Casually Speaking
Cinde W. Ingram: Casually Speaking
Hi, this is Cinde W. Ingram and I'm the Editor in Chief of Casual Living and Garden Decor. Each week I hope to use this blog space to stay in touch with our readers. I want to know what you think about new products, markets, the retail climate and, most of all, Casual Living. Let me know what's going on. Check out my latest below.
Rebound with confidence
You may remember Oprah Winfrey's witty quote about each new year bringing just "another chance to get it right."While new years and new seasons are seen as fresh starts by some folks, others focus only on failures of the past year. Whatever your perspective on the first few weeks of 2012, glimmers of hope streamed from early winter home furnishings markets as well as retailer association... Read More
Comments (0)Going Beyond the Stuff
With the holidays behind us, everyone is figuring out how to merge all their new stuff into existing living spaces. Cramming clothes and other gift items into already overfilled closets is just another dilemma for consumers who received well-intentioned but unneeded stuff.Just how much consumers need no-nonsense personal advice when remodeling and decorating their homes became obvious to Maxwell G... Read More
Comments (0)To Market, To Market
Many of the retailers reading this are putting the wraps on holiday sales and looking ahead toward the winter show season. The winter shows also hold the attention of a segment of manufacturers, designers, sales reps and others within the industry. I know it feels like we've just finished with the whirlwind of fall markets, which were relatively strong for the majority of home furnishings manufact... Read More
Comments (5)Prepare for a bright future
Americans will live in smaller homes with fewer rooms and larger outdoor living areas, according to the new "Vision for the Future" survey from the International Home Furnishings and Design Association.Over the next decade, some of the rooms in Americans homes will gain prominence while others become less relevant to the way families live, IFDA's nearly 2,000 members agreed. Multi-purpos... Read More
Comments (7)Updated spending forecasts
The casual furniture industry represents only a fraction of the overall home furnishings market, but the niche often is like an upstart child with a mind of its own. It wants to stay outside when told to come out of the rain.Furniture industry analyst Jerry Epperson had expected 2011 to be a little healthier than it has turned out to be. His new forecast calls for a 2.9% increase in U.S. consumer... Read More
Comments (1)Industry Checkup
In preparation for our September issue, the International Casual Furnishings Association's executive committee and director took time to reflect on the industry's health going into the crucial Casual Market in Chicago. They shared their perspectives with me and with you, via a feature in this issue.Each of these industry veterans had already experienced the Preview Show in July and had witnessed t... Read More
Comments (2)Pricing trending Up as Casual Market approaches
We're drawing toward the end of an amazing season, marked at its start by a record number of tornadoes and at its sizzling finale with excessive heat in some parts of the country and flooding in others. Despite challenges from the weather and an excruciatingly slow economic recovery, the retailers I spoke with at the Preview Show in Chicago were able to smile as they said their season had been goo... Read More
Comments (6)Charting in the center
Business doesn't always follow politics or vice versa, but the economy plays an integral role in both. It was interesting to note last month when President Obama laid down a foreign policy marker with an eye on domestic politics.Obama drew criticisms from right and left when he announced plans to withdraw U.S. troops from Afghanistan - 10,000 this year and 23,000 more next year - which would bring... Read More
Comments (2)Winning displays -- Colorful, playful and fun
When I called Ashleigh Kosin to let her know our judges had selected Bell Tower Outdoor Living Company as our Merchandising Awards' Best First-Time Entry, she said her store has been "crazy busy" since the weather turned.I later talked with a sales rep who calls on the Southwest Michigan store that Kosin and her husband Jack opened in 2008. "They've got a lot going on in that store,... Read More
Comments (1)Outdoor designs flourish
As we draw closer to this month's HD Expo in Las Vegas and ICFF in New York, I'm not the only one with outdoor designs on my mind.It started early last month at the High Point Market when I moderated a panel of interior designers, who shared their experiences and expertise in designing outdoor spaces. Margi Kyle, last year's Interior Design Society national president, urged other designers to help... Read More
Comments (1)Casual Industry appeal
Retailers and vendors in the casual industry are making efforts to meet the needs of people affected by last Wednesday's severe Southern storms.In the wake of the tornadoes, Summer Classics Vice President Harold Hudson sent out a message noting the widespread damages and deaths in Tuscaloosa and Birmingham, Ala. He said many homes were completely destroyed and power will not be restored to some ar... Read More
Comments (0)Refresh for Spring Renewal
Just in time for the home furnishings trade show in High Point, Casual Living has spruced up with a fresh design. Regular readers may recognize this redesign shows off the better quality paper stock and slightly larger size we adopted to start the new year.You may notice some of the best-known luxury home magazines also are getting face-lifts this spring. Architectural Digest, for example, has a n... Read More
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