The Harden Factory eTour

The Harden website is a dynamic beast and we try to add interesting features without turning into a dog’s dinner of information. Recently a factory tour segment went live and it is a quick and interactive way to take a peek into what happens on the factory floor. Click on the factory tour and you will see an aerial photo of our 450,000 square foot facility with numbered icons for each department. Open up the individual sections and you will find some great video and narration of how we manufacture our product.

First day at NeoCon EAST

NeoCon East opens today and we expect strong attendance at the Baltimore Convention Center. NeoCon East is an important regional contract show, particularly for GSA business. We recently were awarded a contract to supply the new conference table for the Roosevelt Room in the White House.

NeoCon EAST

The organizers of the NeoCon East show decided to change dates this year so for a few of us who cover both the residential and commercial markets we have a few days to rest, rake leaves, and plead with the dry cleaner for faster service before it is time to head for Baltimore. The contract furnishings industry has one main trade show annually – the NeoCon show in Chicago. The NeoCOn East show is a regional cousin with an emphasis on GSA (General Services Administration – the procurement arm of the US Government) business. Harden products can be found in a number of Federal Agencies and facilities including the new Capital Visitors Center and throughout Washington.

Fall Market coming to a close.

Market is sprinting to a close, and as we are discovering the new dates that were introduced a year ago create a flurry of activity from Sunday through Tuesday. On Wednesday morning the streets will be quiet and the market will unofficially be over. We are pleased with our final results – both on the Harden and Cambridge Mills brands. Traffic could have been better, but too many retailers are choosing to stay home. High Point is a big investment for Harden and the industry so it is vital that attendance begin to improve with the economy. There are a lot of vendors and retailers suggesting that one High Point Market a year be considered.

Product Development

One of the most significant benefits of a market or trade show is intelligence. While we conduct consumer market research on a regular basis, the opinions of our retail and design partners brings our product development efforts into better focus and provides us with some confidence that new designs will place with retailers. The past two markets our case goods direction has been “familiar forms with a more transitional interpretation” and the response has been very positive. The trend toward cleaner lines and crisp detail continues and that squares well with our product direction. In addition, we are reviewing a number of potential finish introductions with the intent of an overhaul in 2011. Keep an eye on the website for more information.

Furniture Industry Recovery.

I’m sure all High Point Market blog posts, like trade press articles about the market are all the same. Business is great, traffic is up, the sun is shining and according to some suppliers their sales now exceed Exxon’s. In reality the “market business” is in trouble and the industry continues to find a recovery elusive and inconsistent. Retailers and designers are finding it difficult to justify attending High Point twice a year, and if they are located west of the Rockies they have the Las Vegas market to consider. Our expectation is that it will be a quiet market, but we hope that commitments and orders continue the upward trend we have seen so far this year. Not spectacular by any means, but a big improvement over 2009

High Point Market

I’ve been sort of blogless lately as preparation for the upcoming High Point Market approaches. For those in the industry you know the importance of the market – even though it is “not what it used to be”. For those outside the furniture universe you would either be amazed or frightened. We’ll take all our new Harden prototypes with us and the emphasis is on our continued updating of our best selling Classic Cherry Collection. Specifically, we are redesigning a lot of familiar forms with a more transitional flavor. In addition, we will have the beginnings of a wholesale update of our finish offering. Will keep up the posts from market.


518 Sideboard - New to our Classic Cherry Collection