As performance fabrics and sustainable products continue to grow in popularity among consumers, Norwalk Furniture is focusing its efforts on broadening its fabric line and how it is presenting both in its showrooms and on retail floors. The company has added approximately 50 Inside Out Performance Fabrics to its assortment, a line of eco-friendly durable fabrics, and it is shifting its approach to fabric merchandising, making it easier to shop its line of more than 800 fabric and leather choices.
“As consumer interest continues to lean toward fabrics that resist stains and fading – and as sustainability increasingly becomes more important – it was time to expand our offering,” said Dixon Bartlett, chief creative officer of Norwalk Furniture. “We’ve had performance fabrics in our line for quite some time, and year after year they consistently take on a larger portion of our best-selling textiles. Now, nearly half of our top 25 covers are performance fabrics.
“To that end, we’ve also heard from key retailers and design customers that they’d like an easier way to shop our fabric line,” he continued. “Previously, our performance fabrics were intermixed with all of our fabrics and leathers and sorted by color palette. While each was identified as a performance fabric on the swatch – considering there are 800 to browse through – it can be quite a daunting task.
“We’ve now moved all of our performance fabrics to the beginning of our fabric rack, making it easier to shop those specialty fabrics in our showrooms at both the Las Vegas and High Point Markets,” he continued.
In addition, to support the convenience of shopping for performance fabrics at retail, the company is launching four new swatch handle programs dedicated to its performance fabric partners: Inside Out, Crypton, Sunbrella and Revolution Fabrics. The new waterfall swatches make it easier for consumers who are specifically looking to take advantage of the durability that performance fabrics can offer, to find and select those products at retail.
The new Inside Out fabrics feature premier ratings for light fastness, soil resistance and are offered in a broad range of designs. Easily cleaned with soap and water or with a bleach and water mixture, the fabrics can also withstand common home disinfectant products without discoloring or degrading. Adding a sustainability element to the performance characteristics, the line is made with recycled materials, is free of perfluorinated compounds (PFC) and is GreenGuard Gold Certified, offering the highest level of indoor air quality assurance.
The new fabric line and swatches will make their debut at the Las Vegas Market running Aug. 30 - Sept. 3 and at the fall High Point Market, Oct. 13 – 21.