high-end department stores and fashionable furnishings catalogs. The difference being that consumers will find Sofa Mart’s products more attractively priced and more readily available, officials said.
Oak Express sets itself apart by only carrying furnishings made from fine woods like, oak, cherry, maple, pine, and more. From dining and entertainment to home office, Oak Express offers consumers a chance to own quality, long lasting furniture at very affordable prices, it was stated. Oak Express is the largest cash buyer of wood furniture in the country.
Bedroom Expressions provides a unique retail experience, a single store specializing in bedroom furniture, offering consumers a larger selection of better quality bedroom furniture at affordable prices, officials said.
Furniture Row also offers a 200% price pledge guarantee. This states that if within 30 days of purchase, the customer finds the identical item advertised for less at another local store, Furniture Row will refund 200% of the difference. In addition, Furniture Row provides a variety of financing options designed to cater to the customer’s needs, it was stated.
Furniture Row Companies is one of the largest family-owned specialty home furnishings and bedding retailers. The company is comprised of five specialty store brands, including Sofa Mart, Oak Express, Bedroom Expressions, Denver Mattress Co, and Big Sur Water Beds.
July 9th, 2007
By MIKE KALIL
DERRY – A furniture store burned to the ground yesterday, and the owner says he does not know whether he will rebuild.
Firefighters responded to Kindelan Woodworking, 179 Rockingham Road, at about 4:30 a.m. and found the building engulfed in flames. No one was inside when the fire started and there were no injuries, fire battalion Chief Mike Gagnon said.
Investigators were still trying to pinpoint the cause yesterday, Gagnon said. They were expected to stay at the scene the rest of the day, he said.
Bob Hersey, 54, bought the property 2 1/2 years ago and spent the time since doing renovations. In an interview, Hersey said he spent 38 years as an auto mechanic before deciding to turn his woodworking hobby into a career.
When he saw flames coming out of all the building’s windows, he said, he knew it was a loss.
“It wasn’t that hard to figure out,” he said.
Hersey, who lives next to the business, said he does not know how the fire started. He said he did not know replacement cost estimates, and he didn’t know whether he will rebuild. Hours after the fire started, he said, he were already being offering rebuilding services.
The store had five full-time employees, three of whom were on vacation yesterday, Hersey said. An outside building where orders are stored was not damaged, he said. Hersey’s daughter, Julie, said one employee arrived at work yesterday to find the building destroyed.
Julie Hersey, who did not work at the store, said that nothing inside the building was salvageable and it all burned quickly because everything was wooden. She arrived in the early morning and stayed for hours.
“The second I saw it, I knew it was done and over with,” she said.
Kindelan sells custom-made furniture built at the Rockingham Road location. The business’ Web site says that it’s the state’s “largest supplier of custom-built, finished, and unfinished furniture.” The property has an assessed value of $426,900, according to online property records.
Gagnon said the fire was in an area not served by municipal water, so firefighters had to bring water in. Fire departments from Auburn, Atkinson, Chester, Hampstead and Windham assisted by providing water tankers, he said.
Firefighters had the blaze under control at about 6 a.m., he said. A section of Route 28 was closed until about 7:30 a.m.
Fire departments from Salem, Londonderry and Hudson also assisted, he said, while Raymond, Pelham, Hampstead and Hooksett provided station coverage. The Salvation Army also responded to the scene.
July 9th, 2007
The Thomas Family Front Porch by Stephen Thomas
Well, it’s that time of year where we move all the front porch furniture out to the yard underneath the shade tree. Mom and Grandma have fried chicken, corn on the cob and apple pie on the picnic table with the red and white checkered tablecloth. Dad and Uncle Ed are playing corn hole in the side yard, the kids are in the plastic makeshift swimming pools in the back, and Uncle Coy is determined to blow us all up with the grill. It must be the 4th of July.
The Independence Day holiday brings back a flood of memories from both my youth and from recent years. Most recent times include fireworks in Shepherdsville courtesy of the annual Bullitt Blast.
The 4th usually means a day off work for all Americans (except maybe cynical journalists who take pictures of local fireworks). But when it really boils down to the root of this famous American holiday, what does it truly mean? What makes it so special?
Help us out, Bullitt County: We want to know at the Thomas Family front porch what freedom means. What does it mean to you and your families? What does it mean to Bullitt County, or Kentucky, or the entire country? What is most important about freedom itself, or life, liberty and the pursuit of happiness?
Maybe it’s having your family gathered around the picnic table on a sunny day. Maybe it’s shooting off illegal fireworks. Maybe it’s watching a car race on television. Maybe it is the right to live, more or less, the way you choose. Remember, it’s your thoughts, and you have the freedom to share them, or even not to share.
Also, feel free to tell us your memories of past Independence Days, maybe your earliest recollections of the holiday, or maybe when you first understood its true importance.
Please always remember, no profanity, keep it clean, don’t say anything out of line, or Grandma will shoot her homemade bottle rockets up your nose.
So, while Uncle Coy lines up the roman candles next to the neighbors’ illegally parked car and the kids run at me with a bucket full of water, think about your freedom and your holiday and share your thoughts and memories. Feel free…literally!
July 9th, 2007
Cecilia Chan
The Arizona Republic
Trilogy at Vistancia is giving away outdoor furniture packages to buyers who close on a designer home by Aug. 31.
A limited number of designer homes are located throughout the community in northern Peoria.
The homes are considered ready for move-inbecause they are fully constructed, landscaped, and come with designer interior finishes. Homebuyers can choose from one of five patio furniture packages from Sedona Patio Furniture.
Details: www.trilogylife.com or (623) 215-6315.
July 9th, 2007
From 11 News staff reports
Houston businessman Robert Finger of Fingers Furniture died of cancer Sunday. He was 62.
Finger became a well-known face in Houston as the spokesman and CEO of the family-owned furniture retailer.
He even earned awards for several of his store promotions.
Finger was a donor and director for the Houston Livestock Show and Rodeo, but he was also a participant.
He won the 2001 Cutting Horse World Championship and was inducted into the National Cutting Horse Association Members Hall of Fame.
Finger’s many contributions to local museums, hospitals, churches, theaters, symphonies, Goodwill, the United Fund, the Home for the Aged and the Muscular Dystrophy Association helped to better the community.
Graveside services will be held for Finger Monday at 3 p.m. at Beth Yeshurun Cemetery on Allen Parkway in Houston.
July 9th, 2007
Clint Engel — Furniture Today,
RIVER EDGE, N.J. — The owner of the Huffman Koos name has opened a 70,000-square-foot H&K store here, holding off at least for now on earlier plans to open under the full name of the former Top 100 company.
H&K is led by CEO Anthony Mehran, who bought the rights to the Huffman Koos name out of bankruptcy in 2005.
Mehran opened a wholesale Huffman Koos showroom at the High Point Market this spring. He also closed his seven-store Moda Furniture in Passaic, N.J., announcing that at least five of the locations would open as Huffman Koos — a separate entity — after renovation.
But Mehran, who is developing proprietary sourcing for the revived brand, said he doesn’t have enough goods yet to re-launch a Huffman Koos-only store. H&K features a mix of about 50% Huffman Koos branded goods, mainly from China and Vietnam, with the balance from other suppliers including Natuzzi and Serta, which have galleries.
A second, 35,000-square-foot H&K is set to open this month at the former Moda in Fairfield, N.J., and a third is planned for mid-August at a former Moda in Middletown, N.Y. Mehran also said is looking at Rockaway, N.J. for a fourth location, possibly this year, at a non-Moda site.
The company sold the leases on two other former Moda stores to a retailer Mehran wouldn’t name.
He said he could make the transition to Huffman Koos in the New York/New Jersey area some time next year. But he said those plans are tentative because he’s also marketing the Huffman Koos name to Top 100 retailers as an in-store gallery concept, and those retailers may frown on competing with a stand-alone store.
“We’re … trying to sell the Huffman Koos brand to other retailers in our region, so we want to leave the brand name out there and available,” he said.
Mehran added that his plan to convert the Huffman Koos wholesale showroom in High Point to a retail store during non-market times was delayed in order to focus on H&K’s main trading area. But he said he hopes to have the High Point space open to the public in about two weeks.
Consumer response to H&K has been positive, Mehran said, although he added that business has been “stagnant” because of the tough business climate for furniture sales. He declined to disclose sales projections.
July 9th, 2007
Kids Today,
Youth and casual furniture specialist Sunset Trading has filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection but plans to remain in business, according to a report in the New Hampshire Business Review.
The report said that Sunset Trading parent GPS Furniture International has some $1.2 million in receivables and owes $1.6 million to Wells Fargo Bank, $203,000 to CIT and $566,000 to company CEO Gary Chase. The report said the company also has another $1 million in unsecured claims.
The report said that GPS received court approval for Wells Fargo to release about $500,000 so it could pay its workers and also pay for inventory held in containers in Worcester, Mass.
GPS President Harry Leighton told the paper that the company suffered a setback when high antidumping duties on bedroom furniture were applied to two Chinese source factories. Several customers switched to other suppliers, the report said.
Leighton also told the paper that the furniture business is suffering because of a slowdown in the housing market as well as competition from big-box retailers such as Wal-Mart and Ikea.
GPS started in 1988, primarily as a waterbed, futon and master bedroom resource. It acquired Sunset Trading in 1997.
Leighton and Gary Chase purchased Sunset Trading from business partners Kenneth Smith and Gary Stanieich in 2005. At the time, the company said 70% of its revenues were in casual dining, with the remainder in youth and juvenile furniture. The company ultimately sought to grow its youth business, largely through an in-stock, quick ship warehousing program.
July 9th, 2007
By Paul Crocetti/Daily News staff
MENDON -
The town recently received about $19,000 in office furniture and equipment from an unlikely place: a jail.
But it was not just any jail. In response to a request from Administrative Assistant Mike McCue, the Worcester County Sheriff’s Office donated the new and used items to the Fire and Highway Departments.
Town officials traveled to Worcester and found the items in storage at the jail’s warehouse.
“We were looking for decent furniture,” said Deputy Fire Chief Mark Poirier, who made the trip. “No junk.”
Poirier came away with 35 chairs, worth $7,000, to be used in the meeting room at the new Morrison Drive fire station. The Fire Department also got a decontamination sink and a portable sink.
“The chairs were in excellent shape,” Poirier said. “The decontamination sink was very nice. It was still in the crate, which was a pretty good score.”
The Highway Department also received a new portable wash station, worth $4,300.
Worcester County Sheriff Guy Glodis said his office receives all kinds of donations, from food to furniture.
“(The furniture and equipment) were of no … (use) to the sheriff’s office,” Glodis said, adding that the donations are on their way to the town.
The Fire Department would have used money from the override approved in March for those items, Poirier said.
“It was a great savings for the town,” he said.
Poirier said he does not know exactly how the funds will be used yet.
“For everything we save, we can try to purchase other items,” he said.
McCue noted the financial struggles of the town.
“The sheriff’s help in saving the town money allows us to hopefully direct funds to services that have suffered as a result of fiscal 2008 budget cuts,” he said.
The sheriff’s office helped out the town last year as well.
Through the sheriff’s Community Service Program, inmates built a handicapped ramp and painted at the Council on Aging and did trash pickup through the Department of Public Works, according to Keith Mitchell, communications director in the sheriff’s office.
That work saved the town $3,000.
“It’s part of an ongoing effort in making the sheriff’s office more community-committed,” Glodis said. “The sheriff’s department can and should be more than just a jail.”
Paul Crocetti can be reached at 508-634-7583 or pcrocett@cnc.com
July 9th, 2007
By Jeremiah McWilliams
ST. LOUIS POST-DISPATCH
Furniture Brands International Inc. has reached agreements with lenders and note-holders to give it more than a month of breathing room on some debt and credit arrangements.
But in exchange for relief running through Aug. 14, the Clayton-based seller of Lane and Broyhill furniture will have to prepay an estimated $164.7 million in principal and interest on some bonds.
The required payout will slash earnings by 15 cents per share over the next two quarters, the company said in a filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.
Furniture Brands already projected a loss and falling sales in the current quarter.
Earlier this year, the company warned that it probably would violate some conditions attached to a $150 million note and a $400 million credit line. In April, Furniture Brands negotiated amendments to temporarily loosen the restrictions.
Those amendments were set to expire June 29.
On that day, various lenders agreed for a second time to waive certain restrictions embedded in the $400 million credit line. The waiver, which expires Aug. 15, temporarily frees Furniture Brands from restrictions on how much debt and combined interest and rent expenses it may carry.
Similarly for the $150 million note, the company will be allowed to have a higher debt-to-earnings ratio.
The waiver came a week after Furniture Brands signed a letter that could give it a $600 million line of credit through J.P. Morgan Securities Inc. and JPMorgan Chase Bank N.A. Furniture Brands said it would use the money to refinance its credit line, to repay the senior notes and for “general corporate purposes.”
The company’s accounts receivable, inventory and deposit accounts would be collateral. The deal is not yet complete.
jmcwilliams@post-dispatch.com | 314-340-8372
July 9th, 2007