HIGH POINT, N.C. - The promotion possessed all the subtlety of a Victoria's Secret fashion show. And, much like a catwalk full of lingerie-clad models, it also proved immensely popular.
The Vaughan-Bassett furniture showroom at the massive High Point Furniture Market was filled with 40 live trees to introduce the company's new initiative: Vaughan-Bassett plans to plant one tree for every tree it uses to produce its furniture. The company estimates it will pay for 150,000 saplings a year to replace trees that are harvested for headboards, dinette sets, and dressers.
"We don't know what we can do to be more environmentally friendly than replacing every single tree we use in the production of our furniture," said Vaughan-Bassett president Wyatt Bassett. "You have other companies trying to get a stamp or seal of approval for doing much less to help the environment."
The eco-friendly edict was echoed throughout 12 million square feet of showrooms in this town, as companies from across the country rolled out new designs at the furniture industry's semiannual, weeklong showcase. Of course, some office furniture-makers have been touting eco-aware products for years, while smaller, independently-owned companies have been making earth-friendly furniture for just as long. But for the first time, large furniture manufacturers such as C.R. Laine, Precedent, Rowe, and Bernhardt are publicly jumping on the green bandwagon, introducing lines of furniture they say are more environmentally conscious.
Industry analysts see the introduction of environmentally-friendly furniture by large companies as an attempt to lure younger shoppers away from specialty stores such as IKEA, which has been drawing customers with chic, inexpensive designs while touting its environmental awareness.
"The furniture industry is slumping because baby boomers are downsizing, they're not furnishing new homes," says consumer researcher Jerry Epperson of Mann, Armistead & Epperson. "The industry needs to reach out to younger customers, and what people like my daughter and her friends care about is the environment and sustainability. This is clearly a way of trying to draw in younger people by focusing on an issue that they care about."
The construction of this new crop of environmentally-friendly furniture is remarkably similar across manufacturers. Most frames are built from wood collected from certified sustainable forests. Cushions, usually constructed of 100-percent petroleum-based foam, are being made from a mix of 80 percent petroleum and 20 percent soy. Steel springs are made of 50 percent recycled metal. The glue is formaldehyde-free. Several companies are even replacing polyester filling in sofa backs and throw pillows with fibers made from recycled plastic soda bottles.
And dressing up those eco-conscious innards are fabrics made from hemp, as well as bamboo-cotton blends and organic cotton dyed according to the Global Organic Textiles Standard, a 20-page list of rules establishing standards for organic fabric. The wood finishes are water-based.
"Everybody's introducing a green program this year," says Peggy Burns, an owner of local chain Circle Furniture as she inspected the environmentally friendly offerings in the C.R. Laine showroom. "You can see it in low-end all the way up to high-end. Everybody who is taking a little bit of chemical out is suddenly saying they're green."
Currently, any company can now claim that their eco-conscious line or initiative is the most green. There are no guidelines or rating systems spelling out what makes furniture environmentally friendly.
But changes are in the works. Some industry members have recently formed an organization called the Sustainable Furniture Council. At the moment, membership in the group is obtained by paying the $1,500 corporate dues ($125 for individuals) and agreeing to promote sustainable practices within a company. Eventually, however, the group hopes to set up standards and a ratings system to help inform consumers about how earth-friendly their love seat truly is. Such standards are at least a year away, according to council members.
Green furnishings - like hybrid automobiles - come with a price. In most cases, these new lines of furniture, with names such as Ecollection, down2earth, and Naturals, cost about 10 percent more than pieces constructed through conventional methods. Initially, C.R. Laine was only planning to offer its down2earth eco-package in its cottage line of furniture. But a C.R. Laine spokeswoman said reaction was so strong among retailers, that Laine now plans to offer the eco-package in all four of its furniture lines. Manufacturers say it's too early to tell what percentage of overall sales will come from green furniture, but consumer interest is growing.
"What's really driving consumers' buying habits right now is the whole green movement," says Woody Williams, CEO of Precedent furniture, which sells to retailers such as Crate & Barrel and Room and Board. "We really got on this about six months ago, and decided to make a real commitment to it. Now that we're all becoming more aware of the environment, it's become a priority for us."
Some smaller furniture-makers that adopted eco-friendly practices several years ago are not entirely convinced that larger manufacturers are going green out of the goodness of their hearts.
"Unfortunately, I think they're using it purely as a marketing tool," says Trevor Webb, owner of California-based furniture company Urban Woods.
Instead of harvesting trees from forests, Webb's company makes tables, dressers, and headboards from wood that has been salvaged from demolition projects. At the High Point show, he was sitting at a table built from timber that was once part of a soundstage at MGM studios - the same soundstage where "The Wizard of Oz" and "Citizen Kane" were filmed. He's also developed a stain for his furniture he claims is so safe that humans can drink it without worry.
"It takes a lot of research and a lot of work to truly make sustainable furniture," says Webb, who's a member of the Sustainable Furniture Council. "What these companies are doing is a step in the right direction, but they still have a long way to go. If you're using 20 percent soy in your foam cushions, that means 80 percent is still petroleum-based."
So how long, if ever, will it take the big furniture manufacturers to go completely green? The challenges lie in how the industry currently operates. According to Epperson, 50 percent of furniture is made from imported wood. A single piece of furniture can be made with wood that comes from multiple factories, making it much more difficult to determine whether elements were harvested from a sustainable forest. Cost is another factor holding back a fully eco-aware furniture industry. Many processes involved in making green furniture require more time and, in some cases, more expensive materials.
How quickly those changes become more widespread across the industry will depend on how consumers respond.
"Right now, it's a monetary choice. You have to pay a little more for the green furniture," says Circle Furniture's Burns. "People will say 'I care about the environment.' But people also love bargains. It's all about the dough. The question is, do people care enough to pay more?"
Source: Boston Globe, 10/18/07
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