Amazon

American Home Furnishings Hall of Fame Induction to be Held Oct. 17

gannunzio — Mon, 04 Oct 2021 20:53:38 +0000

American Home Furnishings Hall of Fame Induction to be Held Oct. 17 gannunzio Mon, 10/04/2021 - 15:53

The American Home Furnishings Hall of Fame Foundation, Inc., has issued the final call to purchase tickets to the Hall of Fame Induction Celebration to be held Sunday, Oct. 17, at the Sheraton Greensboro Four Seasons.

Joining the current 120 members of the Hall of Fame are Irv Blumkin, CEO, Nebraska Furniture Mart; Robert G. Culp III, co-founder, former chairman and CEO, Culp, Inc.; Myrtle Hayworth Barthmaier, president and chairwoman, Hayworth Industries; Robert J. Maricich, chairman and CEO, International Market Centers; Allan H. Palecek, chairman and founder, PALECEK; and Todd Wanek, CEO and President, Ashley Furniture Industries, Inc.

The Induction Celebration will feature John Mackey, co-founder and CEO of Whole Foods Market, as the keynote speaker for the event. Hosts for the evening are interior designers, entrepreneurs and television personalities Hilary Farr and Brian Patrick Flynn.

“This will be a very special evening, with so much to celebrate and much to be thankful for,” says Caroline Hipple, president of the Foundation board of directors. “As ticket sales are drawing to a close, we encourage you to join us as a vital member of our noble industry that improves lives. It’s a great networking opportunity over cocktails, over dinner and at The After Party that follows. You should be there.”

The Hall of Fame is supported by sponsors of the 2021 Induction Celebration:

Presenting Sponsor: La-Z-Boy Incorporated
Live Streaming Sponsor: Ashley Furniture Industries, Inc.
Welcoming Open Sponsor: Feizy
Speaker Sponsor: Surya
Dinner Table Sponsor: Nourison Industries
Inductee Video Sponsor: Surya
Cocktail Sponsor: International Market Centers
After Party Sponsor: Klaussner Furniture Industries
Celebration Sponsors: AICO; Berkshire Hathaway Furniture Companies; Furniture of America; Karen McNeill and Stephen Pond; LS Direct; Man Wah Holdings; Rooms To Go
Groundbreaking Sponsor: Genesis Financial Soultions
Landmarks of Leadership Video Sponsor: Leggett & Platt Incorporated
Future Leaders Event Sponsor: International Market Centers
Platinum Sponsors: Amazon; Broyhill Family Foundation; Carpenter Company; Dallas Market Center; Furniture Marketing Group/Wells Fargo; GE Appliances; Global Views; HomeStretch Furniture; Hooker Furnishings Corporation; Jackson Furniture/Catnapper; Jerome’s Furniture; Kane’s Furniture Corp.; Kathy Ireland World Wide; Lacquer Craft USA; Living Spaces; Loloi Rugs; Markor International/Vivet Inc.; Planned Furniture Promotions; Prestige Art & Art Trends; Rustic Imports; Samsung; Southern Motion; Springs Creative; Tempur Sealy; Wayfair and Bill and Julia Wittenberg
Gold Sponsors: Baer’s Furniture Company, Inc.; Bedgear; Bellini Modern Living; Bernhardt Furniture Company; Best Home Furnishings; City of Hope; C.S. Wo & Sons; Culp, Inc.; Dorel Home Furnishings; FEI Marketing; HHC/Moto Group; Harman International; Haverty Furniture Companies; J.B. Hunt Final Mile; Jane Seymour Designs Inc.; Jonathan Louis International; King Koil; L. & J. G. Stickley; Liberty Furniture; Malouf Sleep; Martin Furniture; Modus Furniture International; New Classic Furniture; Parker House Furniture; Peak Living; Phillips Collection; Raymour & Flanigan Furniture; Richloom Fabrics; Scotts Brothers Global; Serta Simmons; Shaw Industries; Simon Li Furniture; Sony; Valdese Weavers; and Vanguard Furniture Company.
Silver Sponsors: Affordable Furniture Manufacturing; American Leather; American West, Apricot Furnishings Co., Ltd.; Armen Living Furniture; Chateau d’Ax; Coconis Furniture/Mattress 1st; Connie Lineberry & Associates; Décor-Rest Furniture; ES Kluft; Fine Home Ltd.; Flexsteel Industries, Inc.; Franklin Corp.; FurnitureDealer.Net; Furnitureland South; Gat Creek; Herregan Distributors, Inc.; Hickory Furniture Mart; HSM; Huntington House; LH Imports Ltd.; Lexington Home Brands; Linon Home Décor; Magnussen Home Furnishings, Inc.; Norwalk Furniture; Precision Textiles; STORIS; Uttermost; Vogue Home Furnishings; W.S. Badcock; and Woodard, Inc.

Tickets for this year’s American Home Furnishings Hall of Fame Induction Celebration are $250 per ticket for members ($2,500 for a table of 10) and $300 per ticket for non-members ($3,000 for a table of 10). For more information about the celebration or to purchase tickets, visit the event’s website at seizethismoment2021.com.

Who Defines Your Brand?

kcaron — Fri, 11 Oct 2019 22:11:58 +0000

Who Defines Your Brand? kcaron Fri, 10/11/2019 - 17:11

Branding. It’s what differentiates one company from the next. It’s also what connects us to our customers. “Your brand is what other people say about you when you’re not in the room,” says Amazon's Jeff Bezos. Say what you will about Amazon, it’s a household-name brand, for better or for worse. From a customer expectation perspective, Amazon has led a charge, catering to an expansive “want it now, expect it now” consumer base.

But we’re not here to talk about Amazon. We’re here to talk about your branding, as retailers and designers competing against that Amazon effect, perhaps. Yes, there are some expectations (such as that fast shipping) that Amazon has corralled, but the luxury home design client? That’s one category where Amazon likely has little hold. When catering to this customer, “want it now” holds less sway.

Luxury is more about “I want it my way.” Look up “luxury” in Merriam-Webster and you get this definition: 1) a condition of abundance or great ease and comfort. 2) something adding to pleasure, comfort but not absolutely necessary.

Luxury is about wants, not needs. As new generations take on major consumer roles — Millennials now tout a level of available wealth — the expectations for luxury continue to evolve as well. For today’s consumer, luxury is more about expressing individuality rather than just attaining something that is monetarily out of reach for the average person. Today’s luxury consumers want unique design that fits their lifestyles and reflects their personalities.

“There’s nothing more luxurious than getting exactly what you want and not settling,” says Laura Holland, VP Marketing at Hickory Chair, in our cover feature this month.

What does defining luxury have to do with branding? Quite a lot, especially if you subscribe to Bezos’ perspective that your brand is how your customers perceive you. If you are catering to the luxury consumer or any other class of consumers, how are you crafting your message so your customer identifies with what you’re offering and talks about you in a way that relates back to how you perceive your brand?

You need to focus on introducing your customers to what’s on trend, of course, but it’s equally, if not more important, to understand that customer — who they are, how they live, what they aspire to — so your message dovetails with their expectations, and they speak of your brand the way you want it presented.

As we head into High Point Market this month, assess the customer base that most likely gravitates toward your services. Even ask them how they see your brand. You might be surprised by the answers. Your job then at market is to bring those expectations to your suppliers and ensure that everyone is sharing the same story.

Smart Speaker Adoption Update

kcaron — Wed, 20 Mar 2019 16:59:28 +0000

Smart Speaker Adoption Update kcaron Wed, 03/20/2019 - 11:59

How to Make a YouTube Video on a Budget

kcaron — Thu, 14 Mar 2019 17:17:49 +0000

How to Make a YouTube Video on a Budget kcaron Thu, 03/14/2019 - 12:17

5 Ways for Retailers to Protect Against Industry Disruption

amartin — Wed, 13 Mar 2019 13:59:10 +0000

5 Ways for Retailers to Protect Against Industry Disruption amartin Wed, 03/13/2019 - 08:59

BrandJump Launches Amazon Division

kcaron — Fri, 25 Jan 2019 19:52:21 +0000

BrandJump Launches Amazon Division kcaron Fri, 01/25/2019 - 13:52

E-commerce sales and marketing company BrandJump today announced the launch of its new Amazon division as the e-commerce giant continues to gain momentum in the home furnishings category. By adding an Amazon-specific strategy to its suite of services, BrandJump is better able to create a comprehensive online strategy for its clients across the entire e-commerce channel.

Founded in 2011 by entrepreneur Josh Walter and lighting industry veteran Jeff Skippon, the Los Angeles-based company has built a reputation for enhancing the online presence for their portfolio of brands across more than 50+ retail channels such as Wayfair, One Kings Lane, YDesign Group and Overstock. Exclusively specializing in home furnishings and decor, BrandJump works with manufacturers in multiple categories, including furniture, decorative lighting, textiles, outdoor living and accessories.

“When we started BrandJump, we observed that most internet retailers were being fragmentally managed by manufacturer sales representatives and were not being serviced properly,” said Walter, CEO. “The opportunity for internet retailers to use technology to scale their efforts became apparent early on, and it quickly became clear to us that manufacturers needed to centralize the management of this emerging channel.”

BrandJump develops and implements customized e-commerce strategies for their clients’ brands and essentially acts as an e-commerce arm for their respective businesses. The e-commerce expert begins by recommending online channels that are an appropriate fit for the brands they represent and works with them to elevate their positioning in the areas of merchandising, creative content and marketing. The objective is to maximize brand awareness and revenue in the online space.

“What makes us most unique is our in-depth knowledge of the e-commerce channel derived from a team of experts who originally came from the likes of Wayfair, Target, Amazon, YDesign Group and One Kings Lane, to name a few,” said Walter. “Our team has a deep understanding of how to align our clients’ brands and their respective voices with each retailer’s specific go-to-market strategy.”

According to Walter, having successfully created strong partnerships with many of the leading online retailers for the home furnishings space, creating an Amazon-specific channel was a natural progression for BrandJump. Amazon captures 50 percent of total online purchases in the U.S., and 80 percent of consumers research products on Amazon before buying anywhere else. Amazon is also experiencing dramatic growth in the home furnishings category.

“Amazon is a complex and competitive marketplace, and only a thoughtful strategy will drive growth while minimizing conflict in other channels,” said Walter. “While Amazon may not be a fit for all of our clients, our expertise brings a thorough understanding of the channel that helps guide our clients in making the most informed decisions for their brand.”

Lighting Consumer Research: Illuminating Changes

kcaron — Thu, 24 Jan 2019 20:13:57 +0000

Lighting Consumer Research: Illuminating Changes kcaron Thu, 01/24/2019 - 14:13

What 2018 Taught Us About Consumers and Amazon

kcaron — Wed, 23 Jan 2019 22:44:39 +0000

What 2018 Taught Us About Consumers and Amazon kcaron Wed, 01/23/2019 - 16:44

What Consumers Want

kcaron — Fri, 04 Jan 2019 21:57:28 +0000

What Consumers Want kcaron Fri, 01/04/2019 - 15:57

One of the best parts of being in the Lighting Showroom Coalition Facebook group comes from reading the oddball questions and answers the associates and managers receive from customers. I worked at an ice cream store in high school and waited tables in college, so I can relate to the sheer bafflement that they must feel when they ask a customer how high her ceiling is and she replies, “About the height of two 12-year-olds standing on top of each other.”

That one cracked me up for days.

Suffice to say, we never quite know what consumers will throw at us or what they need from retailers and designers. Since internet adoption became widespread, those needs have shifted, and companies have become more digitally savvy, which pushed those expectations even more. In September 2017, IKEA released its own augmented reality app, and over the last year, Amazon has launched not one but three private label furniture collections — all offering free shipping and returns within 30 days of delivery. More than just about any other company, Amazon has influenced what consumers expect from retailers today — even if those expectations aren’t always realistic (more on that on page 20).

So for this issue — our grand January market issue — we asked consumers for their thoughts on furniture, lighting and interior design, and starting on page 58 with Kimberley Wray’s story on furniture, you can read our findings. She brought her research to furniture retailers across the country and compared their answers with her findings. Her reporting shows that what consumers want from furniture retailers has definitely shifted, but there are plenty of opportunities to engage consumers beyond price points.

I wrote the survey questions for the lighting and interior design surveys (Jennifer Pinto synthesizes the lighting results on page 64) and the story on the interior design results (page 70). One thing I noticed in the results of both categories was that even though showrooms and designers are sometimes perceived as being more expensive than online options, they can usually save customers money. They help them avoid costly mistakes like ordering the wrong down rod or replacing hardwood floors that just needed to be stained. None of this is news to retailers and designers, but it’s not something I see communicated through websites or social media often.

As you head to market and consider what to buy, I hope this research will help you think deeply about what service you are providing to your customers. I predict service — not product — will be the biggest competitive advantage to brick-and-mortar retailers this year, if only they listen to what their customers really need from them.

Photo: Unsplash user rawpixel

Why the Williams-Sonoma Lawsuit Against Amazon Is Worth Watching

amartin — Thu, 20 Dec 2018 15:15:19 +0000

Why the Williams-Sonoma Lawsuit Against Amazon Is Worth Watching amartin Thu, 12/20/2018 - 09:15