Firms gear up to open furniture stores in West
By Jeff Linville -- Furniture Today, August 2, 2004
Los Angeles — A company here says it is acquiring nearly half of furniture distributor Ironwood Furnishings and plans to open several stores.
Innovation Holdings, formerly Blagman Media International, said it has been looking to diversify, and previously announced a partnership with CrossGel Inc., which makes gel-based seat cushions.
The company said it has signed a letter of intent to purchase a 49% interest in Ironwood, a Nevada-based distributor of indoor and outdoor furniture. Ironwood's offerings include Spanish colonial pine furniture, Russian cedar garden and outdoor furniture, and traditional and colonial teak, pine and mahogany furniture.
Ironwood said it is finalizing a deal to operate a 20,000-square-foot store in Cathedral City, Calif., and expects to open another store and a regional distribution center at an undisclosed location by the end of August. It also plans three additional stores by mid-2005, and has identified possible locations in California, Nevada and Arizona.
"Favorable demographics and a continued strong housing market in the West indicate an increase in the demand for furniture for the next several years," said Christopher Kurstin, Ironwood president. "Innovation Holdings will play a strategic position in the marketing of our unique products in our growing chain of stores and distribution centers."
Ironwood said it has aligned itself with "experienced, well-established furniture manufacturing companies" to supply its stores, but didn't identify any.
Robert Blagman, CEO of Innovation Holdings, said his company is expanding through acquisitions. He did not say whether the new furniture venture would feature any goods with the CrossGel polymer seating. CrossGel is known for its motorcycle seats, but also manufactures office chair seat cushions.
