New president, owners make changes<\/p>\n
McLEAN, Va. \u00e2\u20ac\u201d Six months with a new president, downsized to a core business and backed by deep pockets, Rowe Furniture seems headed for a new life after bankruptcy.<\/p>\n
The company, long one of the industry\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s top upholstery makers, is on stronger financial footing provided by new owner Sun Capital Partners, a private investment company. Rowe said it is making consistent, on-time deliveries.
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\n And its management and sales staff say they\u00e2\u20ac\u2122re in constant communication with the company\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s customers to make sure store owners, upholstery buyers and even salespeople on the floor believe Rowe\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s performance is the real thing.<\/p>\n
\u00e2\u20ac\u0153I can tell you that in the last couple of months we\u00e2\u20ac\u2122ve hit over 150 retail locations, and we\u00e2\u20ac\u2122re not finished yet,\u00e2\u20ac\u009d said the company\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s new president, Stefanie Lucas, who moved up from a senior executive position to succeed Gerald Birnbach after a Sun Capital affiliate acquired the company in January. \u00e2\u20ac\u0153We\u00e2\u20ac\u2122re ensuring that we\u00e2\u20ac\u2122re out there and talking to people.\u00e2\u20ac\u009d<\/p>\n
So far, the 60-year-old company has a lot to talk about.<\/p>\n
Lucas said the company has \u00e2\u20ac\u0153right-sized our ship,\u00e2\u20ac\u009d liquidating its Storehouse retail chain and closing a plant in Missouri, consolidating it in Virginia. \u00e2\u20ac\u0153We started by saying we needed to right-size our business, and a big part of that was to consolidate our manufacturing into one facility (Rowe now has about 800 employees, down from a peak of 1,500). We had a very smooth transition and we\u00e2\u20ac\u2122re really proud of that.<\/p>\n
\u00e2\u20ac\u0153Following that, with the purchase by Sun, our objective was solid performance and stability, and that\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s what we\u00e2\u20ac\u2122ve been focusing on,\u00e2\u20ac\u009d she said. \u00e2\u20ac\u0153We\u00e2\u20ac\u2122ve been able to achieve that in a relatively short period of time by building back our speed, achieving our promised delivery dates, being in a better in-stock fabric position than we\u00e2\u20ac\u2122ve been in a long time and really opening a line of communication with our partners.\u00e2\u20ac\u009d<\/p>\n
Rowe also says it has fixed its troubled Enterprise Resource Planning computerized manufacturing system. The system, designed to improve production efficiencies, instead was turning out inaccurate reports, rendering parts \u00e2\u20ac\u0153invisible,\u00e2\u20ac\u009d and botching such tasks as bunching large batches of fabric for efficient cutting.<\/p>\n
It\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s \u00e2\u20ac\u0153running smoothly\u00e2\u20ac\u009d and \u00e2\u20ac\u0153is not an issue now,\u00e2\u20ac\u009d Lucas said.<\/p>\n
Since Rowe is no longer public, she wouldn\u00e2\u20ac\u2122t divulge sales figures or get into the specifics of how much space Rowe has lost on retail floors. It was a \u00e2\u20ac\u0153considerable\u00e2\u20ac\u009d amount, she said, but the company is getting it back.<\/p>\n
\u00e2\u20ac\u0153You might ask, \u00e2\u20ac\u02dcWhy are those people looking at us and giving us another shot?\u00e2\u20ac\u2122 It\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s because the things we offer have real value to the customer and still stand strong, if not stronger,\u00e2\u20ac\u009d she said.<\/p>\n
\u00e2\u20ac\u0153Then I think that being backed by a company like Sun Capital shows the solidity of our company right now,\u00e2\u20ac\u009d Lucas added.<\/p>\n
Sun Capital Partners, an international investment firm based in Boca Raton, Fla., bought Rowe Cos. out of Chapter 11 bankruptcy for $30 million, most of it in cash, after the manufacturer had nearly collapsed under the weight of growing competition, especially from China, the rising cost of raw materials, and the shaky computer conversion.<\/p>\n
Rowe has gotten its backlog under control and is delivering product in 30 days or less, according to Lucas. And it\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s exploiting its strength as a domestic manufacturer with 500 Rowe fabrics and another 200 in its Robin Bruce division.<\/p>\n
\u00e2\u20ac\u0153The importance of choice and special order to women who are buying furniture has done nothing but continue to grow,\u00e2\u20ac\u009d Lucas said. \u00e2\u20ac\u0153Retailers have to find a good partner that will offer them great style and special order, so that is still a big focus for us.\u00e2\u20ac\u009d<\/p>\n
Matt Hubbard, manager of Amish Furniture, an independent retailer in Denver, said the store has been a Rowe customer for two years and plans to add a Rowe gallery, which will take it from eight Rowe and Robin Bruce groups to 18.<\/p>\n
\u00e2\u20ac\u0153They\u00e2\u20ac\u2122re a domestic manufacturer and have a lot of flexibility as far as different fabrics. They\u00e2\u20ac\u2122re very, very good for what were interested in,\u00e2\u20ac\u009d said Hubbard.<\/p>\n
\u00e2\u20ac\u0153Their shipping time has improved dramatically,\u00e2\u20ac\u009d he added. \u00e2\u20ac\u0153When they say they\u00e2\u20ac\u2122re implementing changes, it\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s not lip service. We\u00e2\u20ac\u2122re seeing a lot of improvement. For the quality, the price, the style and the flexibility, they\u00e2\u20ac\u2122re pretty much what we\u00e2\u20ac\u2122re looking for.\u00e2\u20ac\u009d<\/p>\n
Albuquerque, N.M.-based American Home dropped seven or eight Rowe groups but decided to take another look at the company after the Sun rescue.<\/p>\n
\u00e2\u20ac\u0153It just got a little difficult to get goods,\u00e2\u20ac\u009d said Deb Paczynski, vice president, furniture. \u00e2\u20ac\u0153So just for the floor space and activity needs, we lopped them off one by one. We kept the one that could somewhat flow.\u00e2\u20ac\u009d<\/p>\n
The Rowe groups American Home is adding back began arriving a few weeks ago. \u00e2\u20ac\u0153Our first order for our stores came in very well \u00e2\u20ac\u201d right on time with no issues,\u00e2\u20ac\u009d according to Paczynski.<\/p>\n
\u00e2\u20ac\u0153Rowe\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s always been a really good partner for us because we do a lot of special-order business,\u00e2\u20ac\u009d she added. \u00e2\u20ac\u0153I think they have \u00e2\u20ac\u00a6 a company with youthful energy, unlike a lot of the traditional upholstery industry. They\u00e2\u20ac\u2122re a good resource for the casual contemporary, younger-type frames and fabrics, and that\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s what we\u00e2\u20ac\u2122re focused on now.\u00e2\u20ac\u009d<\/p>\n
\u00c2\u00a0Rowe says it will continue targeting women who are older Gen Xers and younger baby boomers, who tend to be a little trendy but not too far out. The company has added new fabrics and frames, and is using its Robin Bruce line to offer edgier design.<\/p>\n
While deep in bankruptcy proceedings, the company helped star designer Jonathan Adler find another manufacturer to build his upholstered products, and Adler took over his own sourcing for case goods. The move was by mutual agreement, with a spokesman at Rowe saying the Adler line had done very well and was just too good not to continue.<\/p>\n
Now, Rowe is championing \u00e2\u20ac\u0153guest\u00e2\u20ac\u009d designers from outside the industry with new perspectives, to introduce two collections and then bow out. Silvano Banfi, Frank Zambrelli and Banfi Zambrelli, who have designed for fashion-forward companies Judith Leiber, Calvin Klein and Coach, were the first designers for this effort, with their second collection due out at the next High Point market. Lucas said another noted designer is scheduled for the April market in High Point.<\/p>\n
Lucas said she didn\u00e2\u20ac\u2122t step into the role of president to reinvent Rowe, because it was already doing a lot of things successfully. Instead, the company is keeping its core and building for the future.<\/p>\n
\u00e2\u20ac\u0153It\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s always a challenge when you\u00e2\u20ac\u2122ve gone through a difficult period in the company,\u00e2\u20ac\u009d she said. \u00e2\u20ac\u0153When people join our organization now, I tell them they\u00e2\u20ac\u2122re joining at the best possible time because we\u00e2\u20ac\u2122ve been through the worst of it and they\u00e2\u20ac\u2122re at the curve upward.<\/p>\n
\u00c2\u00a0\u00e2\u20ac\u0153That\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s the most exciting time because we\u00e2\u20ac\u2122re building the business back. We\u00e2\u20ac\u2122re saying it\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s all upward from here.\u00e2\u20ac\u009d<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
New president, owners make changes McLEAN, Va. \u00e2\u20ac\u201d Six months with a new president, downsized to a core business and backed by deep pockets, Rowe Furniture seems headed for a new life after bankruptcy. The company, long one of the industry\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s top upholstery makers, is on stronger financial footing provided by new owner Sun Capital […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[5],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-4858","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-furniture-indonesia-news"],"aioseo_notices":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/indonesia-furniture.com\/articles\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/4858","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/indonesia-furniture.com\/articles\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/indonesia-furniture.com\/articles\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/indonesia-furniture.com\/articles\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/indonesia-furniture.com\/articles\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=4858"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/indonesia-furniture.com\/articles\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/4858\/revisions"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/indonesia-furniture.com\/articles\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=4858"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/indonesia-furniture.com\/articles\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=4858"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/indonesia-furniture.com\/articles\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=4858"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}