Upholstery and beds vertical HSL repaid a £4 million bank loan two years ahead of time as it generated cash and traded strongly through the rump of the pandemic.

Upholstery and flooring retailer ScS has named John Walden as the successor to non-executive chair Alan Smith, who will retire in just over a year from now.

Platt & Hill, a supplier of foam and fibre fillings products to the beds and upholstery manufacturing sectors, slipped to a loss last year as higher costs outweighed the benefit of increased output.

Sofa manufacturing group TCM Living has recruited two well-known furniture industry executives to fill senior managerial posts at its Ashley Manor Upholstery and Alexander & James business units.

Profits declined at sofa maker Lebus Upholstery last year as the Lincolnshire manufacturer grappled higher labour and raw materials costs in the year of its sale to employees.

London based upholstery retailer The Sofa & Chair Co has seen its liabilities slashed after HM Revenue & Customs backed a company voluntary arrangement (CVA) that sees millions of pounds of debt compromised.

A share buyback concentrated the ownership structure of the North Wales manufacturing and retail group behind the Adjustamatic beds and upholstery brand last year.

Gross margin narrowed across the DFS group through 2021/22 with rising costs and supply chain disruption countering a sharp rise in deliveries as the upholstery market leader unwound its large order bank.

The addition of seven new stores helped upholstery retailer Sofology find revenue growth in the year to end June though the expansion of its retail footprint will slow in the new financial year.

High-profile furniture industry executive Suzy McMahon is leaving Sofology to take up a newly-created role at Oak Furnitureland, the U.K.'s largest hardwood furniture retailer.

Adriana, the central European upholstered furniture maker and DFS supplier, upped its stake in the U.K. sofa chain on Monday, following up on its initial disclosure last week.

The value of sofa imports climbed for a 19th straight month in July despite continued poor data from the U.K.'s largest trading partner in the category.

Upholstery retailer Sofas & Stuff will open its 22nd showroom with the launch of a new unit in Leamington Spa, Warwickshire this weekend.

Steve Johnson, a non-executive director at DFS since the end of 2018, is to succeed Ian Durant as chair of the U.K.'s largest upholstered furniture retailer.

The Cath Kidston brand has entered the furniture market with a programme of upholstery and beds being sold exclusively by sofa market leader DFS.

Furniture makers' output remained positive on a year-on-year basis during the height of the summer though growth was the weakest since lapping the start of the pandemic.

Shares in DFS climbed to their highest level in nearly four weeks as the U.K.'s largest upholstered furniture retailer reacted to Polish sofa maker Adriana acquiring shares in the business.

The sofa group behind the Ashley Manor and Alexander & James brands is preparing for the planned departure of group creative director Scott Coggan, one of the highest-profile designers in the upholstery sector.

ScS says the new Ideal Home upholstery collections that first aired at its new-concept Coventry store earlier this summer (see related) will be rolled out across all of its U.K. stores and online.

Northern Ireland based furniture wholesaler Annaghmore Agencies recovered some of the revenue lost to the pandemic last year in a period that saw it build its inventory position.

Sofa Brands International, parent to many of the largest upholstery brands in the U.K., is undergoing a restructuring process that has resulted in the departure of a number of senior executives, and other officials being handed new roles.

Sofa and flooring chain ScS opened the third of its new-format retail stores this weekend with a revamped unit in South Lanarkshire.

Upholstered furniture maker and retailer Arlo & Jacob is shifting its headquarters to the East Midlands in a move that will result in the closure of its former base in West London.

A three-store sofa retailer with branches across the East Midlands has deleveraged its business after paying down long term debt during a profitable year to April 30, 2022.

The probability that three major foamers will continue to serve the U.K. mattress and upholstery markets has increased after Carpenter and Recticel conceded the planned takeover of the latter's engineered foam unit would lessen competition.

A Chicago-area investment firm has doubled its position in ScS, the U.K.'s number two upholstered furniture retailer.

Second quarter profits declined at Stressless and IMG brand owner Ekornes as higher prices and increased deliveries could only partially mitigate against rising costs.

One of the world's most famous furniture and product designers has lent his creative skills to a new sofa model launching in the U.K. this week.

The Shanghai-listed upholstery group behind brands spanning Kuka and Rolf Benz among others shrugged off the impact of local Covid measures to find top and bottom line growth in the first half of 2022.

Refund requests outstripped sales revenue on some days during the worst of the supply chain crisis according to administrators handling the fallout from a once prominent ecommerce upholstery business.

Recticel says the disposal of the business unit taking in its comfort foam activities serving U.K. mattress, sofa and direct-to-consumer brands will be delayed, possibly until the first quarter of 2023.

Rising prices and increases in the value of both domestic production and imports helped the U.K. sofa market reach an all-time highest value last year, beating the previous record set in 2016.

More than 50 global furniture equities spanning market leaders in the U.K. and China saw the value of their shares fall on Tuesday on a grim day for the home furnishings industry.

The Competition and Markets Authority (CMA) has named the officials who will make up the inquiry group looking into the takeover of Recticel's Engineered Foam unit by Carpenter.

Furniture exports climbed in the three months to end June on the back of strong growth from the two largest buyers of U.K.-made goods.

Upholstered furniture and floorcoverings retailer ScS has relaunched its Gateshead store in the North East as part of a plan to roll out new concept showrooms with a series of technological and visual enhancements.

Privately-owned furniture importer and distributor Mark Webster Designs and its parent company Mark Webster Holdings have each filed a notice of intent (NOI) to appoint administrators.

The group behind the Oak Tree Mobility and Middletons brands bolstered its manufacturing capability with an under-the-radar acquisition of a motion furniture maker last year.

Upholstery and carpets retailer ScS has bolstered its operating board with the appointment of an experienced retail executive as its first ever chief marketing and digital officer.

June saw the first increase in the quantity of upholstery shipped into the U.K. from China since the turn of the year as overall volumes continued their long-running ascent.

Upholstery brand Arlo & Jacob is launching a debut programme of handcrafted rugs designed by Julie Smith, its chief stylist and creative partner.

Business group Inc & Co has been formally confirmed as the new owner of direct-to-consumer upholstery brand Maker&Son, as The Furnishing Report revealed nearly two weeks ago.

Hardwood cabinet chain Oak Furnitureland is adding new sofa ranges, ways to pay and product guarantees as part of a plan to build market share in what it called its growing upholstery business.

Kellie Oliver has been appointed managing director at upholstered furniture supplier AMX Design, parent company TCM Living announced Monday.

First half profits returned for the upholstery group behind the Alexander & James, Alstons and Ashley Manor businesses as it built sales momentum from the first quarter into the second.

The value of shares in the U.K.'s two largest upholstered furniture retailers fell to levels not seen since the first lockdown last week amid continuing macroeconomic concerns.

Growth slowed to its weakest level in over a year for U.K. furniture manufacturers in a sign production is catching up with the backlog from earlier high demand.

The terms of an investment in the direct-to-consumer adjustable furniture brand Willowbrook have been disclosed for the first time following a venture capital backed buyout late last year.

London based furniture company Andrew Martin International acquired a majority stake in a South Wales sofa manufacturer late last year, shortly before changes in its own ownership structure.

Stoke bedding and upholstery components supplier Handy has secured a deal with an Italian partner that will see it offer customers fully-computerised foam cutting machinery on an exclusive basis.

Declining demand, rising costs and overall economic uncertainty across Europe will lead to a decline in PU foam production this year.

U.S. foam giant Carpenter offered to divest the U.K. comfort foam business of Recticel in order to get its takeover of the overall engineered foam. unit of the Belgian conglomerate over the line. But the offer didn't satisfy British authorities.

Direct-to-consumer upholstery brand Maker&Son is understood to have found a new investment partner after closing in on a deal that ushers in a new era at the circa £25 million business.

At the turn of the century upholstered furniture maker Vale Bridgecraft had more than 600 stockists, comprising many of the finest independent retailers across the U.K. and Ireland.

An eight-day strike at the U.K.'s largest container port is likely to impact the upholstery sector more than others across the home furnishings industry.

Restructuring advisors have been called in to a 75-year-old upholstered furniture vertical that sells through a mix of its own-branded and run showrooms and via third party stockists.

Major upholstery chain ScS says it still has an elevated order book compared with historic norms with the unwind of existing bookings to help it record profits ahead of market expectations.

Colin Day, the founder and previous owner of upholstered furniture manufacturer Whitemeadow, has died after a prolonged battle with cancer, his family has announced.

Fewer restrictions and a less onerous lockdown helped the wholly-owned U.K. arm of French furniture brand Ligne Roset return to growth last year.

A major operator of monobrand Natuzzi and other high-profile furniture brand stores across several key locations in the U.K. generated cash and delivered strong profits through 2020/21 trading.

West Midlands beds and upholstered furniture manufacturer Furmanac Group has appointed an experienced manufacturing executive as its new production director.

U.S. headquartered upholstered furniture giant La-Z-Boy has disclosed the terms of the buyout of the Colne sofa maker Furnico—its longtime U.K. manufacturing partner—for the first time.

Sales jumped £4.1 million for Long Eaton upholstered furniture manufacturer as it narrowed losses.

Spinks, the diversified spring maker for beds, upholstery and other applications, has hired its first-ever global sales director.

Britain's antitrust regulator has elevated its investigation into the takeover of Recticel's engineered foam unit by Carpenter to an in-depth Phase 2 inquiry, heightening the possibility that parts of the deal affecting the U.K. will either not happen or be reversed.

Upholstered furniture shipments into the U.K. jumped sharply at the height of spring as retailers here began to receive goods ordered weeks and months earlier.

Retailers DFS and Dunelm saw year-long low trades in their shares on Friday before both retailers recovered to make small gains on the day. Shares in Made.com closed at an all-time low.

ScS has promoted flooring director Dean Weston to a new and more all-encompassing retail role as part of a number of changes to the management team that also sees a new brief for trading director James Heese.

A major upholstery group that fell into administration two years ago should have been alerted far earlier to the imperilled financial situation of its largest customer.

Maker&Son, the heavily-backed direct-to-consumer furniture brand previously cited as an emerging threat by major U.K. retail chains after a growth spurt during the pandemic, could soon change hands.

Upholstery and flooring retailer ScS has opened a new concept store featuring a series of technological enhancements, a first public airing for a new product tie-up with the U.K.'s largest home interest magazine, and a wider home offer.

Furniture and homeware retailer Loaf says its long-planned Edinburgh showroom will become the largest in its portfolio when it opens later this year.

Furniture factory output in the U.K. continued to run at record levels according to new May data with manufacturers racing to unwind big order books as a result of earlier demand.

The next edition of the London Fabric Show will take place at the ILEC Conference Centre in the capital from February 28–March 1, 2023 organisers have confirmed.

The owners of motion beds and upholstery group Furmanac say the West Midlands manufacturer will be a stronger business as a result of a planned corporate restructure.

Experienced furniture industry executive Simon Davies says he is excited and energised to be joining TCM Living, the sofa group behind brands including Ashley Manor and Alexander & James.

The managing director of Mobus Fabrics says its sustainable, environmentally friendly flame retardant coating GreenFR has created a buzz in the retail sector and is now the main FR finish applied by the West Yorkshire supplier.

Multichannel upholstery retailer Designer Sofas For You (DesignerSofas4u.co.uk) sits within a new corporate structure after its shareholders reorganised their business interests.

Stakeholders have until Monday of next week to come up with a solution that will appease the U.K.'s antitrust regulator.

La-Z-Boy U.K. is sponsoring a family-friendly music festival taking place in the Lake District later this month where headline acts include Stereophonics, Supergrass and The Kooks.

The founder and CEO of Sofas & Stuff says the expanding upholstery retailer will build on growth last year with more good results in 2022 despite a weakening market.

DFS chief financial officer Mike Schmidt is to leave the U.K. upholstery market leader for the same post at B&M European Value Retail, the company behind the value retail chain B&M.

Profits more than doubled at the Ashley Wilde group last year as the Hertfordshire headquartered furnishing fabrics group delivered an eighth straight increase in revenue.

Antitrust regulators in the U.K. have told Carpenter and Recticel to address competition concerns to prevent the proposed takeover of the latter's engineered foam unit by the former from being referred for a more in-depth investigation.

Creditors have backed a company voluntary arrangement (CVA) that puts an end to a two-year administration process for a one-time £55 million upholstery group.

Designer furniture and homeware retailer Heal's has opened a new clearance unit on the King's Road, London in a space that was until late 2020 occupied by upholstery retailer Sofa Workshop.

The md of furniture components supplier Wade Spring says the combination of new export business and an expanded engineering offer were a major driver in increased profitability last year.

Russell Harte is now chief operating officer at upholstery market leader DFS after the retailer redistributed management duties across its senior leadership team.

Upholstery vertical Sofa.com has followed the opening of its new store in York with more new space as it presses ahead in partnership with sister retail brands. Sofas & Stuff is also expanding with a new East Midlands store.

Quick-ship sofa brand Swyft has diversified with the launch of its first programme of upholstered beds and roll-pack mattresses.

North West upholstered furniture manufacturer Buoyant will book a sharp decline in profits in the year to September 2022 after higher raw material costs combined with recruitment challenges.

Man Wah Holdings says the company will appeal after a jury awarded more than $100 million in damages for the alleged infringement of a former supplier's intellectual property. A judge will now decide the actual figure, likely to be a fraction of that amount, pending an appeal.

Upholstered furniture brand Snug has launched a new eco-friendly sofa cover option across its entire programme of sofa models.

A prominent U.K. ecommerce sofa retailer is unaffected by the insolvency of the company that operated the brand for almost four years until the beginning of 2022.

Top-of-the-market upholstered furniture maker George Smith recorded a fourth straight bottom line improvement and third consecutive profit as it traded strongly last year.

Upholstery and flooring retailer ScS says Andy Kemp will join its board as non-executive director next year ahead of the planned departure of one of its existing officers.

Expedient fit-out of high-profile London showroom followed Sofa Workshop ceasing to trade back at the end of March.

Upholstered furniture manufacturer Roger Lewis is to concentrate its activities in the contract arena following a restructuring process that sees it exit the retail sector.

Actona has agreed to buy Polish sofa maker SITS in a deal that means the design, wholesale and manufacturing group has added about £180 million in upholstery revenue through acquisitions in the past year alone.

Upholstery import volumes from China fell by almost a quarter in April as retailers and wholesalers grappled with the rising cost of shipping products in from the country.

Man Wah Holdings, the world's largest motion furniture maker with operations across the Far East and Europe, is considering the spin-off or separate listing of a component subsidiary.

Well-known upholstery industry executive Daniel Feltham-White has acquired sought-after intellectual property of historic retail brand Sofa Workshop.

The value of U.K. furniture production remained at a historic high level in April but fell below revised record figures for the end for the first quarter.

Upholstery market leader DFS has cut its full year profit expectations as a result of continuing supply chain disruption and a slowdown in order intake. It said it still expects to take market share.

Furniture exports out of the U.K. continued their recovery in the first quarter of 2022 but still have some distance to travel to return to historic highs.

Upholstery supplier Nicoletti Home is building further manufacturing capacity nears its southern Italy headquarters with a new factory coming on stream in the next month.

Upholstered furniture chain Sofology has timelined the planned opening dates of both of the latest locations in its new store pipeline.

Italian upholstered furniture giant Natuzzi says it has been scouting new vendors in more stable geographic areas as it looks to plot a course through supply chain challenges.

Sofa company Arlo & Jacob is to be the lead sponsor of the National Premier League tennis finals at the historic St George's Hill Lawn Tennis Club in Surrey.

The insolvency of a direct-to-consumer upholstered furniture company making armchairs, sofas and dining chairs from its factory in the Cotswolds leaves creditors, chiefly the bank, facing a shortfall.

Henry Tadros will take over as chairman at heritage furniture maker Ercol [ercol] this summer, the Princes Risborough manufacturer has announced. He succeeds his father, Edward Tadros.

Fallen upholstery retailer Sofa Workshop sustained losses of £5.5 million last year and would have needed even more than that in funding to see out the remainder of 2022, had the plug not been pulled.

Benelux investment fund chaired by floorcoverings manufacturing scion reallocates shareholdings to newly-created holding company.

Gilles Bonan, the former chief executive and chairman at French furniture group Roche Bobois, has been appointed to the board of Natuzzi.

U.K. upholstery group TCM Living found big sales growth in the first quarter of 2022 on the back of increased demand and the delivery of orders carried over from the end of last year.

Furniture testing and services provider FIRA International has gained UKAS Accreditation to the main flammability regulation for the American market.

Revenue from European markets including the U.K. have jumped by half for upholstered furniture conglomerate Man Wah Holdings in the past year, driven largely by output from its Far East factories.

Italian and Polish sofa factories led a sharp increase in imports at the end of the first quarter with the total value of upholstery arriving at U.K. ports up by more than £50 million compared with last year.

National retailer ScS has hired a former Allied Carpets, MFI and Habitat executive to the newly created role of flooring director as it looks to bolster its proposition in the category, The Furnishing Report can reveal.

The combined turnover of U.K. furniture manufacturers reached a ten-figure total in a month for the first time in history as factories continued to be busy fulfilling outstanding orders taken late 2021 and into the early weeks of this year.

The U.K. and Ireland distribution arm of global motion furniture giant La-Z-Boy found cost savings in the early stages of trading through a market upended by Covid restrictions.

FIRA International, the furniture industry testing and services provider, is to host an online session taking in a broader look at flammability regulations incorporating the rules for Ireland, California and the U.K.

Upholstery vertical Sofa.com is to make a quick return to Yorkshire after plans by a former landlord prompted the closure of its hitherto sole standalone store in the North of England earlier this spring.

David Roberts has been named chief financial officer at TCM Living, the upholstery group that owns Ashley Manor, Alexander & James, Alstons and AMX Design.

Deliveries in the U.K. and Ireland grew at a faster pace for Stressless in the first quarter of 2022 than in any other of its main reporting geographies, with the value of sales reaching almost half of the total for the entirety of last year.

A British company incorporated in December 2020 has been told to change its name after an objection raised by Italian furniture giant Natuzzi.

Britain's Competition and Markets Authority (CMA) has launched an inquiry into the planned takeover of Recticel's engineered foam unit by Carpenter Co., the U.S. conglomerate. Both are key cogs in the U.K. furniture supply chain.

One of the U.K.'s largest privately-owned retailers of furniture and flooring sold on a weekly instalment basis has expanded its sofa manufacturing facility.

96 percent of British furniture manufacturers responding to a closely-followed trade poll said they have raised their prices in the past six months. They are also concerned regarding new order intake.

Belgian foam conglomerate Recticel found big sales growth in the first quarter driven by higher volumes and an inflationary price backdrop.

A creditor-backed restructuring process and strong trading helped transform the balance sheet of upholstered furniture and beds retailer Willow and Hall last year.

The group behind G Plan, Parker Knoll and Collins and Hayes found big growth and a profit turnaround in a second year heavily impacted by Covid with its CEO saying further gains will follow this year.

High-end furniture company Timothy Oulton has strengthened its U.K. board with two senior appointments from within.

Restructuring advisors looking to raise cash for the creditors of Sofa Workshop should soon be in a position to name the new owner of the brand after the deadline passed for bidders late last week.

Furniture wholesaler Birlea has agreed a deal that will see it become the U.K. and Ireland distributor of Disney branded furniture and home accessory products.

Strong demand indicates a tailwind for home-related spending remains, according to Colefax Group, owner of high-end soft furnishings brands and a prestige British sofa maker.

Upholstered furniture retailer Sofology has hired a former Currys and Ralph Lauren executive to the newly-created role of digital and business development director.

Colne upholstered furniture maker Furnico found near double-digit sales growth in the last full year before the business was sold to U.S. giant La-Z-Boy in the autumn.

Upholstery imports into the U.K. jumped by more than a quarter in February despite weak figures from China.

Furniture giant Natuzzi has turned to the office furniture sector for the leader of its newly-formed Furnishing and Accessories business unit, which it hopes will boost order values across its retail network.

The value of U.K. furniture manufacturers' combined turnover was the highest ever recorded in February, according to new figures from the Office for National Statistics.

High demand and wider margins helped Italian furniture conglomerate Natuzzi enjoy a €30 million profit swing last year, with it saying it has continued to write strong business in the early part of 2022.

Sofa Club, the upholstered furniture retailer that sells online and through seven sites across U.K. shopping centres, has reimagined its brand image and product offer.

The price instability in the crude oil and natural gas markets has triggered the introduction of phenomena that the foam industry has not seen for decades, according to the head of the organisation that represents the principal actors in the sector.

Upmarket outdoor dining and indoor lounge furniture company Bridgman has opened a new showroom in Kent, taking its nationwide store count to six.

BFM says U.K. furniture retailers should prepare for further price rises after its members were hit by a slew of rising input costs amid an already inflationary environment.

Global home furnishings company Designers Guild says a huge amount of re-engineering work has helped position it to emerge from the pandemic as a stronger and more robust business.

FIRA International, the furniture test house and services provider, says it has gained accreditation to the Irish Government's equivalent to the U.K. fire regs in a move it hopes will make exports easier for British manufacturers.

Upholstery chain Sofa Workshop ceased trading on Thursday and has been placed into administration, owner Halo Group has said.

Startup venture Homebound is targeting renters and frequent movers with monthly furniture packages spanning a full array of living, dining, home office and bedroom products.



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