Premarket signals big bargains
By Powell Slaughter -- Furniture Today, September 17, 2001
HIGH POINT — HIGH POINT — Consumers will find that $1,000 buys more bed than ever when October introductions hit stores, some before the end of the year.
Asian capacity has been growing in the face of a soft market for furniture in the United States, leaving the door open for ever lower prices.
Klaussner's foray into case goods with the Dick Idol Home Collection benefited from the situation. Beds range from $699 to $999 retail, and full dining tables and six chairs at $1,599 have a scale and finish that belie the pricing.
"For sure, the capacity situation helped our pricing going into that deal," said Jeff Davis, product and national sales manager. "We had realistic goals on the front end, and we're pleasantly surprised at what we've hit."
Broyhill is offering a plethora of product this market, both domestic and imported, and some of its $599 retail beds look like they could have gone for up to twice that a year ago.
"If U.S. business is down, it's down all over the world as far as suppliers are concerned, and that's focused the values this market," said Don Essenberg, vice president of case goods merchandising at Broyhill.
At $799 cost, a Hooker hand-painted armoire shows much extra detail and finish sophistication, compared to a similar unit at the same price just six months ago.
"Beyond price, we're finding we can get more quality and value from the same dollar," said Mike Spece, president of Hooker's import division.
And it's not just imports. Vaughan-Bassett is working with its suppliers to help it continue its low-margin case goods offerings. And Bassett has three domestic bedrooms, all wood, that can retail for less than $1,000 for a suite.
"We wanted to come out with some promotional items to build our business," said Matt Johnson, Bassett's vice president of wood product. "The sales reps have been on the road with these for three weeks. We're taking low margins to build business."
