Howard Miller launching wine, bar cabinet group

By Jeff Linville -- Furniture Today, September 4, 2005

Zeeland, Mich. — Hoping to tap into a growing beverage-related trend, clock and curio specialist Howard Miller will add a third product line this fall with the launch of the Wine & Spirits collection.

At the October High Point market, Howard Miller will introduce 26 SKUs of wine and bar cabinets in a variety of sizes, styles and price points.

Yes, wine cabinets have been around the marketplace, but no company offers such a comprehensive roster, said Bob Lehockey, vice president of sales and marketing.

"Other manufacturers produce one or two pieces," he said. "Our collection represents an important new category and profit opportunity for dealers."

Howard Miller knows the demand exists for these items because so many different companies offer a few pieces. Pottery Barn's catalogs have offered the same wine cabinet for two years, Lehockey said, and it wouldn't stick around if it weren't selling.

Wine consumption, meanwhile, is on the rise. People are entertaining in their homes more, watching movies or sports events on HDTVs or playing Texas hold 'em.

Rather than try to offer several niche products to tap into this trend, like home entertainment units, home theater seating and game tables, Howard Miller prefers to get into a single category and become a market leader, said Lehockey.

"We know how to market a category," he said, noting that Howard Miller now has more than 70% of the U.S. floor clock business.

The company sees Wine & Spirits as a collection of stand-alone pieces, just like its clocks and curios. Lehockey said he believes this has been an under-merchandised category because case goods companies tend to lump such cabinets into big collections.

Shoppers usually go to stores to buy case goods or living room suites or mattresses, he said. A producer has to get their attention when they come in the store, or try to reach consumers through advertising.

Howard Miller has attracted attention for its clocks through ads in shelter magazines such as Country Home and Metropolitan Home, he said, and plans to do the same for this new line, which will ship next spring.

As it does with the clock line — which ranges from inexpensive travel alarms to one of the priciest floor clocks — Howard Miller's goal for the new collection is to cover a wide range of price points to appeal to much of the population.

Wine & Spirits cabinets will start at $299 retail.

While the company is still tweaking some designs, seven styles are all set.

Among them are Metropolis, with modern lines and a Black Coffee finish; Monticello, a traditional style with a lightly distressed Hampton Cherry finish; Cabernet Hills, a mix of rustic and retro; and Piedmont, with a Rustic Cherry finish.

The cabinets and accompanying barstools will be manufactured in the United States and in Howard Miller's two Asian source plants.