Hancock & Moore question for Duane

[wdavis]

Hi Duane,
I've really been enjoying the forum after finding it only a couple of days ago. I've spent many hours over the last few days reading and learning as my wife and I are considering buying new furniture now that 3 of our 4 sons are out of the house. Great job on the forum!

I went out today to an authorized dealer of the Hancock & Moore line here in DFW because I wanted to sit on some sofas. I asked the sales person about H&M and whether they had any sofas in stock. She told me that they did not have any H&M sofas on the floor, but if I wanted, she would check with their other stores in DFW to see if any models were on the floor. When she came back, she said that she found out that H&M had filed for bankruptcy. I was very surprised as I hadn't seen that mentioned anywhere on the forum. Once I got home, I started googling to see if I could verify her claim and I could find nothing at all on the subject. I was going to call H&M directly, but their website didn't list a phone number.

Anyway, I was wondering if you have any knowledge of this? I don't particularly like this being my first question on the forum, but before I spend any more time considering H&M products, I'd like to know if they are really going through bankruptcy or not.

[drcollie]

Glad you are enjoying the forum!

I don't know how rumors like that get started, but Hancock & Moore is absolutely not in bankruptcy, and they are financially healthy due to strong customer support for their product and continued sales. And just to be sure, I called the owner of H&M up on the phone and we both had a good laugh over this.

Perhaps that salesperson got it confused with Heritage Home Group, the parent company of Lane, Broyhill, Thomasville, Drexel Heritage, Henredon, Pearson, Hickory Chair, Lane Venture, Maitland-Smith and La Barge brands. Heritage Home, took over the assets of bankrupt Furniture Brands International after it was purchased by private-equity firm KPS Capital in a bankruptcy auction last fall and they are closing various plants in the effort to streamline their brands.

You can order H&M with a high degree of confidence. They are solid.

[wdavis]

Glad you are enjoying the forum!

I don't know how rumors like that get started, but Hancock & Moore is absolutely not in bankruptcy, and they are financially healthy due to strong customer support for their product and continued sales. And just to be sure, I called the owner of H&M up on the phone and we both had a good laugh over this.

Perhaps that salesperson got it confused with Heritage Home Group, the parent company of Lane, Broyhill, Thomasville, Drexel Heritage, Henredon, Pearson, Hickory Chair, Lane Venture, Maitland-Smith and La Barge brands. Heritage Home, took over the assets of bankrupt Furniture Brands International after it was purchased by private-equity firm KPS Capital in a bankruptcy auction last fall and they are closing various plants in the effort to streamline their brands.

You can order H&M with a high degree of confidence. They are solid.

That's good to hear, thanks for the quick response!

[wisejd]

I guess my reaction to the Sales Person's comment is a little more skeptical than just some confusion about the financial history of some major furniture manufacturing acquisitions. With zero H&M Sofas on the floor i have to believe that the DFW Area has other "Authorized" H&M Dealers where you can sit down and enjoy their great Sofas. If you visit the H&M web site you can view an authorized dealer map for you area. The H&M line is not to be missed if you are in the market for some new Sofas.

[cuse69]

I would go back to the sales person and correct them and then go somewhere else to purchase my furniture. Passing on misinformation as a sales tactic does not give me any confidence in the individual or store to serve my needs in a professional and fair manner.

[sarends]

I wouldn't waste my time going back to that store - IMO they have shown you what kind of a store they are. I can easily envision this being said or thought:

"Just tell them H&M is going bankrupt since we don't carry that line."

[wdavis]

I guess my reaction to the Sales Person's comment is a little more skeptical than just some confusion about the financial history of some major furniture manufacturing acquisitions. With zero H&M Sofas on the floor i have to believe that the DFW Area has other "Authorized" H&M Dealers where you can sit down and enjoy their great Sofas. If you visit the H&M web site you can view an authorized dealer map for you area. The H&M line is not to be missed if you are in the market for some new Sofas.

Now that I've heard back from Duane, I am also skeptical about the salesperson's (or their manager's) motives. I did visit the H&M website and found the two largest chains (each with 3 stores in DFW) before I went out yesterday. The other chain had two leather sofas on the floor, so I did get to see some.

I would go back to the sales person and correct them and then go somewhere else to purchase my furniture. Passing on misinformation as a sales tactic does not give me any confidence in the individual or store to serve my needs in a professional and fair manner.

Agreed. After hearing back from Duane, I left a detailed review for the store on Yelp and found several other negative reviews. I won't be going back to that store.

I wouldn't waste my time going back to that store - IMO they have shown you what kind of a store they are. I can easily envision this being said or thought:

"Just tell them H&M is going bankrupt since we don't carry that line."

Agreed.

[drcollie]

Most furniture store salespeople are not very well versed in the product they are selling. They're more of the order-taking variety than someone that actually knows their industry. Hearsay and rumor rule the day in that environment, more so than actually trying to mislead. They are there to get the sale, and that means items either on the floor or in the warehouse, so that is what they are going to steer you to. Most are on commission, and if they don't make the sale right then and there its almost certain the customer won't return at a later date. So they sell what they have.

My store is small, just 5,000 s.f. on two floors and yet I still have about (40) pieces of H&M all the time and take a lot of pride in having an extensive knowledge base of the items in my store. And you have to have that knowledge in order to explain to a potential customer WHY they should spend more for the H&M brand vs. another maker because Hancock & Moore is just flat out more costly than most. I find most people will make a good choice if you give them the tools to work with in their purchasing decisions. Show them what they are getting, then they will figure out if its in their budget or want to allocate to get to that level. I don't hard sell, or push, that's not my style. I know that does cost me sales because I'm not aggressive enough, but at the end of the day I prefer to do it the way I do because I can't stand pushy salespeople when I'm shopping myself. However an informed salesperson that can answer all my question usually does get the sale.

I'm probably Hancock & Moore's # 1 Fan. Not because I sell it, but because I believe in it. I've seen how they put it together in the factory, I know many of the people that do the work and their customer service team is the best in the industry. The owners of the company are honest, decent people that work hard at what they do, not because they have to (they could easily retire on their earnings) but because they love what they do and want to build the best in class. So its easy to get enthusiastic about their product because I see the dedication they put into what they do. Other companies....well, they just aren't quite as much in the game as H&M. Let me tell you just a little story from this week.....

A customer has placed an order for pieces in a GR 4 Quintessence Chestnut leather some time ago and its been out of stock for a long time, much longer than usual. She is getting a little impatient and I don't blame her. And when things drag on too long, sometimes folks cancel their orders. So I called the President of H&M and asked him 'What can we do to get this leather in so we can build these pieces? Can we air freight the hides from Germany?" He called me back later that day and said there is still none to be had from that tannery - but then said "Tell your customer that she can have one of the GR 5 Envy leathers if she likes for the same price, those we can get". Now, the jump from GR 4 to GR 5 is significant, that was a generous offer. So I mailed her my samples from the store so she could get them quickly but haven't heard back from her. What impressed me most however, was yesterday the President of H&M called me up to see what we decided to do (and I had to tell him I'd not heard back from her yet). He wanted to make sure they had not dropped the ball on the change of leathers, etc. And that shows how much they care - he took a vested interest in sorting this out for this customer and made a call back to the dealer. In most companies in the furniture business, you can't even get to the President on the phone, they designate to their middle management to handle things like this. And that's why I'm so keen on the brand...that extra attention made to see things are done right and proper, all the time.

[wisejd]

What this says to me is what I already believe ...The Best Value-Chain is a TEAM where the Value-Chain Players work together due to their mutual excessive desire to delight The Customer. ...When the Value-Chain Players are paying more attention than the Customer ...That is a beautiful Story.

[EddieB]

What this says to me is what I already believe ...The Best Value-Chain is a TEAM where the Value-Chain Players work together due to their mutual excessive desire to delight The Customer. ...When the Value-Chain Players are paying more attention than the Customer ...That is a beautiful Story.

Wow! Now that's service!