Thomas Russell — Furniture Today,
Avoiding conflict and confusion with Standard line
SAN DIEGO — Martin Furniture is dropping its Mission Hills


occasional group because it too closely resembles a line produced by Standard Furniture.

The four-piece group originally was produced to match Martin’s Mission Hills home entertainment line marketed under the Kathy Ireland Home name.

However, Standard also has a relationship with Ireland and a Mission Hills occasional group marketed under the Kathy Ireland brand. Because of the conflict and potential confusion associated with the two lines, Martin agreed to drop the four-piece group.

Martin will continue to market its other occasional lines under the Martin Furniture brand. These items have fallen under the Martin umbrella since the company launched the occasional line at the July 2012 Las Vegas market, said Karl Eulberg, Martin’s vice president of sales.

Its occasional lineup includes the Jefferson Heights, Urban Loft, Cape Town, Southampton, Tribeca Loft and Ashbury collections. With cocktail tables at $199 to $399 retail and end tables at $129 to $229, the line has been developed to complement the company’s Kathy Ireland home entertainment line.

Eventually, Martin hopes to launch occasional groups to complement five or six other existing home entertainment groups.

“It is helping both categories and it is helping our customers increase their average tickets,” Eulberg said. “Our customers respect us for the way we configure our products to meet the needs of consumers.”

However, he emphasized that the occasional lines will not use the Kathy Ireland name and won’t mirror any occasional products offered by Standard.

“We are just trying to create the solution our customers asked us for and be compatible with our brand partners,” he said.