Commonwealth Home Welcomes Angel

Expands Outdoor Decor, Thermalogic Lines

By James Mammarella -- Home Textiles Today, 3/9/2010 12:00:00 AM

At the New York Market —

A wealth of line extensions and new tweaks to products will greet buyers at the 261 Fifth Ave. New York showroom of Commonwealth Home Fashions this market.

Leading the way will be Angel, a curtain style in a new plush fabric. Angel will be offered in six colors, ready to hit the $39.99 retail price point for a single panel, said Barry Goodman, vp national accounts.

Also fresh is The Ultimate Liner, which Goodman said tested quite well in initial prototypes and is being formally introduced this season. “It's an insulated blackout liner that can be used on any kind of window treatment: tabtop, pinch pleat, rod pocket, or grommet,” said Goodman. With easy-to-follow illustrated instructions on how to attach the liner to different panels, Ultimate Liner gives consumers the option of adding energy-saving qualities to any look they may already have at home. The targeted retail price is $19.99 per panel.

In the signature Commonwealth heat-conserving line Thermalogic, a new jacquard check keys the season's introductions. A grommet model, it is called Checkers and is offered in six colors, priced for $39.99 retails.

Goodman said the still-growing Outdoor Decor collection, conceived for “fifth room” decorating, will be extended with three new designs — Berries, Berry Stripe, and Marquee. These spun poly goods, which are water-repellent, mildew-resistant, and UV-protected, aim at $29.99 retails.

Commonwealth's line of sheers, Rhapsody, will be graced with a new embroidery dubbed Twiggs, offered in white and natural and priced at $29.99.

Goodman heads to market optimistic both on the overall state of the window treatments marketplace and on price trends. “It has leveled out,” he said about the apparent close of the deflationary period felt across the category in the last year or two. “We're getting a fair market price for products; now people want good quality, and seem willing to pay a little bit more.”

Goodman remarked, “Perceived value is certainly the key.”

Once the spring New York market is in the rearview mirror, Goodman said Commonwealth will attend the National Hardware Show (May 4-6, Las Vegas Convention Center), and will be “looking for new channels of distribution, especially for our Outdoor Decor and Thermalogic lines.”