This week in design, a growing number of designers and homeowners are reclaiming their forbidden childhood whims and drawing directly on their walls to bring their spaces a youthful feel. Stay in the know with our weekly roundup of headlines, launches, events, recommended reading and more.
Business News
Wayfair reported a decline in revenue and sales for the most recent quarter, with CEO Niraj Shah comparing the current home category slowdown to the 2008 financial crisis, CNBC reports. The online home goods retailer saw a $42 million net loss during the second quarter—a slight improvement on the $46 million loss the same quarter last year—while sales fell to $3.12 billion, down roughly 2 percent year-over-year. On a call with analysts, Shah stated that the company’s credit card data suggested that the category is down by nearly 25 percent from its peak during the fourth quarter of 2021 (adjusting for inflation would make that 35 percent, he said), which he compared to the declines seen from 2008 to 2010. Still, he noted that long-awaited interest rate cuts, expected to arrive as soon as September, could put Wayfair and the overall home industry on the path to improvement.
Mitchell Gold + Bob Williams is back on the market with a curated selection of 50 pieces in more than 200 configurations, available online through the brand’s new parent company, Surya. According to a release from the rug company—which acquired MG+BW out of bankruptcy last fall—the full relaunch will be coming this fall with an enhanced product portfolio. Additionally, production and distribution for the line will resume at its original facilities in North Carolina, allowing the company to rehire many former factory employees. The brand also announced that it is moving forward with chief operating officer Darryl Webster at the helm, while co-founder Mitchell Gold continues to serve as an advisor ahead of the debut of the full product lineup.
Big Lots may close up to 315 stores after coming to new credit and loan terms with its lenders, Retail Dive reports. According to a filing with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission, the retail chain’s lenders have reduced its available credit from $900 million to $800 million—an amendment that comes less than two months after Big Lots reported facing a liquidity crunch and net losses that forced it to use cash to operate over the last two years. The new number of potential closures represents a marked increase from the company’s previous plans, which called for shuttering up to 150 underperforming stores. If the reported 300-plus locations do indeed close, it would reduce the company’s 1,392-store retail footprint by nearly 23 percent.
After gaining popularity during the pandemic for highlighting eccentric home listings, social media account Zillow Gone Wild is now facing allegations of copyright infringement, Fast Company reports. In a lawsuit filed late last month, real estate photographer Jennifer Bouma claims two of her images—capturing a $1.93 million castle-themed home in Monroe, Washington—were posted on the account (which is curated by former BuzzFeed writer Samir Mezrahi) without her permission. Now Bouma is seeking up to $150,000 per photograph after initial negotiations with the account’s insurance provider failed to reach an agreement. According to experts, Mezrahi could claim his posts are protected under the fair use doctrine, which allows the use of copyrighted materials for comment and criticism—though if that defense fails, Zillow Gone Wild could face similar litigation from other photographers.
High-end furniture manufacturer Charleston Forge acquired West Virginia–based case goods manufacturer MacKenzie-Dow in a purchase that will merge the two family-owned companies, Furniture Today reports. The terms of the deal were not disclosed. According to Charleston Forge president Dan Minor, the North Carolina company introduced a limited selection of MacKenzie-Dow pieces at High Point Market this spring, and plans to debut products produced by the newly combined companies at Fall Market.
Arizona home retailer Sam Levitz Furniture is closing several stores in the state, including one location in Oro Valley and two in Tucson, Home News Now reports. The 71-year-old company’s storefront on Tucson’s Orange Grove Road will be its only remaining retail location following the closures.
The Consumer Product Safety Commission announced a recall of RH’s Jeune French upholstered panel crib after the cylindrical metal inserts on the item’s wooden frame were found to loosen and detach, posing a choking hazard. As Furniture Today reports, there were two cases of the item’s inserts loosening, but no injuries have been reported. According to the company, around 480 units have been sold from January 2021 through this March. Customers who purchased the cribs are advised to stop using them immediately and contact RH for a full refund or a replacement at no charge.
Launches and Collaborations
This week, Houzz unveiled AutoMate, a suite of AI tools integrated into its Houzz Pro project management and design software. The new features will allow users on the Houzz Pro mobile app to access the AutoMate Assistant, enabling voice activation for tasks like formatted notes, daily logs, change orders and expense entries, along with automating manual tasks like on-screen measurement in the Takeoffs space-planning software.
Online furniture brand Rove Concepts tapped John Legend for the debut of a homewares and furniture line drawn from the musician’s personal aesthetic and California lifestyle, Women’s Wear Daily reports. The Journeys collection features five pieces with natural, organic shapes and an earthy color palette: a rug, coffee table, side table, sofa and lounge chair.
Luxury home retailer Perigold has partnered with four interior designers (who also happen to be parents)—Marie Flanigan, husband-and-wife duo Jesse Carrier and Mara Miller of Carrier and Company, and Ashley Obradovits—for the launch of a new children’s furniture and decor shop called Rooms to Grow In. The shop will include furniture and storage solutions geared toward newborns to tweens.
Ruggable teamed up with Pantone for a colorful collection designed to spark creativity. Their second collaboration features three Pantone colors—Pale Peach, Kelp Forest and Coastal Shade—available in 11 different rug styles, including seven indoor, two outdoor and two doormats.
Dallas Market Center has partnered with the Brazilian Chamber of Commerce, Industry and Services (CISBRA) for the creation of a new trade show called Nearshoring America. Set to take place at Dallas Market Center from December 9 to 11, the event is designed to connect companies in the gift, home furnishings, lighting and fashion accessories categories with factories and supply chain service providers from Mexico and Latin America.
Recommended Reading
If the inside of a client’s refrigerator isn’t currently on your list of spaces in need of design, it soon might be, thanks to a growing social media trend. For The New York Times, Lia Picard dives into “fridgescaping,” in which homeowners create aesthetically pleasing (and often themed) vignettes inside their fridges, employing artful ceramic dishes, fresh flowers and fairy lights to bring life to their appliances’ interiors.
While boucle has been everywhere the last few years, its history in the home world extends back much further—nearly a century ago, to the moment when Florence Knoll asked childhood friend Eero Saarinen to design a chair deeper than “a basket of pillows.” For Elle Decoration UK, Kassia St Clair traces the history of the textile from its inception as a cutting-edge material in the 1930s to its recent resurgence in the interior design realm.
In Memoriam
Brand expert and industry veteran Edward Leaman—the former chief brand officer for California Closets—has passed away. Leaman spent the early years of his career in the lifestyle business realm, leading his own consulting company and working with clients like Gap, Nike and Giorgio Armani on retail expansion and brand development. From 1994 to 1998, he became executive vice president at California Closets, leading the brand through a period of transformative growth. After departing to found consultancy firm Growers and Nomads, he returned to California Closets during the pandemic to help it navigate yet another series of unprecedented changes. “He was an artist of ideas and the truest embodiment of our values,” wrote the company’s CEO, Charlie Chase, in a statement. “Perhaps the best way to speak to our love for Edward and his steadfast love for so many is to recall one of his favorite quotes by Pablo Picasso, which reads, ‘The meaning of life is to find your gift. The purpose of life is to give it away.’”
