Decor-Rest Keeps With Old Values and Commitment to Quality
April 4, 2002
Ontario, Canada - While a spate of mergers and acquisitions have reshaped the international home furnishings industry the furniture manufacturer Decor-Rest remains hands-on and family-owned.
Italian immigrants Angelo and Christina Marzilli founded Decor-Rest Furniture Limited in Ontario in May 1972. Their children, Natalie and Angelo Jr., have joined the company''s management team, enabling the elder Marzillis travel the globe attending markets, scouting trends and meeting clients. The younger Marzillis oversee management and marketing efforts on the home front.
The company deals with American mills - Quaker, Mastercraft, Culp, and Hoffman - for fabrics and buys from tanneries in South America, Italy, and Asia.
Decor-Rest offers retailers 400 fabrics and 20 leathers in at least 50 colors each season. Approximately 10 fabrics are exclusives for six months to a year. "We have a large offering of mid-priced upholstery," said Natalie, "producing as many as 100 models of traditional, transitional, and contemporary upholstery. But we''re known mostly for our fabric-covered traditional and transitional styles."
She points out that leather has grown and continues to increase. "We''ve only been in it for five years and already it is 10 percent of our business."
At Showtime, Natalie and Christina seek out body clothes ranging from $3.50 to $6.50 a yard and fabrics for top cushions and occasional chairs as high as $15 per yard. Decor-Rest sofas at retail range from $699 to $999 generally.
The company''s selection of chenilles draws the majority of its customers.
"Probably 60 percent of what we offer and sell is chenille fabric," said Natalie. "We''re getting more demand for panel stripes, and we''re presenting more brocades and tapestries with chenille yarns. But opulent chenilles to cover traditional frames and casual chenilles to cover transitional frames are the most sought after."
For American and Canadian customers, Decor-Rest employs independent designers to develop new themes and frame designs. "We do this instead of employing designers in-house because we feel like we get a better cross section of looks," said Natalie.
Decor-Rest also markets to a handful of international clients. "We sell to the Middle East, Scandinavia, and Asia. For these countries we do all the styling in-house because each requires distinct looks," said Natalie.
For the upcoming spring selling season, Decor-Rest is putting its money on a black tone, "mulberry," as well as sophisticated French blues. One collection will feature opulent woven fabrics, while another will focus on American inspired ginghams, plaids, and stripes.
In the last eight years, Decor-Rest has received an armful of Trilliums, the prestigious Canadian Manufacturers Award. Decor-Rest is listed as one of the top upholstery manufacturers in Canada, with sales in 2001 of $60 million (Canadian). F&FI
Italian immigrants Angelo and Christina Marzilli founded Decor-Rest Furniture Limited in Ontario in May 1972. Their children, Natalie and Angelo Jr., have joined the company''s management team, enabling the elder Marzillis travel the globe attending markets, scouting trends and meeting clients. The younger Marzillis oversee management and marketing efforts on the home front.
The company deals with American mills - Quaker, Mastercraft, Culp, and Hoffman - for fabrics and buys from tanneries in South America, Italy, and Asia.
Decor-Rest offers retailers 400 fabrics and 20 leathers in at least 50 colors each season. Approximately 10 fabrics are exclusives for six months to a year. "We have a large offering of mid-priced upholstery," said Natalie, "producing as many as 100 models of traditional, transitional, and contemporary upholstery. But we''re known mostly for our fabric-covered traditional and transitional styles."
She points out that leather has grown and continues to increase. "We''ve only been in it for five years and already it is 10 percent of our business."
At Showtime, Natalie and Christina seek out body clothes ranging from $3.50 to $6.50 a yard and fabrics for top cushions and occasional chairs as high as $15 per yard. Decor-Rest sofas at retail range from $699 to $999 generally.
The company''s selection of chenilles draws the majority of its customers.
"Probably 60 percent of what we offer and sell is chenille fabric," said Natalie. "We''re getting more demand for panel stripes, and we''re presenting more brocades and tapestries with chenille yarns. But opulent chenilles to cover traditional frames and casual chenilles to cover transitional frames are the most sought after."
For American and Canadian customers, Decor-Rest employs independent designers to develop new themes and frame designs. "We do this instead of employing designers in-house because we feel like we get a better cross section of looks," said Natalie.
Decor-Rest also markets to a handful of international clients. "We sell to the Middle East, Scandinavia, and Asia. For these countries we do all the styling in-house because each requires distinct looks," said Natalie.
For the upcoming spring selling season, Decor-Rest is putting its money on a black tone, "mulberry," as well as sophisticated French blues. One collection will feature opulent woven fabrics, while another will focus on American inspired ginghams, plaids, and stripes.
In the last eight years, Decor-Rest has received an armful of Trilliums, the prestigious Canadian Manufacturers Award. Decor-Rest is listed as one of the top upholstery manufacturers in Canada, with sales in 2001 of $60 million (Canadian). F&FI
