Allied Home Piles on Pillows

Home Textiles Today Staff -- Home Textiles Today, 10/3/2011 2:00:00 AM

NEW YORK - Allied Home's sleep pillow business continues to grow with the help of a new production facility opened last spring in North Carolina.
     With three production lines going, "We're already approaching capacity," said Andy Schantz, ceo and chief product officer.
     Allied is already making plans to expand the facility by at least 30% and as much as 50%, he said.
     "We added dimension to the company by adding an East Coast FOB," he said. "Several ports are within a short distance for hauling, and there's a lot of skilled labor because this was a big textiles area."
     The company has also added to its sales force in the Northeast, Chicago and on the West Coast. Further down the road, Allied may build production in the Midwest, Schantz said.
     In addition to the company's retail business, "Our hospitality business is growing by leaps and bounds every month," he said. "Our approach is like creating product for retail accounts with retail standards and fiber, fabrics and finishing technology the consumer shops for in stores."