by Bunk bed specialist’s demise has resulted in some increased inquiries and business for those remaining in the category
HIGH POINT — The recent demise of bunk bed and loft bed resource Trendwood could spell opportunity for other youth resources seeking to bolster their prospects with retailers seeking to fill the void.
Competition from those resources likely created this type of consolidation in the marketplace as many have brought design and innovation to a category that demands such attributes from both parents and kids seeking to elevate their living spaces.
Indeed Trendwood was cited for its own advances in the segment — including elevated looks and finishes — largely in solid pine and birch plywood components.
But now that the 30-year-old company has left the market — attempts to reach Trendwood were met with a greeting stating the company’s number was no longer in service — many youth furniture resources say they are prepared to serve retailers looking to bolster their mix with not just bunk and loft beds, but other products in the youth furniture mix.
Donco Trading Co. was probably one of the largest competitors to Trendwood, offering a line of bunk beds, stair bunk beds, low and tall lofts, tent beds and daybeds with bookcase storage, to name several key items. Many of these either have built-in drawer storage or are designed to have a trundle or drawer storage underneath the unit.
The company also offers twin and full-sized beds for the youth bedroom, again offering optional trundle units and storage drawers for each model.
“I am probably most known for and do the best volume in bunk beds,” said Don Bumgardner, president, adding that its same-day shipping model also is another major asset for its customers. “We keep it in stock, and we ship like lightning.”
Having known and been friends with Trendwood and its team for its duration, he is not pleased to hear the recent news of its demise.
“Youth furniture has taken a bigger hit probably than any other category in the last three years,” he said. “I don’t know why. Either people aren’t having kids, or they are not buying houses or they are not moving. I think it might be all three.”
That said, he does expect to see some impact from the Trendwood closing on his business in the near future although there wasn’t any major spike at the October market.
“I would love to pick up some of their business and I’m sure I will,” he said, noting that the company is looking to gain slots with majors, many of whom would benefit from its quick-ship distribution model out of Dallas and High Point.
Jim Ziozis, chief executive officer of the Linon Powell Group, said that the company received some inquiries at the October market about youth furniture and bunk beds in the Powell line. With bunk beds and daybeds and companion case pieces as the strongest part of its youth segment, he noted that the company is poised to serve customers wherever the need arises.
“We offer the whole gamut in metal, metal and wood, and solid wood,” he said, noting that the company’s message to customers is that it is there to meet the needs in areas wherever they have a steady flow of business. “We are known mostly for all wood and all metal. The wood business never died. The only thing that died was the cheap metal bunk bed business because of costs and tariffs. You can’t get that $199 twin-over-twin metal any longer unless it is made out of paper-thin metal.”
Paul Comrie, chief executive officer of Elements International, said the Trendwood closing already has had an impact.
“Big time,” he said of customer inquiries the company has received of late. “Clearly they were a player because we had multiple large customers come to us specially looking for bunk beds and finishes that Trendwood was known for. I think we have gained a nice little reputation in the youth category when we launched our new and improved Cribs to Cribs concept a few markets ago. Our youth sales are up 40% year to date, and we are having a lot of success in that category.”
Playing off the popular MTV Cribs theme, Elements’ Cribs to Cribs concept offers a range of furniture for every child in the household, from cribs for the nursery to dorm-type furniture, such as lofts or bunk beds.
“It just runs the gamut in terms of a full-service solution for the nursery, kids, tweeners, teens and beyond,” Comrie added. “We had a lot of customers coming to us before we launched it saying they were struggling with youth. The sales per square foot they get out of youth bedroom is not as productive as they get out of a master bedroom slot. And they have problems flowing youth bedroom.”
The program offers dealers a wide selection of product for a 4,000-5,000-square-foot gallery. Elements also backs it up with inventory so retailers can continue selling goods without interruption or long waits on containers from overseas.
“We stocked it all so it would help with their turns, and then we showed them ways to be more productive in terms of sales per square foot that would help them produce more out of these galleries and help get them excited about the category again,” Comrie said.
Coaster Fine Furniture previously was a wholesale distributor for Trendwood for many years. However, the company said it discontinued this partnership about five years ago because of its own growth in more stylish solid wood bunk beds from Southeast Asia “taking over.”
Currently it offers a mix of wood and metal bunk beds in its lineup. While it hasn’t seen any immediate inquiries with the closure of Trendwood, it already is having success in the youth segment, including bunk beds.
“Both wood and metal bunk beds in twin over full and twin over twin are important to the youth bedroom segment,” Crystal Nguyen, vice president of merchandise and strategic planning at Coaster told Home News Now, adding that stand-alone twin and full-sized beds, including daybeds with trundle units as well as twin and full-sized upholstered beds “also capture meaningful business.”
She added that the company also expanded its mix of metal bunk beds at the October market with 12 new models featuring a metal slat system that simplifies bed assembly and is more stable. As they are made in Malaysia, she noted that they also avoid China stacking tariffs.
Lifestyle Enterprise also carries a wide mix of youth furniture including twin and full-sized loft beds and a range of bunk beds retailing for as little as $249 for a twin-over-twin model.
The company told Home News Now that as it didn’t compete with Trendwood, it hasn’t seen any immediate impact or increase in business from the closing.
“Most of the people that buy bunk beds from us, they didn’t buy from Trendwood,” Derrick Ng, president of the company’s case goods division told Home News Now. “I don’t see any plus for us at the moment with the shutdown.”
However, he noted that the company’s bunk bed business is quite strong already because of its style, quality, selection and overall value.
“Bunk beds are very important for us,” Ng said, adding that the company wants to add more style and color to the program. “We also want to add more shapes and different price points. That should help this category. Even though it is selling very well, I feel we need to have some changes.”
That includes more easy-to-assemble offerings, which he said could significantly reduce the assembly time for a typical bunk bed.
Higher-end resources such as Icon specialize in custom bunk beds that have an MSRP of $6,499 for a standard twin over twin and elevated twin over full that retails for $8,999. Company owner and CEO Jason Clay told Home News Now that while no one specifically mentioned Trendwood at market, many designers told the company that it is very hard to find “good-looking, quality bunk beds as many vendors have stopped selling bunk beds.”
“Bunk bed designs have stringent consumer safety standards, and the design itself takes some engineering to make it strong and attractive,” Clay said, noting that it is always “heartbreaking to hear of any company that closes their doors, especially a made-in-the-USA company that has been around as long as Trendwood. … I think many furniture companies eventually opt to discontinue bunk beds because they are a lot of work.”
And while it is higher priced than most resources in the market, he said Icon fills a niche for high-quality, customizable products that will last for many years to come.
“At Icon, bunk beds are our specialty as they have been for 20 years,” Clay added. “We aren’t a furniture company that decided to start selling bunk beds. Bunk beds have always been our main business. We love this niche and are excited to continue to produce made-in-the-USA bunk beds here in Montana.
“Icon Bunks are designed as heirloom pieces of furniture. They have a limited lifetime warranty and while we realize they are a higher price point for bunk beds, customers won’t have to replace them or deal with any issues. They are designed for heavy use and built to last.”
