We are Moving our Office!!!!!

New Changes for GREAT Goals in the New Year!!!!

Carroll Leather, Inc. of Conover, NC announced today that it has signed an agreement to acquire theleathercollection of Hickory, NC.  Carroll Leather is a major supplier of upholstery leather to the furniture industry specializing in residential upholstery leather and is a leader in service, dependability and value driven leathers.  The acquisition of theleathercollection, a high-end leather resource will enable Carroll Leather to supercharge its leather program.  

Joe Franck, Vice President of Carroll Leather, Inc upholstery division said that “Combining our organizations will allow us to expand our leather offering to existing customers of both companies. We believe the combination of expertise from both companies will provide current and new customers with more value, service, versatility and satisfaction. ”

                                                                                       

Carroll Leather, Inc intends to keep theleathercollection brand intact with a focus on the design, contract, hospitality, aviation and automotive aftermarket industries. They also intend to grow the leather offering and are committed to growing theleathercollection brand.  Kym Bauguess, a principal of theleathercollection will join Carroll Leather and will be responsible for continuing the growth in these markets. “We are pleased to have Kym join the Carroll Leather team says Joe Franck. Her expertise in these design oriented markets is invaluable. Kym will have the freedom to do what she does best and that is selling!”

The combination of these companies will have a great impact on the leather industry.  The two companies will consolidate into the Carroll Leather facility in Conover, NC.  Updates will be posted on www.theleathercollection.blogspot.com as they break. 

Raw Material ..... a Commodity!

Being a business owner in the business climate today is a stretch for a seasoned professional, but for a "newbie" like me these past 2-years have been boot camp!!  The new commodity increases in the manufacture sector of the US furniture industry has everyone at odds and just plan nasty. Commodity pricing is hard to predict. With every commodity you have unique and natural factors, which make them impossible to control. All manufactures would like consistent predicable pricing, but when you are buying any product that has a commodity based or is linked to a natural resource then you cannot predict or control the price. Price is at market value and the price will run as long as it last and when it changes then you change the price. It is like buying Lobster, market value daily. A great source to keep up with the daily trades and the forecast for commodities is www.futurestradingcharts.com. This site offers some good report to help you anticipate the coming increases or decreases in raw materials. All natural product rise over the course of time think about the historical data on the oil industry. It will never be what it was in the 30's.

Leather raw material prices have been increasing and the indicators show leather will continue to rise due to reduced beef consumption, natural disasters and increased demands from larger leather markets. Also fewer hides are available due to the stricter control by customs, which will rule certain countries out of raw hide business. The US furniture manufacture is faced with rising cost and many are insecure that the consumer will be able to afford the increase. The US manufacture has so many competitive disadvantages that this is just another level of frustration. Most of the increases that have been passed along happened in January and have not been felt by the consumer, so we are yet to see the effect at retail. How will it effect sales for the US manufacture? The US consumer will soon need to look at every item they buy to decide where to send their money. I say buy American made any chance you get. Another factor for the US manufacture is that the furniture industry as a whole is the smaller user of leather hides, yet expects the best quality and the lowest price. Volume and price are King to a tannery. Without large volume in the furniture industry then price will suffer to keep the flow of quality material. Another great report that will give you details on the raw material market is www.indexmundi.com. If you can subscribe to www.theSauerReport.com then you can stay in the daily loop on the business of raw hide trading and the price fluctuation.

In past years increases could be taken and business would continue as normal. With the business environment today it is a delicate balance. These extra increases are yet another road block for the the US manufacture. How we sell products and how we work together in a customer vendor relation will have to change. Even at the dealer level selling will have to change and be LEAN and direct. Cutting out steps and process will be the only way to keep the business flowing. US manufactures can no longer anticipate standard color sales. manufactures will rely on vendors to work with them as part of a purchasing team to create new ways of servicing the consumer. It is in these key relationships that you will see the driving change. Consumers are ready for this movement and all of them understand the need for the change. Not easy nor fast, but it will have to happen to keep the US manufacture competitive with the imports. A new wave of training and merchandising will have to take over in order to progress. Designers for many years took a back seat to the Retailers at the High Point Furniture Market in North Carolina and now it is the designers who are embracing the change and stepping up the furniture game. Designers are changing the furniture business and dealers will have to adopt at least some of their thought processes in order to continue to grow. Remember, if you are to big to change you will become a Dinosaur. It is a fact that when disaster strikes it is the creative people that drive the change to push forward to new and greater levels.

Check out a great source of Design that has been pressing the industry to step up and I really don't think they will give us using cotton or any cool raw material. www.dwellstudio.com

leather care products

It seems many people want to know the very best way to stretch every dollar and to keep their leather in mint condition. I spent some time researching the leather care & cleaning products and found many companies have a warranty program and less focus on the products.   theleathercollection stocks all of leather care products that are shown on our website. We all want our expensive leathers to last a lifetime and in order for that to happen you have to know how to take care of your leather. theleathercollection is all about leather and we found a company to partner with that is all about leather care. It was important to theleathercollection that the leather care product work on all of the leathers in theleathercollection line. LCK is that company! They have premium leather care products that are straight forward and easy to use.

Check out the LCK website at http://www.lck-international.com/. You can also get to the LCK site via our website at http://www.theleathercollection.us.

Please take some time to learn more about taking care of your leathers and call theleathercollection to order your products at 828.256.9773.

Linen by theleathercollection.....Natural and Special

Rafael..... New.. Natural and wow how beautiful. You have to see this material. We are stocking Rafale in Hickory NC so view the video.



If you are interested in the pattern give me a call at theleathercollection. (828)256-9773 or e-mail me at kbauguess@theleathercollection.us

Renaissance leather with new elegant embossed designs

Renaissance is a German Aniline with a beautiful color line that we have stocked for the past 15 years and this Showtime in High Point, North Carolina we revealed two very distinctive designs embossed on the surface of Renaissance. Now you can have Renaissance in the original silky smooth solid leather or in the enhanced versions with he new embossing. The Hypnotic design, which is a scroll motif, or Equalitaral a geometric design, which is a series of squares and gives the Renaissance a slight contemporary flair. Since Renaissance is in a class all by it's self with these new embossing that create a new level of interest. The new embossing are available on the Renaissance in 1/2 hides form and great to create a dramatic effect on furniture, walls, bedding and all accessories. Our video is attached which will walk you through our new additions to RENAISSANCE.

theleathercollection...a look inside

We have been working on a video that would take you through our process and our factory. I wanted to do something different and I think I have done just that. When you view the video know that it was filmed by a Boy Scout from Concordia Troop 383, Chandler Roffey. He is in the 6th grade at Concordia Lutheran School in Conover North Carolina and he has been filming and making movies for the past 3-4 years. He has his own website at http://www.roffeystudios.com where he post his videos and he is very interested in getting into this industry. I saw his site and his work and thought he may have a great spin on my company. More of a playful and youthful look. So I gave him the job. Please post your thoughts.