Tropitone reports record 2006 sales

Staff -- Casual Living, 1/1/2007 12:00:00 AM

Tropitone Furniture announced it achieved record sales during its 2006 fiscal year which ended Sept. 30, driven by both the widespread popularity of outdoor living and Tropitone's broad array of casual furniture collections.

The popularity of outdoor rooms across the country is one of the most important market trends in the history of the casual furniture industry, Tropitone CEO Mike Echolds said. While warmer regions of the country are most likely to have larger outdoor living spaces, northern regions tend to center outdoor rooms around fireplaces or fire pits.

"Before the outdoor room, most people limited their thinking about outdoor furnishings to poolside chaise lounges and a dining set, which they used a few months out of the year," Echolds said. "Today, the door has been thrown wide open on the possibilities as increasingly more time is spent relaxing and entertaining outdoors. As a result, consumers expect their outdoor furnishings to be as fashionable and comfortable as their indoor furniture."