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“Most customers just understand it as another recycling fee, so there’s no arguing about it,” Dan Pedersen of Al’s Furniture in Fresno, Calif., says.

Policy Matters

HFA Government Advocacy Update for September 2019

HFA members turn recycling obligation into opportunity As Kevin Matthews sees it, California’s mattress recycling program adds a little more to the cost of doing business in a high-cost state. It increases the workload, according to Dan Pedersen. Yet, both try to manage the program effectively or even turn it into an opportunity. California launched Bye Bye Mattress in 2016 to stem the flow of the bulky items into landfills and to reduce illegal dumping. The program, operated by the Mattress Recycling Council (MRC) in Alexandria, Va., puts significant responsibility on retailers who sell sleep products. They must: Register to

September 12, 2019

News

Does your store have too much inventory? Tepperman’s latest opening proves less is more

Home Furnishings Association member Andrew Tepperman of Tepperman’s is not one to go by the book. When the industry zigs, Tepperman frequently zags. That’s probably why his 94-year-old company is such a hit in Ontario, Canada. So, when Tepperman’s announced it was opening a store – number 6 if you’re keeping score – in its biggest market to date, the conventional thinking was it would also be opening its biggest store. Just the opposite: The new Ancaster store outside Hamilton is Tepperman’s smallest. The company took over the 45,000-square-foot space abandoned by Sears a few years back in a total rebuild from the interior

September 11, 2019

Neblett Choir promotes an event at Knight Furniture

Shop Talk

HFA members honored for giving, give advice to other retailers

Don’t get them wrong. Home Furnishings Association members Knight Furniture and Stacy Furniture are honored their Texas stores will be recognized at the upcoming NEXT Conference for their long-standing giving to the communities they serve. But, as Stacy President Dorian Stacy Simms tells it, “There’s something odd being honored for doing the right thing. We don’t do what we do for any award down the road. We do it because it’s the right thing to do.” A third Texas store – Swann Furniture – will also be honored for its community commitment at NEXT Conference Sept. 25-27 in Arlington, Texas.

September 9, 2019

Policy Matters

Retailers can submit tariff comments

Furniture retailers can submit comments on another proposed increase in tariffs set to take effect Oct. 1. Meanwhile, Americans for Free Trade, a coalition of more than 160 business groups including the Home Furnishings Association, has asked President Trump to delay new tariffs and increases scheduled for the rest of the year. “These tariff rate increases … come at the worst possible time, right in the middle of the busy holiday shipping period,” an Aug. 28 letter from the coalition said. Earlier this summer, President Trump declared the United States would put 10 percent tariffs on $300 billion of List 4

September 9, 2019

Policy Matters

CPSC testing triggers Kirkland’s recall for tip-over hazard

Two chests of drawers sold by Kirkland’s have been recalled because of safety concerns. “The recalled chests are unstable if they are not anchored to the wall, posing serious tip-over and entrapment hazards that can result in death or injuries to children,” the Consumer Products Safety Commission said it a recall notice Aug. 28. “The dressers do not comply with the performance requirements of the U.S. voluntary industry standard (ASTM 2057-17).” Kirkland’s will refund the purchase price or install tip-restraint devices, according to CPSC. This is a significant action, which should alert Home Furnishings Association members not to sell clothing

September 9, 2019

News

HFA members are ready for Dorian. Are you prepared for your natural disaster?

Hoping to avoid disaster, Home Furnishings Association members from Florida to North Carolina have one eye on their showroom floor and the other on weather updates this week as Hurricane Dorian slowly churns its way north. In Wilmington, N.C., it was a busy Tuesday morning for HFA member Mike Serafina and his Local Living Furniture staff despite the store being empty of customers. Instead of selling furniture, Serafina and his crew were lifting and stacking inventory atop wooden pallets and stacks of wood, hoping for the best but preparing for Dorian’s worst. “We know it’s coming – it’s just a

September 4, 2019