Alexander County got some good news recently with the announcement of a new production plant in Taylorsville — a furniture plant.
Indiana-based Jasper Group, a commercial furniture maker for nearly 80 years, will create 40 local jobs in an abandoned furniture factory building.
The plant will be in a 93,000-square-foot facility off N.C. 16 South that Kincaid [...]

The slump in the housing industry is knocking the stuffing out of furniture sales, merchants and analysts say.
A recent casualty is Domain, an upscale regional chain that is liquidating all 27 stores, including its showroom at the Promenade at Sagemore in Marlton.
“In the past year or so we’ve lost Levitz, Storehouse and Bombay Co.,” said [...]

Exports are expected to balloon to RM10 billion by 2010 from a minuscule figure in the 1990’s, particularly from Peninsular Malaysia as well as Sarawak and to a lesser extent, Sabah, according to the latest statistical projection by both the government and the industrial section at the recent Malaysian International Furniture Fair (MIFF) in Kuala [...]

Research and Markets has announced the addition of “Furniture Distribution in Austria” to their offering.
This report offers a comparative analysis of home furniture distribution in Austria, providing trends in home furniture consumption, distribution channels’ market shares, furniture imports and short company profiles.
Home furniture consumption is broken down by distribution channel: buying groups, independent furniture chains, [...]

Research and Markets has announced the addition of The Kitchen Furniture Market in Spain to their offering.
This report, now at its first edition, offers an overview of the kitchen furniture market in Spain, providing trends in kitchen furniture production and consumption, imports and exports, distribution.
The report provides a breakdown of kitchen furniture production by kitchen [...]

Furniture retailer Ikea is recalling almost 1,000 baby highchairs in Britain because of safety fears.
The Swedish giant, the world’s largest furniture retailer, said 930 “Gulliver” highchairs sold in its 17 stores across the country in January and February were being recalled.
A spokesman said the product was also being recalled in almost two dozen countries throughout [...]

Home furnishings retailer Haverty Furniture Cos. said Thursday its same-store sales edged down 0.4 percent in February.
Same-store sales, or sales at stores open at least a year, is a key indicator of retailer performance since it measures growth at existing stores rather than newly opened ones.
Total sales for the period ended Feb. 29 rose 3 [...]

Wickes Furniture Co., which is liquidating its business, has signed a deal with a joint venture that will pay at least $3.5 million for rights to the furniture company’s store leases.
The joint venture that will lead the bidding on the leases includes Retail Consulting Services Inc., Hudson Capital Partners LLC, Crystal Capital fund LP and [...]

Wickes Furniture, Inc. Saturday began liquidating inventory at 38 of its stores by order of a U.S. federal bankruptcy judge, the company said.
As a part of the company’s $75 million liquidation plan, the retailer plans discounts of up to 50 percent at stores in California, Illinois, Indiana and Nevada.
Closing sales will start later this month [...]

THE furniture industry is not all that different from the fashion industry, based on what SJI Industries Sdn Bhd managing director Benny Poh said.
Furniture makers have to work a few seasons in advance like the fashion houses. And they also have to predict what will become the next big trend.
“Furniture is no [...]