New H&M leathers from the Market

Here's some of the new leathers, which are not yet swatched to dealers. Some of these will be in the new Town & Country program for 2010. I do have these large swatches in my store and if you are in the Wash DC Area you can see them all in person if you stop by.

Not all the burnished samples are new, however its the first time I've had large sections to line up next to one another so I have included them as well.

You're going to see a lot of the "Dream" and "Portfino" series in national ads and in web site photos. Very supple, and soft. Nice hands, protected leathers. Portino reminds me Equestrian, but is a finished hide whereas Equestrian is not.

Burnished and Hand-Antiqued leathers are a hot look right now. I happen to like them a lot, but keep in mind these are artisan-toned by the craftspeople in the H&M finish department AFTER the piece is fully made. As such, there is a wide range of tonal color and variance to be expected, and forget about ever matching a second piece to one that is already made. Buying in this group is like buying a painting - be prepared for variances.

Hi Duane-
Thanks so much for ordering those leather samples for us! The Portofino Tobacco looks like a very nice leather! Is it as heavy as Equestrian? When will H&M make available swatches of these new leathers? Thanks again!

Probably late January to mid-February when the dealers see the samples arrive. They're available to order now. Yes, the Portofino is as thick and heavy as Equestrian.

So the Portofino leather may not tailor as well, especially on a sofa like the Evening due to the curved back cushions? Thanks-

Hi Marianne,

It looks and feels very much like the Payson Chino that is on the Evening sofa I have in the store, but its a grade less costly. It should tailor about the same as well. I took a small clip off my sample and dropped it in the mail to you today. You might like it!

Hi Duane,

Which leather is on the sofa (first two pictures) that these swatches are placed on? Thanks

That's a Hancock and Moore Evening Sofa in Payson Chino, a USA-tannery leather, grade 3, that is no longer available. I have a front photo of that sofa here on the forum under PHOTO RESOURCES

Hi Duane and Happy New Year,

I’ve been contemplating the purchase of a sofa for a few months now. Several months ago I PM’d you and you were so nice to send me answers to my questions. I've been keeping up with the postings in the forum, feel like I've learned a lot more about leathers - I think I’m finally in the home stretch.

Instead of cowardly PMing you where no one else gets the benefit of your answers, I decided to be brave and post my questions.:)

Since we last emailed, I did get a chance to take a Hancock and Moore factory tour. “Factory” isn’t the word they should use – “studio” is more like it. There were no big machines – just American craftsmen and women who seemed to be pretty happy making Hancock and Moore furniture. I had a really nice tour guide – older fellow – knew everyone on the floor – joked and kidded around – it was near the end of the tour that I realized that “Jimmy” was in fact Jimmy Moore, one of the owners. I had read all the “good stuff” about Hancock and Moore – but I wasn’t prepared for what I experienced. This place is all about getting it right and making each piece carefully – no mass runs of anything going on there. They build ‘em piece by piece. I could go on, but I won’t – other than to say – having seen this, I wouldn’t even consider buying anything leather other than Hancock and Moore.

Anyway, I’m still undecided about exactly which leather and sofa. Following are the contenders; I’d appreciate any advice anyone can offer to help me decide. I know that whatever I pick is going to last a long time – a very good thing if I get it right – but if I get it wrong . . . .

Sofas
I have a small room 11’10” x 16. The sofas I’m looking at are some of H&M’s smaller sofas with respect to outside depth and overall proportions.
• 4651 Lena (from the dimensions, think this looks really comfortable – not sure about square arms though – like the nice clean lines for small room)
• 4152 Reserve (like it, might like higher arms – don’t love the wheels on the legs)
• 4111 Garden (looks “bigger” than the others – which is why it’s last)
(I did find and try a City Sofa – liked it, didn’t love it. Also the smaller one is a little smaller than I want as far as inside width.)

Duane, how would you say these differ in how they sit? Do you have any of these on your floor?

Hides
I want a protected hide – love some of the unprotected – but I’m going with leather to simplify my life and have a sofa that is golden retriever friendly. I’m thinking:
• Antelope Chino: When I was at H&M they were working on one of these. (It was beautiful.) But when I looked at the picture of the sample on the H&M website, it doesn’t even resemble what I saw. (I know the pics aren’t accurate, but now I’m wondering if I’m mistaken about the hide I saw. I’m ok with the fact the Antelope has a color variation hide to hide, but is that just a bad pic?) I’d love to get a sample of this to be sure.
• Portfino Tobacco: Hadn’t seen this until I looked at your market photos. Like it. You say it’s a little like the Equestrian – I had heard some forum members say that Eq. squeaked a little like a saddle – does Portfino? May I get a sample of this as well?
• Columbia Butternut: Not quite as special as the first two, but from the prices you had sent me a few months ago, the price difference makes it special in its own way. May I have a sample of it as well?
• Anything else you’d recommend that’s along these lines?

Finally, and this may make the sofa decision for me – will all of these fit through a 30” door opening. My den has three doorways – all three are 30” openings. One is just a doorway, no door – straight shot on each side.

I know you’ve said that H&M prices could change the beginning of this month. Did they? How much? Will there be the Feb. sale - same as usual 5%? Do you mind pricing out at least one of the above models with all three leathers in the new prices so I can see the difference between grades?

I do plan to purchase from you, Duane. I wouldn't take this much of your time and not order from you once I decide. I appreciate the info and advice you give everyone.

I’m also looking at two Jessica Charles swivel rockers – do you carry JC – didn’t see it listed on your furniture store website. I may need to order that locally as I'll be needing some help with fabric selection/color coordination.

I didn’t realize what a long post this was going to be. Sorry about that. Thanks in advance for your assistance.

Bravo! I like it when questions are on the forum rather than PM's because then everyone gets the benefit of the exchange. Over time, we can have a very nice library of answers built up that way.

I'm amused by your story of the tour of Hancock and Moore! How many hours did you tied-up with Jimmy before he let you go? :D That's his very favorite thing to do you know, give the tour! And he loves to kid around with his 'family' all the workers there. Of all the various furniture producing places I've been inside in the past 25 years, H&M has the most dedicated and enthusiastic workers of all - which is why I'm their # 1 fan. Did you get to meet Gloria at the front? (she runs the whole place, but don't tell Jack or Jimmy).

Onto the sofas per se:

# 4651 Lena: To be honest I've never had one come through the store. It has all the right specs for a mainstream sofa, however, so I would be comfortable saying I don't think you would be disappointed in it.

# 4152 Reserve: This is the smaller Apartment sized model, but it does sit well and is a popular model. At this size its more like a loveseat, are you sure you can't fit the full size 4153 in the room? The 16' length should accommodate the 84" model I would think. Legs can be swapped out, we do it all the time. Sometimes a modest upcharge, other times none at all.

# 4111 Garden: Another good sitting mainstream sofa. Sits a little higher than the others with a 21" seat height. if you are under 5' 5", your feet will probably not touch the floor in this one.

#9840 City Sofa. Agreed. I find the 9840 City a bit short seated, and not tall enough for me. A bit too cut down.

Leathers:

Antelope: If you can tolerate the grade 3 price point, this is the best and finest of the protected hides. A German leather, it is plush, soft, rich in appearance and still is fully protected. The photos don't do it justice!


Portofino Tobacco: This is a new leather, and I'd place it squarely in the middle between Antelope and Document. Its not as rich looking at Antelope, but not as processed-appearing ad Document. Has a light pebbly texture and a good soft hand while being fully protected. It won't be confused with Equestrian, but its decent.

Columbia Butternet: My favorite class 1 leather BY FAR. No other class 1 hide looks or performs as nice as this one. You will not confuse it for the two above, but it looks richer than it is, and most folks can't believe its entry grade when they see it made up.

Other leathers: Still staying in fully protected, I'd say that Aspen is one to consider, and if you can give up a little on the protection, then Fenway and Kipling are great class 2 hides.

30" Doorway. Wow! I was doing great on this reply until now....

The Lena is shaky. Its deep, and the back is high. I'd say not by looking at it.

The Reserve should go in. Probably the safe bet in this group.

The Garden - probably will go in, but it may be very tight.

The City will go in.

Tomorrow is the last day to order on the current price structure. I don't have the new price books at my home yet (just the current ones) so I can't tell you what the new prices will be. All of the Town and County items are increasing about 5% on average. In the main line book, most are NOT changing at all (maybe 20 % are increasing, but the remaining 80% are not).

Glad to help! And Glad you are learning from the forum.

Yes, they will have the 5% off February sale that usually runs for 5 weeks beginning Feb 1st. That applies only to the main line items and not anything in Town and Country.

PM me with your address and I'll get samples to you.

Yes, I also carry the full line of Jessica Charles and just added two new chairs in the store from them this week.

Thanks for the answers, Duane. I see I made two mistakes in my earlier post: first, one doorway is 32 inches. Your "wow" made me go back and check again - sorry about that. Second, I did mistype the Reserve number, I meant to put in the full size one - 4153, not the apartment size - oops. (Glad I wasn't ordering it!!! I would have had a good bit of extra room in my little den!!!! I probably would have realized I had it wrong when you priced it.) So now that I've added 2" to the doorway, think the 4651 Lena will clear a 32" straight shot doorway? Close call or "easy"? Glad to know a small change to the Reserve legs is a possibility.

As far as your comments on the City Sofa (smaller version) I'm only 5'5" (barely), but I thought the smaller City sofa was too shallow as well. It was a comfortable "sitter" for me, but if I wanted to put my legs up for reading/lounging - I wanted a little more depth. Meanwhile, the inside width is smaller than average as well.

I'll PM you my address so I can get samples - thanks. Assuming the Antelope Chino looks like I'm remembering it, it made a big impression. But I'm looking forward to seeing the Portfino - very pretty from your market photos.

As far as my tour - I certainly didn't feel rushed !!! But I enjoyed every minute and felt like I had met someone who is a pretty rare breed these days. I'll have to say, when I finished I was wishing that Jimmy Moore would take some time to be interviewed by someone who could do the story justice. It's an amazing American business story about consistently doing the right thing and seeing the rewards - particularly job satisfaction. He obviously LOVES what he does and I think that's one of the reasons that business has thrived. He was telling me that when he was hiring someone he told them that he wanted a promise from them - that after they had been employed a month, he was going to come back and ask them how they liked their new job. He asked them to promise him that if the answer was anything other than, "I love it", that they would agree to find something else. His philosophy being that it's not enough just to know how to do your job - to do it well, you've got to love it. While I wasn't asking the people that I met if they loved it, everyone I met (which was every person we walked by on the floor) seemed genuinely happy about what they were doing. Lots of kidding around with "Jimmy" as he walked through. I didn't get the sense it was anything other than the real deal. As far as my not knowing who Jimmy was - as you know since you know him - he's about the most humble person you could imagine. I didn't realize he was an owner until I was putting together some pieces of info as we walked around. And yes, I met Gloria - couldn't have been any nicer - does about five things all at the same time - smiling all the while. I did spend a few minutes on my drive home that day thinking about job satisfaction. That seems to be a pretty satisfied group.

I don't mean to sound like an H&M commercial, but as I guess is pretty obvious, I was really impressed. I consider myself a bit of a cynic about things too good to be true, but this was the real deal.

Ok, enough about that. Onto a related company, so what Jessica Charles chairs are on your floor? I had been looking at some Sherrill swivel rockers, but once I got through with the H&M tour, I realized that JC was also owned by some of the same folks and I decided I'd look at JC. Once again, looking for small dimensions - but comfy and with a back tall enough that I can put my head back.

Thanks again.

32" is WAY better. Everything in the H&M line will go through a 36" doorway or they re-engineer it so it will. 85 % of the line will clear a 34" doorway. I think the Lena will probably will clear a 32" opening, but it will still be tight.

Its interesting - you really can't get a feel for an operation until you spend some time among the production facility. Just taking a walk-around speaks volumes about what they make and the morale of the employees. A happy crew that feels they are paid decent for their work ALWAYS make a better product. Those that have poor working conditions or feel put upon only do enough to get by.

Years ago I was the largest dealer in country for D.R. Dimes and Company, a New Hampshire chair company that specialized in high style country furniture. I sold a lot of their product and would drive there to pick it up in my Frightliner. It was not a happy place for the workers, they were in terror of "Mr. Dimes" who ran the place on bells timed to the second. A bell rang to start work, a bell rang for break. One for lunch and one to return. At the end of the day, the quitting bell rang and everyone left THAT SECOND. Even if they were helping me load a truck, they would quit immediately and walk away...the place cleared out within 2 minutes of the final bell. One time I was walking back with Mr. Dimes to see a new piece in the back of the shop and we came up to a worker who had peed his pants at his station, it was quite obvious. Mr. Dimes asked him why he did that, and the worker responded that he was afraid to go to the bathroom because the break bell had not yet rung and he couldn't hold it. They built quality pieces because they had to or be instantly fired, but there was never one ounce of effort to do more than required.

At H&M, as you saw, the atmosphere is quite different. Everyone there knows they are part of the team, and they strive to make things as good as they can be. Nothing made by man is perfect, but they try harder than any other maker I've seen. Jimmy even keeps a full time nurse on staff and a medical room in the middle of the main plant. Any worker can go see her any time, for any reason - if nothing more then to get a splinter removed or an allergy shot - all at no charge. He doesn't have to do it, he does it because he cares for his employees. You will also find entire families working there at H&M, its a coveted job. You got to meet Gloria (and SHE is the one that makes things happen when we are in a crunch on an order. Gloria is my 'go-to' pal on tough jobs), and her daughter Tonya runs the Website and does all the advertising. Tonya graduated right at the top of her class at UNC, Chapel Hill and could have gone anywhere - but she wanted to work at H&M. Then there's Pam in Customer Service who is THE MACHINE. Pam knows more about Hancock and Moore than anyone there, I think. Pam's husband works in the plant as well, and does a lot of custom things needed. There are several families there at H&M and no turnover to speak of. Also, you won't find middle management there or fancy offices. Jack, Jimmy and Tim are the owners, and that's the management staff. Pretty impressive when you think they own H&M, Jessica Charles, Councill and most of Taylor King. All could have retired long ago on the profits, but they love their job. I call down there on Holidays and get Jack on the phone all the time...H&M is his baby, and he loves the business. He's also the smartest man in the industry that I've ever met. I like H&M because they run their company the way I like to run my store - we have common ground in our operating philosophy.

I have four or five Jessica Charles chairs on the floor, though I can't recall the models right this minute (at home replying). Jack bought that company a few years back when the owner retired and they build at separate location, but share the same leathers/fabrics/customer service Dept and quality in build.

I missed these posts last month - well worth reading and makes me proud of American workers and businesses.

Hi Duane,

I thought I would post here so other readers could benefit. As you know, I've narrowed down our leather choices at this point to Bari and Berkshire.

I'm interested to learn more about Portfino (may be Portfolio) and Dream. What characteristics might they share with Bari and Berkshire?

Sheen or Matte Finish?
Grain Texture?
Monochromatic or color variation?
Feel?
Etc?

What are the names of the "browns" available in each?

These may be two leathers that I'd be interested in ordering without seeing swatches. Not only do my local dealers not have swatches, they haven't even heard of these new leathers :)

Thanks

Hi Chad,

The other dealers don't know about these because they didn't go to the October Market and H&M hasn't sent out swatches yet. I do have a set in the store (perks of being a large dealer) but most will not even know of them.

They are both finished leathers, and class 2. Portofino has a pebbled texture to it but not as pronounced as Berkshire. I liked it at market, and have a red Sundance sofa in my truck at the store all ready for the display floor but have to room to bring it inside!

Sheen is a high Matte.
Grain texture on Portfino, not so much on Dream.
Both appear to have slight color toning/variation to them, but not much
Dream is very soft, Portfino slightlyless.

Good hides, I like them both for GR2 finished leathers. (have to get the names of the colors tomorrow)

Duane,

I really like the Kipling Whiskey but I want a protected leather.

I got a swatch of Luggage Saddle and liked it (not as much as Whiskey), and was wondering it has alot of mottling? The picture on the H&M website looks like it but the swatch I saw almost looked like a "brown" version of Kipling Whiskey.

Are there any other leathers similar to the kipling that are protected with the same look and feel and our protected?

Would any of the new leathers meet my criteria?

Thanks.

You might be surprised at how tough Kipling Whiskey is. I have it on my # 1044 Sadler Recliner at home and have yet to get the first stain or any sort of damage on it, nor do I expect to as it ages. H&M tends to be VERY conservative on ratings because they don't want that phone call where someone spills a quart of 10w40 on the hide and now its ruined - and they want a free replacement. The best thing to do if you have a swatch at home is take in in the kitchen and put stuff on it that you would anticipate might ever get on the leather. See what soaks in and what doesn't. If you pull enough chemicals out from under the sink, you'll eventually find something that will soak in, but then how often do you spill bleach or ammonia on your high-dollar leather? Don't worry about marking up a sample, they're free to the dealers and if one gets trashed in your kitchen experiments its easily replaced.

Luggage is a German leather that has been in the line a long time. Its price grade 3, has a tough service duty rating, and repels most anything. Its a handsome leather, that is beautifully tanned and has interesting special effects that look natural rather then the artificial effects on a leather like Document. If you go to the H&M website and look up the SETTLEMENT sofa, that's Luggage Meersham and gives you a good idea of what it looks like upholstered.

If you really want a fully protected hide, the two best in the line are Luggage and Antelope, by a fairly wide margin. After that, I tend to like Aspen as the best of the fully protected in a price grade 2.

Portofino will be fully protected, and so will Dream, both grade 2 hides in the new leathers. These are not yet dealer- swatched, though I have some samples in my store.

Duane gives great advice here. I had swatches of leathers from many H & M Class II and Class III lines, needed a leather that could withstand small pets and the occasional spills. Duane encouraged me to put as many substances on the swatches as possible. I did that (including tortilla soup). :) The Kipling whiskey leather was amazing, and would have been my 1st choice but it didn't work with the interior colors of our family room. I am determined to have a chair made from that leather and place it in our master bedroom. Rich, beautiful leather. Withstood scratches from my nails and tortilla soup base (lots of grease).

After much deliberation, settled on (with Duane's help): Sundance Sofa 84"/Chair/Ottoman, Luggage Russett, Class III. Also, a few upgrades to the nails and added some additional 18" pillows in upgraded leather/suede.

Dealing with Duane up to this point has been much more pleasant than my local shopping experience (5 high end stores). And I live in a major metro area in the Southwest.

Will update with pix and final review in April/May when I receive the furniture. Up to this point, the experience has been very pleasant, and Duane provided much needed insight and guidance. Thanks, Duane!