Three major home furnishings retailers have agreed 10-year leases to occupy stores in the redeveloped former Toys R Us unit at the Metro Retail Park, Gateshead.

Creditors of Mark Harris Furniture, the furniture wholesale and retail company whose assets were sold via a prepack buyout last month, were owed more than £14 million at the time of the restructure.

Graeme Sutherland, the longstanding sales director at Ashwood Designs and respected stalwart of the U.K. sofa industry, has died, the upholstered furniture manufacturer has announced.

The famous four-year's interest free credit (IFC) offer of DFS is no more after the upholstery market leader cut the maximum term customers can take to repay by a full 12 months, citing rising costs.

Board change comes as planned following a management buyout two years ago.

Profits fell 71 percent for DFS in the six months to Christmas Day with the upholstery market leader battling rising costs and a fall in sales.

Trustpilot says Maker&Son "hasn't been playing by the rules" after the upholstery brand was said to have threatened reviewers with legal action regarding comments that had been made on its platform.

Upholstered furniture imports cratered at the start of 2023, reflecting a combination of weak demand in the autumn when orders were placed, along with full warehouses across the U.K.

The closure of a 17-store adjustable furniture and mobility products specialist spells bad news for a co-controlled ecommerce business, which faces the write-off of a large multi-million pound debt.

Sofas from the three further upholstery collections sold under the Argos Habitat brand that didn't meet U.K. flammability regulations were also manufactured in Eastern Europe, it was disclosed late last week.

Correspondence has been delivered to U.K. and mainland European industry suppliers to the legacy Maker&Son upholstery business telling them they will not be paid what they are owed after all, despite earlier pledges to the contrary.

British furniture manufacturers made a positive start to 2023 with output climbing compared with January last year. December figures have also been revised upwards.

Upholstery manufacturer and retailer heads south for third consumer showroom.

A Buckinghamshire upholstered furniture manufacturer and retailer that dates back to the 1950s has refashioned its corporate structure after a predecessor company was placed into liquidation last month.

The company behind the Killymoon Living and CFC Interiors furniture brands made top and bottom line gains through 2021/22 but used some of the proceeds to pay off debt as it forewarned of a weaker year to follow.

Argos has added sofas, armchairs and footstools from three further upholstery collections to a product recall first announced a month ago when it revealed SKUs from its Tammy programme didn't meet U.K. flammability regulations.

The sofa-in-a-box company that pioneered a paradigm shift in the way entry and mid-level upholstery was manufactured and shipped has launched into the outdoor category.

The just-agreed licensing deal between Maker&Son and The Hastings Sofa Company won't imperil outstanding orders or the interests of the existing supply chain, the upholstery brand says.

The owners of The Hastings Sofa Company have agreed a deal with Inc. & Co for them to become the licensee of the Maker&Son brand in the U.K. and Ireland.

Shipping pressures and dealing with the aftermath of the pandemic meant last year was the most challenging yet, according to bedroom furniture and upholstery distributor Furniture Wholesale Group (FWG).

Rising input costs countered an improvement in underlying demand at the U.K. upholstery factory acquired by U.S. furniture giant La-Z-Boy in the first financial period since its autumn 2021 buyout.

Maker&Son suppliers with lorry loads of unpaid-for furniture waiting to be delivered to customers are braced for more change in the way the embattled upholstery brand operates.

Consumers who bought sofas sold by Mark Harris Furniture that do not comply with U.K. flammability regulations are to be contacted directly by restructuring advisors after the company was placed into administration last week.

Darren Baird and Joseph Baggott have joined upholstered furniture manufacturer Ashwood Designs as operations director and finance director respectively.

The Vita Group says it has doubled staff headcount and increased production four-fold at the foam manufacturing plant it acquired from sofa maker Natuzzi in the two years since the takeover was announced.

U.S. upholstery conglomerate La-Z-Boy saw revenue inch forward in the three months to January 29, 2023 on the back of a stellar performance from its company-owned retail business in its domestic market.

Stakeholders in the Evans of High Wycombe furniture business say they are awaiting clarification of the brand's future after its until-now operating company was placed into liquidation last week.

Delivered sales growth returned in the U.K. and Irish markets for Stressless upholstery brand owner Ekornes in the fourth quarter in an otherwise testing period that led to the downsizing programme announced in January.

ScS has revamped its corporate identity with a new logotype and strapline that launches concurrently with a television advertising campaign that steers the sofa and flooring retailer in a new direction.

The owner of London upholstery company The Sofa & Chair Co says the net effect of the company voluntary arrangement (CVA) agreed last September will be a £6.3 million reduction in liabilities.

The value and volume of Chinese sofa shipments to the U.K. declined at the end of the year as buyers continued to turn to alternative manufacturing sources closer to home.

Profits climbed at Sherborne Upholstery last year as the West Yorkshire furniture manufacturer broke a sales record that had lasted since the before the financial crash of 2008.

A furniture investment company controlled by Ayiaz Ahmed, the businessman who sold the Collins & Hayes (C&H) brand for £2 million in 2017, has defaulted on the terms of a settlement agreed with a specialist litigation funder.

Sofology has promoted Gisela Lancaster, who first joined the upholstery retailer from the home shopping retail sector nearly two years ago, to lead its buying team.

Vince Gunn, managing director of upholstered furniture brand Snug for the past two years, has been appointed chief executive at upmarket kitchen retailer Harvey Jones.

U.K. furniture makers' turnover declined on an annual basis for the first time in almost two years in December as weak demand through the autumn impacted production at the end of the year.

Michael Tyler Furniture has appointed Kai Winders as managing director in a move that returns the South Coast sofa maker to its historic management structure, with a designer leading the company.

Losses widened at upholstery brand Swyft as it continued to scale its business ahead of a later debt-for-equity swap that helped the company cut borrowing.

Upholstery brand Sofa.com maintained high double-digit margin last year despite rising costs weighing against the impact of big sales growth.

HSL has appointed Venessa Hodgson as managing director designate following the departure of CEO Guy Critchlow, who has left after over six years with the furniture vertical.

The upholstered furniture manufacturer behind brands including Sofas by Saxon and Timeless Chesterfields enjoyed the strongest financial year in its history through 2021/22.

ScS, the U.K's second largest upholstered furniture retailer, said it has reversed negative order momentum to make gains since the start of winter, though cash reserves have declined through the period.

Fabrics supplier Blendworth International more than doubled its turnover through Covid after pivoting to making personal protective equipment (PPE) for the NHS. But the abrupt termination of a five-year contract started a spiral towards insolvency.

Organisers have launched the pre-registration process for this year's London Fabric Show, which takes place at the ILEC Conference Centre, Earls Court on February 28 and March 1.

Sofa-in-a-box brand Swyft has eliminated millions of pounds of borrowing as part of a debt-for-equity swap and broader investment that will lead to TV exposure for the fast-growing upholstered furniture company.

Industry-wide supply chain issues resulted in operational challenges and a downturn in margin as profits tumbled for upholstered furniture supplier La-Z-Boy U.K. last year.

Upholstery retailer Sofas & Stuff is expanding its collaboration with the Victoria and Albert Museum (V&A) with the launch of a second collection, called Drawn from Nature.

Direct-to-consumer and wholesale upholstery brand Sofacompany booked high profits despite margins taking a knock from the after-effects of Covid last year.

Ecommerce furniture retailer Swoon Editions is free of secured debt after it discharged in full its obligations to an invoice finance provider that provided funding after a restructuring over three years ago.

A South Wales based direct-to-consumer brand selling riser recline chairs, adjustable beds and other mobility aids online and from a regional store network has called in restructuring advisors and ceased trading.

The upholstery group behind the Ashley Manor and Alexander & James brands has begun a consultation with employees at its East Midlands factories as it explores a strategic proposal to transfer production to Dudley.

Furniture group Actona has revealed it paid well above book value for the takeovers of European sofa producers SITS and Theca last year in deals that made it one of the world's largest upholstery producers.

Upholstered furniture company Kingcome Sofas has completed works at its Devon factory designed to boost capacity and make the business more productive.

Online marketplace Wayfair last year launched a product recall for a Polish-made corner unit as it doesn't meet the U.K.'s strict fire and flammability regulations.

Six-figure profits helped bolster the balance sheet at Delcor in the first period since a change of ownership at the high-end upholstery business.

Underlying profits reached record levels at Danish furniture retail, supply and investment conglomerate Lars Larsen Group (LLG) last year fuelled by organic growth and acquisitions.

A prominent online furniture brand with a co-owned wholesale arm supplying other retailers has launched a product recall for upholstered sofas and armchairs that do not meet the U.K. flammability regulations.

DFS Group has expanded its supply chain partnership with Wincanton, agreeing a new three-year deal that builds on an existing collaboration for the Dwell furniture brand to additionally include other non-sofa products.

Upholstered furniture import volumes declined again on the back of continued weak data from China, the largest source of overseas-made sofas sold in the U.K.

Upholstery vertical Sofa.com has agreed a new third-party retail tie-up as it looks maintain and build its retail footprint amid the evolution of its concession network in sister chain House of Fraser.

Direct-to-consumer sofa business Maker&Son has made roles redundant as part of plans to restructure and stabilise the embattled upholstery retailer.

Former DFS chief marketing and commercial officer Toni Wood has taken another C-suite role in the U.K. furnishings sector after joining Headlam Group as chief customer officer.

A handful of upstream raw material and semi-finished product suppliers face a shortfall on their debts following the insolvency of a small but long established sofa maker in the West Midlands.

A mid single-digit decline in order intake at DFS in the second half of the 2022 calendar year masks a big improvement in the past three months, according to the U.K. sofa market leader.

U.K. furniture manufacturing turnover rose at below-inflation levels for a third straight month in November according to data out Friday morning.

The md of Ercol Furniture [ercol] says the Buckinghamshire manufacturer remains focused on further building U.K. production after it returned to profit in 2021 and maintained that level last year.

Former Tetrad owner and md Janus Cooper will join longtime colleagues Nick Murphy and Annabel Simmons as they introduce the Encore Sofa Company to a widespread trade audience for the first time this month.

Aberdare sofa maker Ashwood Designs has praised its customers after a period in which it saw record demand combine with unprecedented upstream supply chain disruption.

Most furniture makers plan to make pay awards to staff this year according to the annual wages survey carried out by British Furniture Manufacturers (BFM), the trade association.

National retailer ScS is the new owner of modular sofa business Snug after it acquired the brand, domain names, website, intellectual property and stock from the administrators of the predecessor operating company.

Airsprung says it is in the process of financially leveraging surplus land and buildings owned by the diversified beds and upholstery group at its Wiltshire headquarters.

The operating company of modular sofa brand Snug has filed a notice of intent to appoint an administrator as potential bidders such as ScS look to complete a deal for either the company or its assets.

Upholstered furniture retailer ScS is among the suitors targeting the acquisition of Snug, the sofa-in-a-box brand that built sales north of £30 million during the height of the pandemic.

Ekornes, the China-owned upholstered furniture maker and owner of the Stressless brand, is to shed about a quarter of its global workforce and consolidate its Far East manufacturing operations in response to the weaker market.

Nichola Hornby Bell has joined West Midlands sofa maker Alpha Designs as sales director, succeeding Barry Webb, who will retire following a handover period.

A secured lender to embattled upholstery business Maker&Son has filed a second notice of intent to appoint an administrator (NOI) as it seeks to protect its position.

Living, dining and bedroom wholesaler Balmoral Furniture booked higher profits last year as revenue increased and margin widened as a result of fewer restrictions.

Profits rose by nearly a fifth last year for the U.K. market leader in the supply of flame retardant fabric coatings for the upholstered furniture industry.

Upholstered furniture and floorcoverings retailer ScS has expanded its store footprint in the north of England with the opening of a ninth store in Yorkshire.

Revenue climbed by more than a third for Dudley upholstered furniture manufacturer ACL 2002 through 2021/22 amid rising costs that impacted profits.

West Yorkshire upholstered furniture distributor Scan-Thors (UK) said the acquisition of new production facilities in mainland Europe has helped provide surety of supply and negate input cost pressures.

The outlook for foam availability and pricing will be pegged to three main pillars through 2023, according to the trade association representing suppliers of polyurethane slabstocks used by the mattress and upholstery industry.

A financial backer of embattled Maker&Son has filed a notice of intent to appoint an administrator in a move designed to protect its position following a series of issues described as beyond the upholstery business' control.

Profits declined for CareCo, the expanding retailer of mobility products including riser recliners and adjustable beds, in a period in which it invested heavily in new store and distribution assets.

Britain's largest hardwood cabinet retailer Oak Furnitureland achieved revenue growth amid rising costs in the year to end June, and says the expansion of its upholstery offer has delivered an autumn boost.

Direct-to-consumer upholstery brand Maker&Son is at the centre of a legal dispute following the sale of the business to a new financial sponsor earlier this year.

Upholstered furniture imports into the U.K. climbed at the start of the final quarter of 2022 despite continued sluggish figures from China.

G Plan is collaborating with British furniture restorer and television presenter Jay Blades for an upholstery and cabinet collection designed to take the brand to a wider customer profile.

A historic sofa manufacturer that also sells branded upholstery from its large retail showrooms in Buckinghamshire has filed a notice of intent (NOI) to appoint an administrator.

British furniture makers' turnover growth accelerated at the start of the fourth quarter despite the uplift in exports being the weakest since February 2021.

West Midlands supplier to the U.K. upholstered furniture manufacturing sector books strong profits.

Upholstered furniture vertical Natuzzi has found a successor to chief financial officer Vittorio Notarpietro after a near 12-month search for a replacement.

Southern Italian upholstered furniture brand Egoitaliano has a second U.K. monobrand store after a partner launched a new flagship showroom in Surrey.

Vida Living, one of the largest suppliers of furniture to the U.K. market, found big sales growth last year but profits declined as rising input costs meant gross margin narrowed.

Upholstered furniture manufacturer Lebus appointed a finance director designate ahead of the retirement of longtime finance director Darrell Bettany last month.

Chris Muir, chief financial officer at ScS for the past six years, is to leave the sofa and carpets retailer, sparking a search for a successor.

Upholstery and curtain fabrics wholesaler Fryett's booked larger profits through 2021/22 as the easing of Covid restrictions aided demand for its products.

Quick-ship sofa-in-a-box brand Snug has launched The Maverick, its first fully modular and customisable upholstery programme.

The South Wales sofa manufacturer that sold a majority stake to Halo Group's Andrew Martin International business last autumn rebuilt employee numbers to pre-pandemic levels in the past year.

Top line growth and the benefits of earlier restructuring helped the Sweet Dreams beds and upholstery group record its smallest deficit in three years through 2021/22, new accounts show.

Italian sofa conglomerate Natuzzi has hired a 20-year furniture executive with an architecture and retail design background with a brief to drive improvement across its own-run and third-party showroom network.

Shaun Cook has left his role as director of retail at DFS-owned upholstered furniture chain Sofology. An interim successor is already in place at the Warrington based retailer.

Upholstered furniture giant Natuzzi enjoyed a €9.2 million bottom line swing in the third quarter, but it cautioned of tougher times to come with shoppers worldwide rethinking their spending plans.

What's done can't be undone, for direct-to-consumer Stratford-upon-Avon sofa manufacturer.

Upholstery and flooring chain ScS says it is trading resiliently through a challenging period with order intake growth having returned through the autumn.

United Furniture Industries, the company behind Lane, one of the most storied furniture brands in the U.S., has closed down without warning, putting thousands of jobs at risk.

Direct-to-consumer upholstery brand Abakus Direct booked a second straight year of six-figure profits in 2021 as it continued to bounce back from a restructure four years ago.

Man Wah Holdings, the world's largest recliner company, booked higher profits in the six months to end September despite geopolitics impacting its manufacturing business in Europe.

U.K. sofa and bed makers will continue to be able to buy foam from three major sources after the regulator here agreed Carpenter could buy Recticel's engineered foam unit, but only if the bulk of the British business is sold.

Soaring inflation on overseas-made goods wasn't enough to prevent a first slide in the value of sofa imports in 20 months at the end of the third quarter. It followed weaker demand, with China bearing the brunt.

The upholstery group that owns Ashley Manor, Alstons, AMX Design and Alexander & James slipped to a third quarter net loss on lower demand, higher costs and the weaker pound.

The group behind the Stressless and IMG furniture brands booked lower revenue in the U.K. and Ireland in the third quarter as demand softened. Year-to-date numbers remain well ahead.

U.K. furniture production volumes declined at the end of the third quarter as manufacturers grappled weaker order books amid rising costs.

The Halo Creative & Design group acquired a stake in a second British sofa maker last year as it bolstered its U.K. upholstery manufacturing credentials, new filings reveal.

Furniture conglomerate Actona Group says it has given the vast showroom at its Danish headquarters an extreme makeover as part of plans to make every visit by trade customers an experience.

Sofa market leader DFS has appointed John Fallon as its new chief financial officer (CFO), succeeding Mike Schmidt, who left last month to join value retailer B&M.

A survey of leading British furniture manufacturers has laid bare the impact of rising production costs on their businesses, with many now struggling to turn a profit.

Sofa market leader DFS has added Laura Ashley to its roster of third-party brands with a collection of upholstered furniture.

There were seven bidders in the frame for the historic Sofa Workshop brand ahead of its sale earlier this year, restructuring advisors have said in a new report.

Upholstery market leader DFS said customer demand outperformed its own expectations in the past six weeks as a positive order trend returned.

High post-lockdown demand helped small-space living specialist The Futon Company maintain positive momentum as it again recorded highest-ever sales and profits in the past year.

The next edition of upholstery, mattress and furnishing fabrics exhibition The London Fabric Show will feature an expanded international footprint, organisers have announced.

Upholstery fabrics group Mobus has acquired Clarkson Textiles, a key processor and supplier of flame retardant treatments to the furnishing and allied markets.

A central London property that has been home to myriad upholstery brands over the years has housed its last furniture industry tenant, if new plans for the six-storey building are approved.

Danish upholstery brand Sofacompany added new showrooms and absorbed input price pressures as it prioritised the top line over profits growth in the past year.

The upholstery manufacturing unit of retail giant Next recorded its highest ever output in the six years since it started production through the post-lockdown period.

Nottinghamshire upholstered furniture producer Whitemeadow has promoted Alan Price in a move that also gives him a seat on the board of directors.

Cabinet and upholstery supplier Mark Webster Designs sold the vast majority of its stock to its largest customer two weeks ahead of the formal appointment of administrators as it sought a managed wind down of the business.

Actona Group found top line gains as the Danish furniture conglomerate expanded its global activities through acquisitions in 2021/22.

Nichola Hornby Bell, one of the highest-profile sales directors in the U.K. sofa industry, has decided to leave upholstered furniture manufacturer Westbridge.

Renewed upstream supply chain price pressures will result in further rises being passed on to retailers, as new inflation figures out Wednesday showed continued stubbornly high rates across the industry.

The private equity backer of sofa makers Westbridge and Tetrad has appointed a new group chief executive at parent company Belfield.

The sale of the Usleep mattress division to the Vita Group helped Westbridge owner Belfield to deleverage last year with it eliminating all outstanding bank debt and shareholder loans.

Chinese upholstery volumes almost halved at the end of the summer as some buyers looked elsewhere and others waited for goods held up by production delays because of Covid.

Profits returned despite one-off costs for sister sofa makers Westbridge Furniture and Tetrad as they recovered some of the revenue lost to the impact of the pandemic last year.

The rate of British furniture manufacturing growth climbed for the first time in three months in August, according to official data released Wednesday morning.

The chairman and founder of a Chinese upholstery manufacturing group that used to own a 22-store U.K. furniture retail chain has a new chief executive after the current incumbent stepped down.

Order intake is down double-digit in the past ten weeks but ScS says it is well placed to ride out the tightening economic backdrop with it having built a huge cash pile and no debt.

Adjusted profits jumped by a third at upholstery and soft furnishings fabrics group Romo last year as the company found growth in the U.K. and abroad.

U.K. listed textiles group says part of its German-based operations has struggled as a result of weak consumer confidence.

Upholstery brand Maker&Son says it was fully committed to fulfilling all creditors obligations ahead of it being forced into an insolvent restructure after a single creditor didn't support its plans following its summer buyout.

Restructuring advisors are trying to unpick the situation at £25 million sofa brand Maker&Son after the trading company behind the business was placed into administration earlier this week.

The U.K. arm of foam conglomerate Carpenter says input cost pressure led to "inevitable and necessary adjustments to selling prices" but they still weren't enough to stop profits here falling to £14.1 million.

Plumbs traded strongly post lockdown as the sofa covers, re-upholstery and curtains company narrowed its net loss and generated positive cashflow last year.

La-Z-Boy U.K. has promoted Richard Greenwood to managing director with current incumbent Mark Draper also seeing his status elevated. He has become vice president, International.

A slide in gross margin impacted the bottom line last year at upholstery group TCM Living, parent to Ashley Manor, AMX Design, Alstons and Alexander & James.

Southern Italian sofa conglomerate Natuzzi has bolstered its senior leadership team with three new hires, including two who join from luxury brands Versace and Louis Vuitton.

Natuzzi achieved high single-digit revenue growth in the second quarter but it could have delivered much more but for the enforced closure of its plant in Shanghai as the Chinese Government tried to keep a lid on Covid infections.

Britain's sofa and mattress makers are being landed with a new wave of price increases from across the upstream supply chain according to correspondence seen by The Furnishing Report. Some suppliers are also on allocation.

New borrowing and operating cashflow helped the privately-owned Whitemeadow group fund heavy capital expenditure last year as the East Midlands upholstery manufacturer invested in production.



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