Retail Observer

RETAILOBSERVER.COM FEBRUARY 2020 52 L ast month's Winter Market in Las Vegas was especially memorable for the BrandSource buying group for a couple of reasons. First, the merchandising organization for independent bedding, furniture, appliance and consumer tech dealers donned two badges at the Las Vegas show: buyer and exhibitor. More about that in a moment. The Winter Market represented the last official industry appearance of longtime category chief Mike Allen as BrandSource's vice president of home furnishings. Allen, a fixture of the furniture industry who has dutifully served BrandSource's members and met their home furnishings needs for the past 24 years, retired at the end of January, when he handed the reins to retail veteran Seth Weisblatt. Allen grew up in the furniture business, working in a family-owned store while attending college. He would become a regional director of the National Home Furnishings Association (NHFA) before joining BrandSource in 1996 as Furniture Coordinator. He was later promoted to general manager of home furnishings, then vice president, with responsibility for the group's bedding and residential furniture business. Seth Weisblatt, Mike Allen's successor, was formerly chief marketing and information officer and an executive VP at Sam's Appliance and Furniture, a member of BrandSource parent company AVB in Fort Worth, TX. There, he variously managed all vendor relations, led marketing and IT, and helped return the company to profitability. Weisblatt also served as VP of digital marketing for Ashley Furniture Industries, where he helped furniture retailers modernize their marketing efforts. In his new role as BrandSource Director of Furniture, Weisblatt is working with home furnishings vendors on both product and marketing programs, reflecting the integral role that marketing now plays in the category. Allen agreed to stay on through the Winter Market to assure a seamless transition for the group. Jim Ristow, CEO of AVB, spoke for all BrandSource members when he wished Allen "much happiness in his well-deserved retirement" and welcomed Weisblatt aboard. "We thank Mike for his many years of service and are excited to welcome Seth to the BrandSource team," Ristow said. To help send Allen off, BrandSource hosted a farewell soiree during Winter Market at the Loft above Cabo Wabo. But that wasn't the only real estate BrandSource occupied at the show, or Allen's only appearance. Last month, the group was an exhibitor as well as a retailer, taking up residence in showroom A920 where Allen and Weisblatt touted the group's offerings from Sealy's Carrington Chase collection of tight top, Eurotop and pillowtop mattresses. In addition, Sealy shared space with BrandSource's own private label bed-in-a-box line. Dubbed YouSleep, the exclusive made-in- America program was developed with California's Diamond Mattress as a competitive answer to eCommerce competitors. The hand-crafted collection is offered in three price tiers: a hybrid, a pillowtop and a Eurotop, and as Allen noted before the show, "What makes us a little different is that the starting price point is a hybrid mattress, rather than foam." Another point of differentiation – at the other end of the price spectrum – is "what we incorporate into the luxury product," he said. "It's priced several hundred dollars lower than eCommerce competitors with the equivalent features," such as copper gel foam and cooling fabric, creating a value proposition for BrandSource members. The program is supported by free nationwide shipping, free returns and exchanges, and a dedicated microsite that members can incorporate into their own websites. What's more, BrandSource will soon be complementing the collection with accessory packs that include mattress protectors, sheets and pillows to further fluff up margins. Alan Wolf Furniture Trends FOR BRANDSOURCE, A WINTER FURNITURE MARKET TO REMEMBER Alan Wolf — Communications Specialist, AVB|BrandSource RO BrandSource's private-label YouSleep line gives members a competitive weapon in the bed-in-a-box stakes.

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