Home & Harmony opens NYC showroom

By Staff -- Home Textiles Today, 9/8/2003 12:00:00 AM

ATLANTA —

Home & Harmony has opened a New York showroom, the brand's first permanent residence in the city since its official launch this past January at Heimtextil in Frankfurt.

The luxury brand, marketed by sourcing consultancy HomeSource International, encompasses bedding for adults, juveniles and infants as well as bath and accessories. The new showroom is located at 230 5th Ave.

"The whole idea is to have a clarity of offerings here," said president Keith Sorgeloos. "It's a story of texture and color with classic style that we feel is puts a differentiated twist on traditional high-end white and ivory bedding."

Adult bedding ensembles include mix-and-match elements, including richly hued gabardine duvets, corduroy duvets and shams, embroidered silk dec pillows, mohair throws, and Micro-Cotton blankets and throws.

The components have also been developed so that each can stand alone as an item business, Sorgeloos added.

"The philosophy behind the design is color and texture but also simplicity," said Craig Benepe, executive vp, sourcing. "It generally falls into the category of 'less is more.'"

All sheeting is "true 300-count," Egyptian cotton percale from Italy, which Home & Harmony considers "the ideal sheet" in terms of content and construction, he said.

"Sateens pill and wrinkle. And the market's overloaded with sateens," Benepe explained. "We like the crispness of percale. Also, when you stuff a sheet with threads, it's harder for it to breathe well, and consumers complain that it's too hot."

A fine-whale piqué top-of-bed with embroidery will also be offered in an adult duvet as well as in infant bedding, which is hand-embroidered and hand-appliqued in Argentina. Diaper bags and an organizer accessorize the line. The juvenile Next Generation group will offer a hand-embroidered washed-denim look for top of bed in twin and full sizes.

"The long-term mission for Home & Harmony is to create style and comfort for the whole family in a way that is unique, innovative and differentiated," Sorgeloos said.

Bath introductions will include a reversible line of towels. Home & Harmony's core Micro-Cotton towel, now in 11 colors, will add four more for January/February shipping: soft pink, aqua marine, chocolate and true claret. The brand also will introduce a Micro-Cotton herringbone jacquard in white, ivory and linen. Accessories include robes, bath rugs and tub mats.

For add-on sales, the brand is offering triple-milled French soaps embossed with the Home & Harmony logo, as well as candles. It's also part of a strategy to go after the giftable business in catalogs, Sorgeloos said.

The brand has been expanding its backend during the year. In April, the company opened a distribution center Asheville, NC. Mainly intended for Home & Harmony, the DC will also be used for HomeSource International business. The business also maintains an eight-person sourcing office in Shanghai, China.

The Home & Harmony team now consists of Eric Loges, vp, bath sourcing, who came on board in February; Darby Todd, managing product development; Sue McDermott, sales manager for Canada, and Ada Cruz, head of sales and marketing for the Northeast. Product is now being offering in nine showrooms in the U.S., with 29 reps handling additional territories.

Carolina Ciblis and Carola Blaquier, owners of four freestanding bed and bath stores in Argentina, handle design.

"They're our partners in the brand and the key influence," Sorgeloos said.