by Segment is anchored by 2 new members, Brown Jordan and Treasure Garden
HIGH POINT — The Furniture Manufacturers Credit Association Inc. has formed a new group to support suppliers in the outdoor furniture segment of the industry.
The FMCA recently announced it has launched the Outdoor & Casual Credit Group to help this segment gain similar services as the furniture sector since its formation in 1961.
The organization said this group “is designed to help participants gain clearer visibility into account trends, manage exposure more confidently and identify risk earlier through FMCA’s industry-specific trade data, structured interchange meetings and professional education — helping members mitigate risk and facilitate sales.”
The group is anchored by two new members specializing in the outdoor space, Brown Jordan and Treasure Garden Inc. The credit lead for Brown Jordan is Anne Mattson, director of credit, and for Treasure Garden it is Jocelyn G. Chavez, credit manager.
David Johnston, FMCA vice president and general manager, told Home News Now that the group has been looking to create a specific arm within the FMCA to serve outdoor furniture specialists. It made sense, he noted, particularly as current members such as Lexington Home Brands, Bassett Furniture, Ashley, Universal, Bernhardt, Hooker Furnishings, Intercon and others have expanded in recent years to offer outdoor furniture. He also noted that membership includes factoring firms such as Rosenthal Capital Group and CIT Commercial Services.
“As more of them have moved to the outdoor space, we thought of a way to grow the association and to bring on people in that space and have more members contributing data and having separate interchange meetings,” he said, noting that having two inaugural members focused on outdoor furniture is a key development to launching the new group.
“They are big players,” he said, adding, “There hasn’t been much data for outdoor until the past few years as more and more traditional members have gotten into the outdoor space. We knew it was a good time to reach out to them and see about them coming on as anchors.”
He said the new group will cater specifically to the segment, addressing issues that are unique to the casual furniture industry.
“The outdoor and casual category has its own credit dynamic — seasonality, freight exposure and longer production cycles can change risk quickly,” Johnston said. “With respected leaders like Brown Jordan and Treasure Garden helping anchor the group from day one, the FMCA Outdoor & Casual Group gives suppliers a dedicated forum to share factual trade experience, strengthen visibility and make faster, more confident credit decisions.”
Member benefits and services include:
+ Industry-specific credit interchange reports and trade data on more than 35,000 retailers and designers that aims to help members make more informed credit decisions and “manage exposure with confidence.”
+ Dedicated interchange meetings where members submit information on dealer accounts for review and discussion “that support structured fact-based interchange.”
+ Collections support and 10-Day Final Demand Notices that help members recover past-due accounts.
+ Education and peer collaboration along with networking that helps credit professionals “stay informed, connected and equipped.”
Currently, the FMCA has more than 70 organizations and more than 300 credit professionals as members. These individuals currently participate in FMCA meetings and activities. Now, those in the outdoor space, including residential companies with outdoor divisions and outdoor-only specialists, will be able to participate in their industry-specific meetings and networking events.
To encourage new members to join the association, FMCA is offering several incentives including free 2026 membership, 50 free credit interchange reports, 50% off reports after the first 50 reports and access to dedicated Outdoor & Casual Group meetings. Suppliers selling both indoor and outdoor furniture will receive 50% off 2026 dues, 50 free credit interchange reports and participation in both FMCA and outdoor and casual interchange meetings.
“We always want to say that we are a complement to their credit insights,” Johnston noted. “We are not trying to replace other information or resources that they use. I like to use the analogy that if you go into a room and you only turn on a couple of light switches, you don’t get the full picture. But the more light switches that you turn on, the brighter the room is and the more insight you have to make informed decisions to mitigate your risk and facilitate your sales.
“The whole thing with our member-helping-member association is sharing factual information within antitrust and federal guidelines where competitors can come together, and within those laws and guidelines we share our historical insights so folks can make better credit decisions. … It just made sense for us to take a stab at this now. We have added several new members lately and are just continuing to have a good period of growth. This just complements that and puts us in another space in the industry.”
