By David PerryExecutive Editor@DT_Perry

LEXINGTON, Ky. — Tempur Sealy International

provided a sales update to investors and out-

lined key steps in its “recapture strategy” to

grow its business after the departure of its big-

gest customer, Mattress Firm.

That strategy envisions an expansion of

business with current retailers and an explora-tion of new sales channels, of�icials said.The company said its bedding brands per-

formed well over the Presidents’ Day holiday.

Tempur Sealy’s non-Mattress Firm business was up about % in the �irst two months of the year, far ahead of the pace of the company’s overall order trends, the of�icials said.

In a presentation for investors, the com-

pany provided an update on North American

sales trends.

“We believe the Presidents’ Day holiday was

solid for the bedding industry,” the presenta-

tion said. “Tempur Sealy brands performed

well over the holiday period.”In total, order trends for the �irst two months of the year were up 2%, but orders excluding 20

Tempur Sealy outlines steps to build sales

By Clint EngelSenior Retai l Editor@ClintEngel

COLUMBUS, Ohio — Furniture,

one of Big Lots’ top-performing

categories, will have a big role in

the retailer’s “store of the future”

test program beginning this year.

The retailer is in the early

stages of planning but will begin

testing new store concepts in

two markets this year, said Big

Lots President and CEO David

Campisi on the fourth quarter

earnings call with the invest-

ment community. He did not

disclose the markets but added

later that the tests would be “in

the back half” of the year and,

with positive results, the 30

Furniture key in Big Lots’ new store concept

By Powell SlaughterSenior Editor@PowellSlaughter

PARAMUS, N.J. — Italian leather

upholstery major Natuzzi held

a grand opening last week for

its new Natuzzi Italia store here.

The store is part of an aggressive

growth plan for establishing the

brand stateside with 50 stores.

The new store here was de-

signed by the Natuzzi Style Cen-ter in Italy and re�lects the evolu-tion of the brand experience that

Natuzzi Italia would like to deliver.

The location showcases collec-

tions in a 9,000-square-foot sell-

ing space, designed to blend the

company’s expanding lifestyle mix

of living, dining and bedroom col-

lections, featuring a range of color

and fabrications.

“The new store format deliv-

ers our promise,” said Nazzario

Pozzi, who heads the Natuzzi

Group division that is charged

with brand and retail activities, in-

cluding product development. 20

Natuzzi eyes 50 U.S. storesN.J. store showcases new format

Southern Sky

Expanding showroom and sales team

Outdoor living

Performance story comes indoors

Home of�iceVendors �ine-tune category by SKUs, scale and function

Cover StoryNews

Feature

An Insider’s View . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 14

Bedding Today . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 26

Classifieds . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 29

Industry Numbers . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 30

Staff . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 30

Hhgregg �iles Ch. 11The electronics, appliance and furniture retailer �iled for bankruptcy protection

with plans to sell itself to an unidenti�ied third party. 02

New AHFA labels denote compliance with tip-over standards

The new labeling campaign

is set to roll out with associ-

ation members at the April

High Point Market. 22

Consumers say:

Latest News

How long do

consumers plan

to keep their lamps?

Business Intelligence for the Furniture Industry FurnitureToday.com March 13-19, 2017 | v41 i28

40th Anniversary

0806 18

June 7-8, 2017 | Atlanta

Source: PBM Strategic Insights, August 2016 HFN study

Less than

5 years

21%

5 to 9

years

34%

10 or more

years

45%

More about consumers and

their lamps 12

Orders in the first two months of 2017

Mattress Firm

order trends-20%

Overall

order trends +2%

Natuzzi’s new store in Paramus, N.J., was designed

by the Natuzzi Style Center at its headquarters in

Italy and delivers on its brand lifestyle promise, says

Nazzario Pozzi, Natuzzi Group division head.

B L A C K

D R E A M I N

Contact your sales rep to learn more.

20 March 13-19, 2017 FurnitureToday.com

Mattress Firm were up ap-proximately 10%. Orders from Mattress Firm were down ap-proximately 20%, and that de-cline is accelerating, the com-pany said.

Tempur Sealy said its tran-sition agreement with Mat-tress Firm ends April 3.

Tempur Sealy announced in January it was ending its business with Mattress Firm in the first quarter. Later, Tem-pur Sealy said it will continue to do business with Mattress Firm franchisees, who account for a relatively small share of Mattress Firm’s overall busi-ness, observers said.

The company spelled out four steps in its recapture strategy:• Expand with current retail-ers, which represent 70% of its North American sales.• Significantly increase its dol-lar spend and its rate of direct advertising.• Feature innovative new product offerings to drive interest with retailers and

consumers.• Explore new channels.Mattress Firm represented

21% of Tempur Sealy’s con-solidated net sales in 2016, of which 60% was Tempur-Pedic products and 40% was Sealy products, the company said.

Tempur Sealy also present-ed reasons for its confidence for recapture” of lost business, noting that it has a “premier portfolio of branded beds.”

More than 94% of Tempur-Pedic owners would recom-mend that product, while Sealy has one of the highest brand awareness levels of any U.S. mattress brand, and the Stearns & Foster brand had “strong growth” last year, the company said.Officials also said the com-pany has a “strong network of retail partners throughout North America.”

The investor presentation also said the company’s cur-rent plan is to maintain its cost structure to support recap-turing the majority of its lost sales, with the expectation of lower operating efficiencies in the short term.

Tempur Sealy’s total cost structure is “highly variable,” the company said, and “can be quickly aligned with sales.

Tempur Sealycontinued from p1

HIGH POINT — Women in the Home and Furnishings Indus-try Today (WithIt), an organiza-tion dedicated to the develop-ment of professional women, has named the nominees for its annual WOW awards.

The awards recognize busi-ness leaders nominated by their peers who have contrib-uted to the success of the home furnishings industries and have demonstrated significant impact on their companies and the industry. The Legacy Award, the high-est award bestowed by WithIt, honors a woman whose career has advanced the perception of women in the home and fur-nishings industries. This year’s honoree, Caroline Hipple, has been recognized for design talent, business savvy and her leadership through mentoring many women in the industry.

She has supported WithIt throughout the years, serving on the board of directors and governors, speaking at mul-tiple events and mentoring fu-ture leaders. In 2016, Hipple was named president of Nor-walk Furniture.

The Founders Award will be given to Kimberley Wray of Kimberley Wray Market-ing Communications for her exceptional leadership that has exemplified the mission of WithIt. Wray, one of WithIt’s founders, developed the WithIt acronym and used her exten-sive industry contacts to build membership.

In addition to honoring Hipple and Wray, WithIt will present WOW awards in four additional categories: Educa-tion, Mentoring, Leadership and Future Leader. The Education Award rec-

ognizes an individual who has worked to educate associates, retailers and consumers about home furnishings. This year’s nominees are Julie Smith Vin-centi of Nine Muses Media, Cindy Hodnett of Designers Today and Furniture Today, and Laura Holland of Heritage Home Group.

The Mentoring Award hon-ors a company or individual for efforts to foster advocacy, development and promotion of women in the company and the industry. Nominees are Abby Ludens of Mattress Firm, Dana Helms of MicroD and Ma-rybeth Feeney of STORIS.WithIt created the Leader-ship Award to recognize the woman who has demonstrated successful leadership in her company, WithIt and the home furnishings industry. Lead-ership Award nominees are

Randy Rubin of Crypton Fab-rics, Suzie Roberts of Glen Ra-ven Custom Fabrics and Laurie Phillips of AICO.The Future Leader Award honors a woman in the indus-try younger than 40 who has demonstrated outstanding achievement and the potential to become an industry leader. The 2017 nominees are Nata-lie Quinn of Room and Board, Megan Barrett of Sherrill Fur-niture Companies and Carly Weiner of Elements Interna-tional.

The WOW awards dinner

will take place at 6 p.m. April 21 in the IHFC International Ballroom. Natalie Reddell, owner of Interiors by Natalie in Richmond, Va., will develop the design and décor for the gala. The evening’s emcee will be founding WithIt member Connie Post, owner of Connie Post Affordable Design Solu-tions.

Key sponsors of the evening are headed by Platinum spon-sor International Market Cen-ters, program sponsors Palliser and Elm, and award spon-sor Furnituredealer.net.

WithIt names 2017 WOW nominees

Caroline Hipple Kimberley Wray

“Natuzzi blends design, func-tions, materials and colors to create harmonious living. The architecture of the store brings the Italian lifestyle to our cus-tomers.Last year we designed a new retail strategy for Natuzzi Italia, which we have begun to execute worldwide,” Pozzi said. “In the second half of 2016, we have progressed with an ag-gressive transformation of our traditional selling points to a well-defined retail format and retail organization.”

After the new retail format delivered strong performance in sales density and profitabil-ity in the United Kingdom and Australia, the Paramus store is the first U.S. location to adopt that layout.

“The new Paramus store will be the first in the U.S. to display the new merchandising strat-egy of Natuzzi Italia,” Pozzi said. “We have widened the price range to include stylish and af-fordable products starting from $2,000-$2,500 retail, while con-solidating the value we offer to our contemporary consumers that seek the sophistication of Italian lifestyle design.

“Worldwide, this is deliver-ing an average consumer ticket

purchase which is 50% higher

than our traditional selling

points, and the average pur-

chase in the U.S. is 10% higher than in Europe.The Paramus store will

showcase all of the motion sofas

and dining tables that launched

in 2016 during Salone del Mo-

bile in Milan.

At this year’s Salone del Mo-

bile, Natuzzi will present more

than 40 new styles throughout

all product categories, includ-

ing sofas, chairs, side tables, cof-

fee tables, rugs, dining tables,

desks, beds, dressers, lamps,

mirrors and a large range of

table top accessories. Those

new products will be in-store

by September.

Worldwide planNatuzzi plans to continue

to open direct-owned stores in the United States this year, specifically on the East and West coasts, with the goal of a 50-store network in the states.

“This enables us to deliver higher value to the consumer as we capture the entire value chain and deliver higher return on investment,” Pozzi said. “We are focused on moving the val-ue chain all the way up to the consumer, our ultimate cus-tomer. We have also acquired from our partner the majority share of our existing business in Florida, where we have been

upgrading our direct-to-con-sumer platform.”

As for the new retail loca-tions, the goal is to open 8,000- to , -square-foot stores in high-traffic locations.

Meanwhile, Natuzzi is mak-ing its retail platform available to existing and potential part-ners that would like to benefit from the new format and open Natuzzi Italia stores in those states where the company is not opening direct-owned stores.Upon defining and approv-ing the new consumer strategy last year, we made an aggres-sive retail plan to transform our traditional selling points and scale our direct-to-consumer reach worldwide,” Pozzi said. “Retail expansion in the U.S. is definitely a key pillar of our plan, both through our direct-owned stores and our regional partners. To sustain our strat-egy in the U.S., we have built a new retail organization across all business drivers and across all states.”

Along with growing its U.S. retail footprint, Natuzzi is work-ing to carry its brand around the world. Two new Natuzzi Italia stores opened in Spain in January, and Natuzzi-branded retail stores are planned to open in China, Brazil, Italy, the United Kingdom, Switzerland and the United States through-out the year.

Natuzzicontinued from p1