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HIGH POINT — Amish furniture manufacturers seeking to thrive in a crowded case goods market continue to push and, in some cases, boost their custom options as a competitive edge.
The challenge lies in knowing the appropriate type and number of options and how to effectively communicate those options to dealers and consumers alike.
Simply Amish, for example, is adding new table sizes and styles of table bases as well as new drawer fronts and leg options for dressers, beds and buffets in its Style Your Own dining and bedroom programs.
This joins the already extensive number of options in each line, including 100 finishes as well as 30 different table top sizes and 60 base designs. The bedroom program offers 10 nightstands, six beds each in five sizes and 12 chest and dressers, with six different drawer fronts and 12 different bases.
To communicate this selection, Simply Amish has added a feature to its Style Your Own App that allows salespeople and consumers alike to see how various custom options affect the final price.
“There can be too many options, and it can be overwhelming, but with the app, it makes it easier to go through the options and not overwhelm the consumer,” said Kevin Kauffman, co-founder and owner of Simply Amish. “Without the app it can be too much for people, but with the app it simplifies it.”
At the April High Point Market, Amish furniture manufacturer Country View Woodworking added two new table edges that give it a total of seven and two new wood tone finishes, keeping its number of finishes at just over 50.
The company also offers various wood species and custom sizes within the line as well as multiple hardware options.
“It is very, very important to be flexible,” said Roy Miller, founder and president. “We are adaptable to our customers’ needs.”
While he admits the number of options can be confusing, the company has limited some of the options in its Express Ship program to changes in table leg styles and finish. Product in this program ships to stores in about two weeks from the time of order, which is made possible by limiting the number of options.
But even on other special orders, which require longer lead times, the company offers retailers a kiosk that lets salespeople and consumers visualize different options on various pieces. By the fall, it is looking to offer an online tool that shows various custom options as well as information about pricing.
One of the things Borkholder Furniture is doing to remain relevant to its customer base is developing a smaller scale dining room program.
“I think there is a market there we are missing,” said Bill Cubberley, director of business development.
He noted that for a domestic manufacturer such as Borkholder customization is important, particularly in today’s shrinking retail environment.
“One of the things that is happening is that there are less retailers out there to sell, so we have to count more and more on the design community,” he said. “When you deal with that community, you deal much more with special orders. It is almost a need.”
Today, he estimated, special order represents about 25% to 30% of Borkholder’s business.
“You can almost take any of our tables and make it almost any size you want,” he said. “I have never worked for any company that does as much customization as this company.”
As many customers do research online before going to a store, company websites also are an important communication tool when it comes to options.
Daniel’s Amish Collection, for example, lets customers customize various dining pieces on the website, choosing between options such as finish and wood species and sizes.
On the bedroom side, customers can choose from a variety of finishes, wood species and hardware for example.
To keep the number of options manageable, Daniel’s limits the number of additions to its offerings. For example, it typically introduces two to six finishes twice a year. It also limits its number of Sunbrella performance fabric choices available on headboards and footboards.
“We try to keep it a year or two without changing it and try to give just enough variety to meet everyone’s tastes,” said George Arbeiter, national sales manager.
Daniel’s Amish Collection also maintains its number of hardware options to about 50 and its wood finishes to about 50, which are in addition to its nine distressed finishes and four to five painted finishes.
This variety, Arbeiter said, continues to give the company an advantage over imports.
“I think that imports will always be smart enough to identify a style and a wood stain that will appeal to a lot of people,” he noted. “They have to outguess trends and tastes. By us giving customers a variety of wood species and stains and sizes, we don’t have to outguess the public. We can give them six, eight, 10 or 12 choices.”
Not every Amish manufacturer, however, has added to its menu of custom offerings. Conrad Grebel, for example, has limited its number of options focusing on the top selling finishes, leg styles and table edge styles.
“In some ways it has kind of backfired,” said Chad Gascho, company founder, of too many options, noting that limiting the number helps get the product to the customer quicker. “We need to simplify. People are not as patient these days.”
But some still believe having more is what sets them apart, particularly from lower priced imports.
“A lot of times when we introduce the customer to the idea that you can build you own piece and it’s not that complicated, they really enjoy the process,” said Kauffman, of Simply Amish.
Its app allows them to do that in both the store and their home. However, they can only get the actual pricing when a salesperson is logged into the app at the retail store.
“When we first introduced it without the pricing, they loved it,” said Kauffman of the initial response from retailers. “But when we added the pricing, it has taken all the work out of it.”
