Home Accents Today announces 2014 Retail Stars honorees

Home Accents Today announced the names of the 50 businesses selected for inclusion on its 2014 Retail Stars list.
 
The annual list, now in its 10th year, recognizes independent brick-and-mortar retailers of home accents, including furniture stores and interior design boutiques, who are creative in their merchandising, have a positive presence in their local communities and are distinguishing themselves from the competition. The Retail Stars list is not a ranking, and is not based on sales volume.

The businesses named to the list are based in 21 states with Texas and California contributing seven and five stores, respectively. This year’s diverse group, 90% of which operate in a single location, ranges in size from A Studio, a 400-sq.-ft. shop situated on Michigan’s scenic “Tunnel of Trees” highway, to the 1.2 million-sq.-ft. showrooms of  Jamestown, North Carolina’s Furnitureland South. A third of the stores are ringing up annual sales in excess of $3 million, and 10 stores are at $5 million and above. The 2014 Retail Stars include one centenarian -- Reeds/Jenss of Amherst, N.Y., which opened in 1912 -- and a 97-year-old, McCurry Furniture Co. of Warrior, Ala. At the other end of the spectrum, half of the stores have been open 10 years or less.

“The retail climate is changing faster than ever before, and it takes a lot of effort to stay on top in these changing times,” said Jenny Heinzen York, editor in chief of Home Accents Today. “The 2014 Retail Stars exemplify excellence in independent retail and are true role models for their innovation, customer service, marketing and merchandising strategies which make them leaders among their peers. This honor recognizes all their skills, not to mention their hard work, and should serve as a reminder to us all to support local businesses.”

Members of the home furnishings industry were invited to suggest stores and retailers were encouraged to submit  information describing their businesses. The list was compiled and narrowed down by Home Accents Today's research analysts and editors.

The 50 Retail Stars list, sponsored by AmericasMart Atlanta, publishes each year in the May issue. A copy of the 2014 Retail Stars story, with photos and information about the honorees, may be purchased and downloaded here.
To commemorate the 10th edition of Retail Stars, Home Accents Today revisited some of the retailers on the inaugural 2005 list. Find out where they are now and how the challenges of being an independent retailer have changed in a special edition of Retail Update, here.

Home Accents Today’s 2014 Retail Stars are:
A Studio, Good Hart, Mich.

Aldik Home, Van Nuys, Calif.

Anteks Home Furnishings, Dallas, Texas

Bass’s Tradition House, Moultrie, Ga.

Bedside Manor, Winnetka, Ill.

Belfort Furniture, Dulles, Va.

Bronstein’s Fine Furniture, Mobile, Ala.

Bungalow Home & Garden, New Albany, Ohio

Cactus Flower Interiors, South Padre Island, Texas

Carolina Rustica, Concord, N.C.

CasaBella Interiors, Brandon, Miss.

Cleveland Lighting, Cleveland, Ohio

Clive Daniel Home, Naples, Fla.

Cocobello, Hudson, Wis.

Daisy’s, Alameda, Calif.                 

Daisy's Designer Alley, Greensboro, N.C.     

DH Collection, Fort Worth, Texas            

DOMA Home Furnishings, St. Petersburg, Fla.             

Eclectic Design Source, Libertyville, Ill. 

Furniture Affair, Phoenix, Ariz.                 
Furnitureland South, Jamestown, N.C. 

Garber’s Interior Design, Elkhart, Ind.                                               

Gray Living, McKinney, Texas

Hemphill’s Rugs & Carpets, Costa Mesa,  Calif.

Hillside Furniture, Bloomfield Hills, Mich.

IBB Design Fine Furnishings, Frisco, Texas

Interior HomeStore, Sherman, Texas

Isidro Dunbar Modern Interiors, Miramar Beach, Fla.

Kensington Furniture, Northfield, N.J.

Kindel & Co., Howard City, Mich.

La Maison Interiors, Scottsdale, Ariz.

Le OBJECTS For The Home, Seattle, Wash.

Lila Home by Lauren Nicole Designs, Charlotte, N.C.
McCurry Furniture Co., Warrior, Ala.

Metro Home Style, Syracuse, N.Y.

One Swanky Shop, Marble Falls, Texas

Reeds Jewelers/Jenss Décor, Amherst, N.Y.

Rich Designs Home, Colorado Springs, Colo. 

Room 22, Oklahoma City, Okla.   

Rummage, Los Angeles

Shed – The Eclectic Home, Maplewood, N.J.

Sign of the Dolphin, Seminole, Fla.

Simplicity Décor, Kirkland, Wash.

Stock & Trade Design Co., Homewood, Ala.

The Front Porch, Waukesha, Wis.

The Woods Fine Amish Furniture, Plainview, Minn.

Thornberry Cottage, Green Bay, Wis.

Under a Hula Moon, Kailua, Hawaii

Vintage Nest, Glenview, Ill.

Zinc Details, San Francisco, Calif.

Source: Home Accents Today