Motion buyers upbeat in Vegas
Larry Thomas — Furniture Today
Dealers take advantage of good business

AT THE MARKET — Upbeat retailers are crowding into motion furniture showrooms here, searching for products and promotions that will enable them to build on the improved business conditions that have been evident in the first month of 2013.

Producers say many dealers have seen an uptick in business since Christmas, but most are skeptical about its longevity, given the rollercoaster sales patterns of the past three years.

“We have not had anybody complaining about business. Everybody has been upbeat,” said Jerry Baker, executive vice president of PeopLoungers. “We are going to end up writing a lot of business out here.”

PeopLoungers, like most motion furniture showrooms, spotlighted a handful of new items as well as products that debuted in High Point in October. Producers say many small and midsized dealers shopping here this week didn’t go to High Point and haven’t seen last fall’s rollouts.

“There is so much we can’t show here because our showroom is smaller than High Point, but it’s a lot better than a rep showing (dealers) a picture,” said Wayne Stephens, president of Barcalounger.

Klaussner, which produces a broad assortment of motion and stationary upholstery, is approaching the show much like a premarket for High Point, said Jay Foscue, vice president of merchandising. That means showing dealers a limited amount of new product now, with the promise of much more to come in April.

“But we’ve still been writing orders since Monday morning,” Foscue said. “We’ve been busy since the market started.”

He and other executives said showroom traffic on Monday was about even with the first day of the inaugural market last July, when buyers jammed into the World Market Center and overwhelmed some showrooms.
Exhibitors said they weren’t caught short of staff this time, but there were periods when it was difficult to keep track of which customers were in the showroom.

“We made it mandatory for all our reps to be here, and we’re certainly glad we did that,” said Brian Lange, president of Best Home Furnishings.

Showroom traffic slowed a bit on Tuesday in WMC showrooms as many buyers visited temporary exhibits in the Mandalay Bay Convention Center, but motion producers said they still believe the market will wind up being as strong as the July event.

“The mood seems to be pretty upbeat. (Dealers) are pleased with what they are seeing here,” said Douglas CEO Rick Parker, who joined the company less than three weeks ago and is attending his first residential furniture trade show.

At market, Douglas is unveiling an assortment of recliners, while recliner and motion furniture powerhouse Lane is showing dealers several new models at the popular $399, $499 and $599 retail price points.
Brian Ingram, Lane’s merchandise manager for recliners, said Lane’s chairs with glider mechanisms are proving to be popular because they will allow the chairs to fully recline — a feature not found on many glider/recliners.

Flexsteel is reporting success with a new motion sectional at $2,999 with an all-leather cover, while Best is getting positive reaction to a new home theater seating group that retails for about $999 for a three-seat configuration.

“We thought it was important to come up with a home theater product that the average Joe could afford,” said Lange, noting that most home theater products retail for at least $700 per seat.