Jeff Linville — Furniture
TUPELO, Miss. — Wood sources expected the Tupelo market to be light this month, and they weren’t disappointed.


However, some manufacturers said they were glad it wasn’t worse.

 “Traffic is slow, but it’s not as bad as we feared,” Anthony Lupo, Discovery World Furniture president, said on opening day.

“This has been a challenging year,” said David Urbanick, Philip Reinisch national sales manager. “Retail is soft.”

To generate interest at this and other shows, Reinisch is trying to be more innovative. One bookshelf, for example, features three varieties of base: an open area with a shelf or wine rack, storage behind double doors, or an electric fireplace.

Harden Mfg. and Fraenkel both reported good traffic thanks to an emphasis on introductions. Harden brought out 16 bedroom and dining groups, while Fraenkel also showed several new bedroom and casual dining sets.

Orleans Furniture and APA Marketing were companies that showed both here and at the Las Vegas show in July.

“We showed these groups in Las Vegas,” said Tom Stumpf, Orleans vice president of national accounts. Some retailers looked the pieces over out West, then pulled the trigger here, he said.

Especially strong for Orleans in Tupelo were container orders for Hummerz, a 14-group bedroom line that was expanded into youth in four top styles. As many as six different groups can be mixed in a container, with support from a U.S. warehouse.

Moving into a permanent showroom here paid dividends for Hearn Furniture/Old Towne Imports. The company had showed three times in temporary spaces, but this month was in Tupelo Building Six near Progressive, Standard and Sunrise Furniture. Co-owner Charles Hearn said the permanent spot gave the company more credibility and generated “great” sales, even if the traffic was lighter than in the past.

While the Tupelo market is known for its promotional deals, some manufacturers reported success with better goods as well. Furniture with more style and function at times won out over the lowest-priced goods.

Ultimate Accents offers closeouts in Tupelo, said President Gail Steele, but buyers expect to see fresh styles, too. As an occasional source, Ultimate Accents must constantly update its look, she said.

One of the Tupelo Furniture Market’s two campuses, the Tupelo complex, had a parking lot that was mostly filled.

But down the road, the Mississippi lot was far from full — prompting some exhibitors at the latter to worry that their showrooms weren’t getting equal traffic.

When the Tupelo complex opened Building Six, some exhibitors moved out of the Mississippi building, including Klaussner, Pulaski and Liberty Furniture.

Stein World had temporary space in both complexes for several shows, but dropped the Mississippi space because traffic fell after Building Six opened.

Palliser was in Pulaski’s old space this month, but the Canadian manufacturer said this was its last Tupelo market.

The defections worry those showing in the Mississippi buildings. Paul Coscarelli, partner in APA Marketing, said he wonders if his building has enough drawing power now. Fraenkel/Englander and Steve Silver may pull in retailers to Hall A, but Coscarelli questioned whether they’d walk to Hall E to visit APA.

Coaster is another big exhibitor in the Mississippi building, but executives questioned whether they should have a smaller presence at the show or pull out altogether.

If more clients leave, Coscarelli said he could see the market shutting down one or two halls at his location, which he believes would further erode traffic. If the Mississippi complex gets downsized, he would like to move to the Tupelo side.

*Editor-in-Chief Ray Allegrezza contributed to this story.