On Assignment A-1 At Island Futon

CottonBelle partners Deanna Ridenhour and Mary Lou Rath overcome employees’ stress and fatigue during crunch times with a practical and holistic approach--get them a massage. “Coming from a health-care background, I as well as Deanna knew from the inception of the business 10 years ago that you had to first take care of employees’ needs and then the rest would fall into place,” Rath said. The two entrepreneurs have continued to use that down-to-earth, common sense approach to motivate their employees. That philosophy is paying off for the partners, who worked together in the futon industry for eight years before starting their own business in the tiny farming community of Belle, Missouri, located in the Ozarks.

That small-town togetherness permeates CottonBelle, especially now that the full-time 12 member staff is composed of all women. The staff also includes part-time and contract employees as well as six consultants, including some men. “Our part-time staffers and consultants are invaluable in helping us meet peak production demands as well as provide accounting, product development and art direction skills,” Rath said. “We could not have increased our manufacturing and showroom space to 7,500 square feet without the help and support of all our employees and business associates.” Ridenhour and Rath’s mission of providing well-crafted futons, covers and pillows at a great value is a goal shared by all staffers. Just as is their daily sharing of laughter, flexible schedules to accommodate high production demands and sharing of information and support.

“We work hard to stay ahead of the ever-changing market,” Rath said. “According to the American Express Index, interior decoration has replaced renovation and remodeling as the number one form of home improvement this year. We can help retailers meet those decoration needs with beautiful fabrics that touch all the senses and sensibilities--lush, rich, soft, comfortable, familiar, cozy, vibrant, clean contemporary, traditional, soothing, gorgeous and fashionable. “With mainly mothers working for us, we know how important it is to make shopping easy and enjoyable,” Ridenhour says.“We also wanted to make it affordable, which is why we originated the easy-on-the-budget Easy Cover. It is the ultimate slipcover that can quickly be slipped off and cleaned. As the partners head into another year, they will be adding “performance” fabrics to their line of faux leather and suede this spring. They will also be offering a classy boucle,embossed velvet, and silk line.

To capitalize on growth opportunities in the mainstream furniture market, CottonBelle has formed an alliance with August Lotz, a leading futon frame manufacturer from Boyd, Wisconsin. Last year, the two manufacturers showed their stuff at High Point International Furniture Markets and Futon Expo. Ridenhour and Rath continue to show their line as they nurture and motivate their staff into producing high-quality futons, covers and pillows while still staying relaxed and focused with those wonderful massages.

On Assignment A-1 At Island Futon

Before the sun evaporates the morning dew on the coconut palm fronds and lush vegetation throughout Indonesia, a 27 year-old international businessman and economist strides toward a vast woodworking factory on the exotic island of Java. It’s time to start another day.

He is Dan O’Neil, the Director of Quality Assurance for Island Futon Company, and he has an inspection to complete before catching a late afternoon flight to Kuala Lumpur, when he’ll fly over places named Sunggabuwana, Palembang, then over the Straits of Malacca into Malaysia.

He is on Island Futon Company’s Assignment A-1. His job is straightforward: to determine that each container filled with Island Futon furniture meets the stringent expectations of the American consumer. Despite the locale, this isn’t glamorous work.

A graduate of Columbia University’s School of Economics and International Business, Mr. O’Neil is a conduit between two cultures with vastly different histories in business and consumer attitudes. Dan’s primary focus is to meet the company’s core goal: “We must anticipate and meet our customers’ needs, focus on the customer in everything we do, and offer cost effective, innovative solutions to meet the needs of our customers.”

“If Dan does not accept the produced goods, it is discouraging to the people who work for him, but he has to be firm and resolute. “We will allow no product to leave the factory that does not meet our high standards for quality,” says Island General Manager Sam Leone.

“Because quality assurance is so important, we decided to put our best man on the job. Dan has been full-time, on-site for almost three years now, and it has made all the difference,” he said.

“We pay our Indonesian employees a relatively comfortable wage, however the working class in Indonesia doesn’t customarily possess the most basic things that you and I take for granted,” Mike O’Neil, Dan’s brother and the company’s Director of National Sales, said.

“I’ll give you an example,” he said. “One of our workers spent the night sleeping on one of our futons—not the mattress, just the frame—and said it was one of the best night’s sleep he’d had in a long time. Otherwise, he is sleeping on the floor. We’re looking for ways to improve our Indonesian employees quality of life.”

Dan O’Neil enters the workplace and walks briskly to the production department before heading back to the loading platforms. It’s time to have a serious look at what’s coming off the line before inspecting the container-load waiting his approval.

The production manager watches intently as Dan inspects the frames. While the machinery hums and big collectors pull sawdust from the humid air, Dan rubs his hand over the smooth arm of what will be sold in the States under his company’s brand name. “Very nice work, Yunanto,” he murmurs to the boss. “Impressive.”

Dan monitors all aspects of production: the winching of big logs out of rivers, saw milling, kiln-drying, furniture manufacturing, packaging, and container loading. He provides the on-site quality inspection that satisfies Island Futon’s strict attention to detail and excellence. “It is through our commitment to continuous improvement of our quality process that has enabled Island Futon to be the premier provider of futon frames throughout the United States, Michael O’Neil said.

Ninety percent of the of the goods consumed in the United States travel on cargo ships at some point in their manufacture. Looking out over the vast oceans covering the globe, sometimes it seems to Island Futon staff in White Plains, N.Y. that most of those containers are packed with Island Futons.

Since the emphasis on the company’s 18 Step Quality Assurance Program and the recently added “Tuff-Pak” packaging to promote damage-free deliveries, Island’s business is growing steadily.

An esprit de corps is evident in the faces of New York-based employees such as Larissa Carlson (accounting), Gabe Ruiz (data processing), Jocielyn Palad (customer service), Diana Videla-Schray (order processing), Valerie DeVito (traffic department) and Val Pinto (accounting).

Island Traffic Manager John Murphy says, “With the slow-down of the Asian economies and the upturn in our business we have to work twice as hard to obtain enough containers over there to bring our goods in to our customers. We do it, but it is more difficult nowadays.”

Island Sales Manager Michael O’Neil adds: “Since adding the new Quality Control program we need more containers than at any time in our history.”

On the other side of the globe, Dan O’Neil sips a cup of real Java and chats with the managers of the sprawling factory outside of Surabaja, a city of several million in one of the world’s most over-populated countries.

He knows the factory workers are pleased that he is happy with the work being done now, and that tomorrow in Kuala Lumpur, he’ll have a similar experience with the employees there. “It’s all in a day’s work,” Dan said with a smile on his way to the airport. Before the sun evaporates the morning dew on the coconut palm fronds and lush vegetation throughout Indonesia, a 27 year-old international businessman and economist strides toward a vast woodworking factory on the exotic island of Java. It’s time to start another day.

He is Dan O’Neil, the Director of Quality Assurance for Island Futon Company, and he has an inspection to complete before catching a late afternoon flight to Kuala Lumpur, when he’ll fly over places named Sunggabuwana, Palembang, then over the Straits of Malacca into Malaysia.

He is on Island Futon Company’s Assignment A-1. His job is straightforward: to determine that each container filled with Island Futon furniture meets the stringent expectations of the American consumer. Despite the locale, this isn’t glamorous work.

A graduate of Columbia University’s School of Economics and International Business, Mr. O’Neil is a conduit between two cultures with vastly different histories in business and consumer attitudes. Dan’s primary focus is to meet the company’s core goal: “We must anticipate and meet our customers’ needs, focus on the customer in everything we do, and offer cost effective, innovative solutions to meet the needs of our customers.”

“If Dan does not accept the produced goods, it is discouraging to the people who work for him, but he has to be firm and resolute. “We will allow no product to leave the factory that does not meet our high standards for quality,” says Island General Manager Sam Leone.

“Because quality assurance is so important, we decided to put our best man on the job. Dan has been full-time, on-site for almost three years now, and it has made all the difference,” he said.

“We pay our Indonesian employees a relatively comfortable wage, however the working class in Indonesia doesn’t customarily possess the most basic things that you and I take for granted,” Mike O’Neil, Dan’s brother and the company’s Director of National Sales, said.

“I’ll give you an example,” he said. “One of our workers spent the night sleeping on one of our futons—not the mattress, just the frame—and said it was one of the best night’s sleep he’d had in a long time. Otherwise, he is sleeping on the floor. We’re looking for ways to improve our Indonesian employees quality of life.”

Dan O’Neil enters the workplace and walks briskly to the production department before heading back to the loading platforms. It’s time to have a serious look at what’s coming off the line before inspecting the container-load waiting his approval.

The production manager watches intently as Dan inspects the frames. While the machinery hums and big collectors pull sawdust from the humid air, Dan rubs his hand over the smooth arm of what will be sold in the States under his company’s brand name. “Very nice work, Yunanto,” he murmurs to the boss. “Impressive.”

Dan monitors all aspects of production: the winching of big logs out of rivers, saw milling, kiln-drying, furniture manufacturing, packaging, and container loading. He provides the on-site quality inspection that satisfies Island Futon’s strict attention to detail and excellence. “It is through our commitment to continuous improvement of our quality process that has enabled Island Futon to be the premier provider of futon frames throughout the United States, Michael O’Neil said.

Ninety percent of the of the goods consumed in the United States travel on cargo ships at some point in their manufacture. Looking out over the vast oceans covering the globe, sometimes it seems to Island Futon staff in White Plains, N.Y. that most of those containers are packed with Island Futons.

Since the emphasis on the company’s 18 Step Quality Assurance Program and the recently added “Tuff-Pak” packaging to promote damage-free deliveries, Island’s business is growing steadily.

An esprit de corps is evident in the faces of New York-based employees such as Larissa Carlson (accounting), Gabe Ruiz (data processing), Jocielyn Palad (customer service), Diana Videla-Schray (order processing), Valerie DeVito (traffic department) and Val Pinto (accounting).

Island Traffic Manager John Murphy says, “With the slow-down of the Asian economies and the upturn in our business we have to work twice as hard to obtain enough containers over there to bring our goods in to our customers. We do it, but it is more difficult nowadays.”

Island Sales Manager Michael O’Neil adds: “Since adding the new Quality Control program we need more containers than at any time in our history.”

On the other side of the globe, Dan O’Neil sips a cup of real Java and chats with the managers of the sprawling factory outside of Surabaja, a city of several million in one of the world’s most over-populated countries.

He knows the factory workers are pleased that he is happy with the work being done now, and that tomorrow in Kuala Lumpur, he’ll have a similar experience with the employees there. “It’s all in a day’s work,” Dan said with a smile on his way to the airport.

Cotton Works Celebrates 10 Years Of Steady Growth And Customer Satisfaction

For a 10-year-old, Cotton Works Industries, Inc. has grown up fast, transforming itself from a laid-back supplier of futons and accessories into a high-tech, service-driven enterprise that ships its products to the nation’s top 100 furniture retailers.

While Cotton Works has changed its location, narrowed its focus solely to covers and expanded its marketing reach, the company has held fast to its founding principle of providing quality products with excellent service, says CW President Jim Martin.

“We started off with about 10 customers,” Martin said. “Now, we’re in about 1,700 different stores. We originally started out with just futon specialty shops. As the futon industry changed, we did, too. Now we’re in the country’s leading 100 furniture stores and we’re doing some exporting overseas.”

In 1989, Martin was called in to provide marketing assistance for a floundering Florida futon company. “I did a lot of research, went on the road for two weeks, visited stores that sold futons and recognized that it was a good company that just had shaky management skills.”

He ended up purchasing the company, sold its two retail outlets and pumped money into the manufacturing concern. One of the key steps in turning the bankrupt company around was to strengthen relationships with customers, Martin said. “We called all the customers, explained the situation honestly, and said, ‘But we’re here now and this is what we’re going to do.’ And we did what we said. Then we did the same thing with the suppliers.”

The strategy paid off. “We still have our first customer,” Martin said.

“From the beginning, our emphasis was on customer service,” added Lynn Martin, Jim’s wife and Cotton Works co-owner. “We understand where the retailers are coming from. When we started off, we spent a lot of hours in the store, dealing with customers.”

She knows first-hand the frustration retailers feel. “What good does it do to sell a $2,000 futon suite but then have to wait on a $50 cover? It makes you crazy.”

The company zeroed in on ways to streamline and enhance operations. “When we started off, we manufactured pine frames, futons and covers. We offered seven covers, and we only sold to Florida then,” Martin recalled. By 1991, Cotton Works had dropped production of frames to concentrate on futons and covers. Two years later, Cotton Works moved to Albany, Georgia, which offered a central location for distribution to the southeastern United States.

Meanwhile the futon industry itself was changing. “When we started, futons were basically viewed as college dorm furniture. The only kind of frames you could get were unfinished, and the covers lagged behind other fashion trends by three or four years,” Martin said. “And you could only buy futons in specialty stores.”

As futons entered the mainstream marketplace, customers demanded more quality and selection in frames, futons and covers. “So the industry trend has been to provide products that go more places and are appealing to more people,” Martin said.

“That meshed well with our philosophy at Cotton Works. For instance, we use only first-quality upholstery fabrics. No seconds. And we have a 10-year warranty to back our products. That’s a rare claim in this business,” he said. “Our goal is to give good value, not to have the cheapest product.”

By 1995, Martin said, Cotton Works recognized its forte was covers, and began pouring all its resources into that area of its business. It closed down its futon production in 1996.

Today, Cotton Works offers more than 130 cover fabrics, including one of the industry’s best line of tapestries. The company monitors trends to ensure it can offer the latest looks as well as traditional styles, and is presently launching a new line of leather covers.

Despite other changes, service has remained a top priority at Cotton Works. The company developed a solid reputation for its speed at turning around orders. “We have a three-day guarantee, and most orders actually ship within 24 to 48 hours,” Lynn Martin said. “You don’t have to place a minimum order with us. And you can fax in your orders to us toll-free 24-hours-a-day, seven-days-a-week.”

The dedication to providing premier service actually has been a controlling factor in the growth of Cotton Works, Martin said. “We have deliberately kept our growth steady and manageable. We knew some smaller specialty stores were afraid that our service would go downhill if we started selling to the top retailers. Well, it hasn’t, and it won’t.”

Ten years after going into business, savvy marketing and a clear understanding of customers’ needs are keeping Cotton Works on track. “In many cases we actually act as the customer’s warehouse. They don’t need to have a storeroom full of our inventory. By using our swatch rack, which is very attractive, our customers can have 100 turns a year with minimal inventory. Also, it takes up hardly any space. So it’s to our customers’ advantage to deal with someone who ships quickly,” Martin said.

Cotton Works also puts technology to work. “We’re using a completely computerized shipping system, to speed shipments up and cut costs as well,” Martin said. “We also have a web site where we show a few covers in each group and a contact page where people e-mail us for more information. Retailers get a sales call and we send consumers to a customer’s store in their area. We do a lot of referring.”

The company has maintained a full-time presence in High Point for the past five years. “We share a permanent showroom with Largo at 150 Main Street,” Martin said. “Largo is a manufacturer of metal and wood futon frames that ship in two days. This show relationship has worked very well for both of us because we share the same company philosophy of great service and quick shipping.

Martin concluded, “From the beginning, we have tried to be responsive to changes within the industry, advances in technology and the needs of our customers. But the real basis of our success at Cotton Works is that we have loyal customers who share suggestions with us. We appreciate their trust in us. We don’t take any of them for granted. And with their continued support, Cotton Works expects each birthday to be bigger and better.”