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7FURNITUREVision for 2021:industry leaders identifystrategies that will separatewinners, losersby Furniture Today Staff – Staff EditorsWendy Youds, vicepresident of productand merchandising,ArticleAS WE CONTINUETO SCALE AND THEPANDEMIC-INDUCED DEMANDCONTINUES TO SURGE INTO 2021,WE’RE DOUBLING DOWN ON SUPPLYCHAIN EFFICIENCIES.We’ve diversified the number ofmanufacturing partners we workwith to take more control of thedesign process and introduce moreoriginal equipment manufacturer(OEM) designs. We’re also developingexclusive raw materials for ourproducts, including upholstery fabricand leather.These efforts ensure our productsare readily available to consumersand improve manufacturing leadtimes while maintaining our qualitystandards across our catalog withcompetitive pricing, which ultimatelymakes the furniture-buying experienceeasier for our customers.Roy Calcagne,CEO, CraftmasterFurnitureEditorin-Chief 'sPICKTodd Wanek, CEO,Ashley Furniture Inds.THE BIGGEST FOCUSFOR US AND EVERYONEIN MANUFACTURING ANDRETAIL IS FIGURING OUT THE SUPPLYCHAIN AND GET BACK TO EXECUTINGAT A HIGHER LEVEL IN 2021.We need to gauge consumer demandand put together a plan that meets thatdemand. 2020 was a year of learning foreveryone because the entire system wasstressed. It showed us and everyone elsethe flaws.We’re expanding our physicalinfrastructure with more warehousing,more new trucks and more capacity. We’rere-inventing the flow of information, frommanufacturers to retailers, from retailersto consumers, all the touch points.2021 is a year of challenging everythingthat was constrained in 2020, frommanufacturing to distribution to supplychain. We’re identifying everything thatwent right in 2020 — and there was a lot— and everything that went wrong, and(we’re) refocusing to improve executionand flow of information.THE OPPORTUNITY IN MYMIND IS REDUCING OURLEAD TIMES EVERYONE HAS12-WEEK, 14-, 16-, 22-WEEK DELIVERYRIGHT NOW, AND (MANUFACTURERS) AREALL IN THE SAME BOAT. THE FIRST GUYSTO COME BACK TO NORMAL LEAD TIMESARE GOING TO BE THE WINNERS.If we can be one of the first to reduce ourlead times back to normal, we can pick upslots and permanently lock in these greatgains in business we’ve had this past year.When the economy opens up and peoplestart traveling and dining out again, a lotof this disposable income will dry up, andwhere once we had, say, five slots on a floor,we want to have 10.The biggest way to achieve that is expandingcapacity. We believe our Lenoir plantthat opened in September will give us anadditional 25% capacity, and we’re adding aline in each of our three plants in AlexanderCounty, so we’re talking about a total of 40%expansion in capacity this year.Jonathan Johnson,CEO, OverstockFarooq Kathwari,chairman, presidentand CEO, Ethan AllenOUR FOCUS FOR 2021REVOLVES AROUNDSTRENGTHENING THE WAYSTHAT WE COMBINE TECHNOLOGY WITHPERSONAL SERVICE.These are our main priorities: employeesafety, continued investment in digitaldesign and interactive communicationtechnologies, growing our business andcontinuing to generate cash, refiningour product offerings to reach a largeclient base, and leveraging our verticalintegration, including continuing tomake 75% of our products in our NorthAmerican workshops.OVERSTOCK WILLCONTINUE TO LEVERAGENEW AND IMPROVINGTECHNOLOGY TO HELP OURTARGET CUSTOMERS FIND THE PRODUCTSTHEY LOVE AND DELIVER THOSEPRODUCTS TO THEM QUICKLY.We are focused on the online retail blockingand tackling to continue our sustainable,profitable market share growth.them quickly. We are focused on the onlineretail blocking and tackling to continue oursustainable, profitable market share growth.Jerry Dittmer,president and CEO,Flexsteel Inds.Flexsteel plans toaccelerate growthinvestments focused onbuilding a differentiated and highlycompelling customer experience, rapidlyexpanding our supply chain capacity andagility, and integrating our omnichanneland digital experience with all ourcustomers.

8Terry McNew, CEO,Klaussner HomeFurnishingsMY MAIN GOAL IS TOCONTINUE TO EVALUATETHE BUSINESS IN TERMS OFPROCESSES, BOTH IN SUPPLY CHAIN ANDINTERNALLY.We have a number of changes underway thatwe’ll continue in 2021, and they’ve only beenaccelerated by COVID-19, which has impactedthe supply chain all over the world the sameway it impacted us with things like absenteeismand quarantines. We’ve been working on waysto eliminate waste, and we’ve been able toincrease our through-put by nearly 70% peremployee in the past 10 months, but we’ll stillbe working on that.First, we’re reducing transportation wastewithin the production process. When you cutwood in one location, ship it to another toturn it into frames, and walk those frames 50yards to another place for assembly, that’s nota lean process. We’ve reorganized to put allthe processes beside each other. We’re about80% of the way there. Since we have 2.5 millionsquare feet of production space in five maincampuses with multiple plants on each campus,it takes a while to fully implement.We’re also on a march to rationalize ourproduct line, and we’ve already begun reducingthe number of non-productive SKUs. We’vediscontinued slow-moving pieces; people forgethow to build them if it’s only a few times a year,and you end up with excess supply of materialsdue to minimum order quantities. That’sincreased our through-put, and our SKU countis down 30%, but we still have a long way to go.A big key in the year ahead is President-electBiden’s tax policies: Mr. Biden tends towardhigher taxes, and that reduces economicactivity. If one party controls Congress andthe administration, higher taxes are more likely.To me, that’s the last piece of the puzzle forforecasting 2021.Kurt Darrow,chairman, presidentand CEO, La-Z-BoyOBVIOUSLY, TECHNOLOGYIS GOING TO PLAY ALARGER ROLE GOINGFORWARD IN PUTTING CONTROL OFTHE PURCHASE PROCESS AND BUYINGEXPERIENCE IN OUR CONSUMERS’ HANDS.Today our customers not only shop and doresearch online but can schedule and tracktheir own delivery from our distributioncenters. Another technology area ispersonalization. In the past, we’d run ads andalways the same message to every customer,but now we are able to get targetedmessages to targeted customers utilizing allthe data we have on what they’ve bought andwhat they’re looking for. That will become thenorm rather than the exception. [ ]From the distribution center, we are workingtoward a system where we’ll send a pictureof the delivery team to the consumer inadvance. And our system allows the customerto schedule their own delivery times and,once it leaves the distribution center, trackthe timing to her home so she isn’t waitingfor a call. The more information you put inthe customers’ hands, the more control yougive them, and that’s where we’re makingsignificant progress.A second issue is supply chain, and giventhe increases in volume, everyone’s supplychain is stressed, and everyone’s re-thinkingit. With the industry’s experience with tariffsand the pandemic, a number of questions arebeing asked: How many different partners doyou need, how do you strategically spreadyour country risk? How can you remain agileand have flexibility when volume goes up ordown? [ ]A third consideration is our employees. Whatdo they need coming out of the pandemicto continue to feel safe in our plants and inour stores, and what can we do to help themenhance their performance with things liketechnology, processes and workflow in bothour factories and stores. [ ]9Michael Campbell,CEO, Leather ItaliaFIRST IS A CONTINUED FOCUS ONOUR FORECASTING AND MAKINGSURE THE FLOW OR OUR PRODUCTAND OUR PRODUCTION SCHEDULESARE CONSISTENT AND TRUE TO DEMAND.It is critical that our company look at product needsand make sure we are supporting those needs forthe retailers.To that end, we’ll increase pre-purchases of rawmaterial, in particular leather, which has becomevery polarized with this growth and demand weexperienced in 2020. In order to be consistent andperform at an extremely high level, keeping morematerial on hand is a very clear need, and it’s becomea very high-action item we’ll be concentrating on.Also, at our main motion facility in China, ShaeMotion, we’ve added four more production linesto support more growth in 2021 and to ensureconsistency of flow with respect to our current andfuture product obligations.Steve Oblak, chiefmerchandisingofficer, WayfairWE KNOW OUR CUSTOMERSHAVE HAD A HARD YEAR, AND IFANYTHING, HAVE AN EVEN DEEPERCONNECTION TO THEIR HOME AND COMMUNITY.They are going to be much more inclined to shoponline to renovate, decorate and create their ownunique home space than before. The acceleration toonline isn’t necessarily changing our plan as muchas we’re fast adjusting to heightened expectationsaround quality of merchandising, financial andin-home services, inventory availability, speedto customer and of course price to value in thiseconomic environment. So, the biggest change herefor us is we’re moving even faster on our ambitiousplan to deliver the best home experience for ourcustomer anytime, anywhere.Another big change is for our supplier partners. Oneof our top priorities is to be the best home platformfor our suppliers. We want our supplier interface,Partner Home, to be as good as the consumerexperience we have for our customers. Our suppliersshould expect significant upgrades this year on theease and quality of the tools and analytics we providethem to optimize their business with us.Luis Ruesga, CEO,Zuo ModernEVERY YEAR THERE IS ANEW CHALLENGE, ANDTHIS YEAR WE THINK ITWILL BE IN THE LOGISTICSAND MANUFACTURING SIDE.Thankfully, we have a great teamoverseas and our leader in production,Steve Poon, has many years ofexperience to minimize the overpayingon freight, delays on manufacture andQA, thus giving us a strong advantageto keep supplying products to ourpartners with an aggressive price and aprompt delivery.Our focus for the first two quartersof the year will continue to be onthe residential side with dropship asa priority as we see end consumerscontinuing to shop from home. Wealso see a possible fast recovery on thehospitality and event side by the endof the third and fourth quarters, withdemand for hospitality items because ofthe reopening of new restaurants, barsand hotels.read more

BEDDINGThe Sleep ExpertObviously, the first thing you would like toaccount for is the essence of the characteristic.Believe it or not, there is a lot of misconceptionout there amongst potential mattress buyers.They tend to believe that mattress firmnessratings and support are the same things.by Tania DionneLet’s start with a basic fact!A firm mattress for me and a firmmattress for you is probably not thesame thing. Comfort or impressionof comfort is as personal as it gets.Dear members,It is a pleasure for me to beable to address each one of youin this month’s edition of TheSleep Expert.This section, I hope, will be usedto inform, and inspire you.Over the next few issues, we will be goingover the new BrandSource Sleep program.It includes our 5 steps selling process tohelp you maximize the sales in your beddingdepartment.Step 1: Pick your pillowStep 2: Pick your comfortStep 3: Pick your mattress/technologyStep 4: Pick your baseStep 5: Pick your protectionLast issue, we explored Step 1: Pick yourpillow. This month we are moving on to Step2: which is Pick your comfort!11WHAT IS MATTRESSFIRMNESS?To talk about firmness, we need tounderstand it, please see article excerptfrom Sleep Advisor.read moreMATTRESS FIRMNESSIS ONE OF THE KEYCHARACTERISTICSto consider before you make a purchase. Findingthe right level is critical for your good night sleep.If you select a unit which is too soft or too firm, youare unlikely to sleep well, and you could even startexperiencing issues with your back.Luckily, there are quite a lot of excellent mattresscompanies which offer different levels of firmness.The challenge is that to determine it; you would haveto be aware of a lot of different things, especially ifyou do not have the option to try it.While the former directly correlates with thelatter and they are mutually dependent, thereis a difference. The firmness of the bed is itshardness, put in a very simple way. Is it softor is it hard? That is the type of question thatyou need to ask yourself. It is subjective anddifferent sleepers will have a different feel.However, this has become a criticalcharacteristic, and it is an important metricwhich is accounted for by every buyer. Afterall, it determines the overall level of comfortas well as the support that the entire thing isgoing to offer. Have in mind that mattress sizeshould not impact your overall firmness feel.WHY DOES ITMATTER?The firmness of the mattress is a fundamentalcharacteristic which is quite critical for thedecision-making process. Not only will itdetermine the overall level of comfort, but itis also going to have a serious impact on thesupport of the bed as well.This is something quite critical. The firmnesshas an impact over almost every importantcharacteristic that your mattress is defined by.From the comfort and support to the overallperformance of the unit, everything could beassociated with its firmness.VERY SOFTSOFTSo, as you just read, there is a little more tofirmness than meets the eye. In the 5-stepprogram, step 1 is Pick Your Pillow (please referto last month’s article) and step 2 is Pick YourComfort. To do that, the customer must decideon their own what comfort they like.Having the same collection of mattressesavailable in 3 different comforts is the bestway to go. Having the same structure insidethe mattress will ensure that the customer willonly think about the feel. Start with your highestpriced collection.Your customer with their pillow guides them toyour mattress collection that has the 3 comforts.Ask them to try all 3 and then tell you which onethey prefer. This part is all up to the customer,your input at this point should not be a factor intheir decision.Once they identify the feel they like; only showthem the level of firmest chosen and go slightlydown in price each time around.The goal is to take control of the process toeliminate doubts and uncertainty in the process.The customer should not try more than 4mattresses once comfort is picked. The moreoptions they have, the less confident they are.Good luck!MEDIUMMEDIUM FIRMVERY FIRM

APPLIANCESApplianceUpdateDecember 2020 compared to the 2020 average.NOTE: The following data is based on all Mega Digital ServicesWebsites (including BrandSource.ca). Category pages refersto the pages found under the “Appliances” tab. Product pagesrefers to individual product pages, one per SKU.CATEGORYPrevious Month %Previous Year ationUnsurprisingly, freezer sales exploded in2020. While freezers represented only 7%of all online sales in 2019, they accountedfor nearly 25% of sales in 2020.LaundryCookingDishwashersWeb TrafficIn terms of individual product pages forDecember compared to the previous month,this is a decrease of 9% but an increase of13% compared to December 2019.BrandsRanges 83%Wine cooler/cooler 27%Samsung 4%LaundryPairs 1%Breakdown-31%KitchenAid-40%Freezers25%of online salesThe Digitalization of ServicesNecessity is the mother of invention: entrepreneurswho have chosen to quickly adapt their businessplans by digitizing their consulting services, salesand delivery/pick-up methods are getting bytoday without too much damage. A McKinseystudy published in the fall of 2020 estimates thatentrepreneurs are now three times more likely toconduct at least 80% of their operations digitally.read moreAccording to Google Trends, "Shop Local Canada" keyword searches jumped 190% over lastyear. It is all about proximity, origin of goods andavailability of inventory.2021 The New NormalGlobally, two-thirds of consumers have triednew ways of shopping since the beginning of thepandemic, and 65% of them say they want to continueusing this new type of shopping. In north America,“the first half of 2020 saw an increase in e-commerceequivalent to that of the previous ten years”. read moreRevenge of the WalletYou cannot put the vaccine back in the syringe;these changes are here to stay. Few would havebelieved the historic turnaround of the past year;your 2020 business plan has probably undergoneseveral changes in the past few months.December was 19% above the 2020 average for pageviews. May and June have been the best performingmonths representing 24% of all the 2020 views.Obviously, with the arrival of these newplayers, we have gathered 6 times moreorders in 2020 while increasing the averageorder value by 2% compared to 2019.For December, category pages were down0.9% but keep in mind that, year-on-year, itis a 54% increase!ProductpagesSince February 2020, 19 BrandSource flyers havebeen featured on the Reebee platform. Since then,the platform generated almost 150,000 views from77,000 individual users. This number represents theconversion rate (number of clicks) from the Reebeeapplication to a product page or to the retailer'swebsite.E-commerceAs you know by now, 2020 has been onefor the books! With only a 9% increasein product pages, we have seen a 99%increase of views (an 83% increase with anadjusted number of pages).CategorypagesFlyers on Reebeeby Sandy MahoneyThe year 2020 broughtits share of challengesbut it also quadrupled thenumber of transactionalsites by allowing 20new members to add ane-commerce platform totheir websites.13Facts and FiguresThe holiday season is over, the year 2020 is behindus, time for balance sheets and new resolutions. Whatwill be the factors to keep in mind for your businessplans as businesses prepare for the new normal?Among the countries, such as Australia, that quicklymastered the pandemic, we can optimisticallyobserve a growth rate in goods and services ofalmost 8% in the third quarter of 2020. This trend isalso likely to benefit Canadian consumers as sales ofappliances, furniture & mattresses, and decorativeaccessories for Q3-2020 were 15% above theaverage of the last 10 years.Consumers who have been able to work from homeare currently sitting on their vacation budget (and ontheir uncomfortable couch) since 81% of Canadiansare not ready to make travel plans (Google/Ipsos,August 2020). Restaurant meals, that are nowonly shared virtually, are pushing novice cooks toenhance their culinary skills and consider buyingnew appliances worthy of their new passion.Between teleworking, home schooling, and mealprepping, consumers are constantly trying to reducetime spent doing laundry and cleaning. The mostrecent sanitary measures will push the undecided ofthe first wave to change appliances, furniture, andmattresses in the coming months. As a retailer, itbecomes essential to have a digital presence towin a share of this pie!As you write your new year resolutions, thinkabout how you want to incorporate this newnormal into your goals and how Mega Group willhelp you get there faster.New Alta WebsiteThe integration of thecatalog is progressingwell: the informationis rich and relevant,thanks, among otherthings, to the contentcoming directly fromthe manufacturers.Navigation issimplified by thepresence of subcategories and tags,and filters also improve its usability. The comparisontool is complete and intuitive, and the suggestionof compatible products or useful add-ons is veryuseful. The price list integration will be completedand revi

I have chosen Brian Tracy’s book Focal Point to best support this theme. Brian has been a mentor of mine for decades. I first started my journey of self-development and critical thinking by reading and listening to Brian’s work called “Thinking Big