Diamond Sofa, B-746 offers its Vox sofa and chair in textured white faux shearling fabric.
LAS VEGAS — Companies exhibiting at this week’s Las Vegas Market, Jan. 23-27, are focused on three priorities: besting supply chain challenges, building inventory and innovating.
In spite of the disruption caused by the pandemic, companies are introducing new products at the Las Vegas Market and are excited about this important market for their West Coast customers. Some are even showing signs that the furniture business, despite many challenges, is being reinvigorated by difficulty and companies are coming up with innovative solutions that may have long-lasting implications for the industry.
Lee Honigsfeld, vice president of Armen Living, said the company has implemented a new logistics team and “brought in a driver personality who can negotiate with all the carriers.”
Armen Living’s inventories are up, and like many of its peers, Armen Living is actively negotiating and looking for more sources. The company just opened supply relationships in Thailand and expects to do so in India next year, in addition to its current suppliers in Vietnam, China and Malaysia.
Overall, Honigsfeld said, “the key for the industry are logistics teams” that can get the job done in a resource-constrained environment.
Companies have been building inventory in advance of the Las Vegas Market. Scott Hill, vice president of sales for New Classic Furniture, indicated that by the January market its inventory “should be running at 60 days.”
Similar approaches are found at Norwalk Furniture where CEO Caroline Hipple said the company “went extra long early in 2020” and that its warehouse inventory of upholstery in both fabric and leather is “full to the gills.”
“In addition to developing new product, we are focusing on stock and availability,” said Charles Song, marketing coordinator at Diamond Sofa, adding, “Despite the unavoidable supply chain situation, goods still continue to flow in to meet a high level of demand.”
Meeting demands are top of mind at Cozzia USA where CEO Bob Bruns said the company is focused on having products in stock and has been emphasizing that message since last fall’s High Point Market through Las Vegas this month. He noted that the company’s warehouses are both at 60 days of inventory at this point.
Innovating with fabrics to insure product availability is key at Furniture of America where Marco Sigala, showroom development manager, said the company is “adding innovative work with fabrics and working to match out fabric for our hot sellers as much as possible with fabrics that are available.”
Companies are also looking to reshore or near shore their operations.
Cozzia USA recently enhanced its warehouse facilities by opening a 55,000-square-foot facility in Mt. Airy, N.C., in April and increased its Riverside, Calif., warehouse to 100,000 square feet in June.
Omnia Leather expanded to another facility in April and is now doubling the size to meet volume demand and to increase capacity. Furniture of America, in addition to its domestic manufacturing plants in Mississippi and California, is also “ramping up production out of Vietnam,” according to Sigala.
Given the unprecedented demand for upholstered furniture, by tapping into the supply chain at different points companies are figuring out how to meet their customer demands.
Horizon Home, a case goods manufacturer based in Phoenix, has partnered with upholstery manufacturers that previously supplied exclusively for the Mexican domestic market. The company was only using half of a 100,000-square-foot facility for production and has since expanded to use the entire operation for upholstery production.
Vice President of Sales Felipe Orozco said, “We have an ability to kick out five trucks a day and are expecting to target the top 100/200 retailers with specialized collections at amid-level price point. … “There’s been a change within the past 18 to 24 months, a rush to diversify by U.S. manufacturers and retailers. Some are looking at vertical integration, searching in Mexico for factories with capacity.”
Like every company experiencing the highs and lows of supply chain difficulties, Katherine Skinner, merchandising manager for Omnia Leather, said, “Every week is another hurdle, and we maneuver around it. Even though this unprecedented demand has been tough, it’s made the furniture industry fun again-the energy is different now.”
Hipple echoed these sentiments, saying, “It’s been a random whack-a-mole this year,” but this has provided the company with a “great exercise in nimbleness. Every day (the company asks) what are we facing today; how can we deal with this?”
At New Classic, Hill indicated that “the Las Vegas Market is a fun way to jump into 2022.”
This spirit of positivity is reinforced by Hipple: “The good news is that we’re all in this together. It’s smart to take the time to make good decisions.”
