TUPELO, Miss. — Several casual dining producers at the Tupelo market say they’re starting to see the soft retail environment beginning to pick up.


Exhibitors in casual dining showrooms at last month’s market here said that a dip in traffic didn’t keep retailers from writing orders, with Tupelo-only specials and closeouts performing well.

Traffic in wood and metal importer Largo International’s space was up from the previous August, said Ray Reese, vice president of sales, due largely to the introduction of an upholstered furniture line and a larger showroom. He said the company’s Tupelo special, a five-piece black Harvest dining group at $799 retail, also did well.

Reese added that Largo will have its biggest product introduction ever during the fall High Point market.

Collezione Europa used the Tupelo market to roll out a well-received mix-and-match concept for bases, tabletops and chairs, which it has been refining since April, said Tim Connors, vice president of sales and merchandising. The program contains 59 SKUs.

Connors said traffic through the showroom was steady, starting as early as the Monday before the official Wednesday opening.

“There was a lot of complaining in April (in High Point). Business was tough. It started changing in Vegas. We’re anticipating a pretty good fall,” Connors said.

The best-selling casual dining set for Powell at the Tupelo show was Basil, with a transitional glass-topped table, at $499 retail, according to Tom Liddell, senior vice president national sales.

Liddell said the company wrote more business than he had anticipated in Tupelo, although attendance was lower than last August. The average ticket was up 10% to 15%, making the market a very viable one for the company, he said.

“Considering the lackluster attendance at the market, we were pleased with our size of orders and quality of buyers,” Liddell said.

Business was sluggish coming into market and dealers were complaining that traffic in stores was down, but dealers were buying in Tupelo, said Brian Akchin, president and CEO of Fraenkel.

He added, however, that he thinks furniture sales at retail will suffer until consumers get used to higher gas prices.

“As long as gas prices remain in the forefront of everybody’s mind, it just keeps people from buying durable goods, especially the lower-income-level spenders,” he said.

At Holland House, Executive Vice President Fred Holland said orders had picked up in recent weeks. He expects the fourth quarter to be better than the last two at retail.

He added the company was fortunate to be ahead of last year’s sales and profits. In additional to casual dining, the youth furniture program has done well this year, he said.

Welton USA, a casual dining producer for rent-to-own stores,  had a record July, according to Loyd Easley, director of furniture sales and marketing. Still, Easley said, retail is soft.

“Retailers are living from one promotion to another promotion,” he said.

All of APA Marketing’s product offerings in Tupelo were specially priced for the market, said President Bob Lephart. He said that while retail is tough, he expects to have a good fourth quarter.

“We come to Tupelo for a specific reason, to lower inventory quantity and get rid of dropped merchandise,” he said. “It’s always worked well for us.”