Armen Living’s President, Kevin Kevonian, and VP of Sales & Marketing, Lee Honigsfeld share insights on their company’s growth in the outdoor category.
— Armen Living’s VP of Sales & Marketing, Lee Honigsfeld
VALENCIA, CALIFORNIA, UNITED STATES, June 22, 2023/EINPresswire.com/ — Luxury brand Armen Living, known for more than 40 years for their home + living collections, has begun to stand out as a fan favorite for their signature outdoor collections. Whether consumers have a small intimate space or an entire luxury resort to furnish, buyers can find the collection that suits their individual style within Armen Living’s expansive outdoor collection.
Showcasing their newest arrivals at the Casual Market in Atlanta, July 10-13, 2023 in booth B1 7-1104, and at Las Vegas Market, July 30-Aug 03, 2023 in showroom B759. Showcasing their brand’s outdoor division which consists of hundreds of products for bar, dining, living and planters, that is defined by sleek, colorful, and classically reinvented retro styles, which resonate with the modern-day lifestyle of today’s buyers.
Armen Living’s President, Kevin Kevonian, and VP of Sales & Marketing, Lee Honigsfeld share the secret behind their successful outdoor division and what led to their company’s explosive growth in the outdoor category.
How long has Armen Living been creating outdoor collections?
Kevonian – “Our team has been creating outdoor designs since 2019. We believe that each and every piece we design and develop conveys self-expression while resonating with a contemporary lifestyle. This is why we offer outdoor collections that deliver expert craftsmanship and are made from durable, weather-resistant materials at fiscally sensible price points.”
What outdoor category did you start with first?
Honigsfeld – “When we first started offering outdoor we began with stocking sets that were off the shelf. As our product assortment grew we started offering more living sets, lounge furniture, casual outdoor dining, and a wide selection of barstools.”
Which outdoor categories do you offer?
Kevonian – “Armen Living offers over 400 SKUs in our outdoor category, including outdoor lounge, living, dining, bar, and occasional styles that are available in a wide selection of finishes, colors, and materials. Our newest category is outdoor planters and outdoor accessories. This category is also made with durable outdoor materials and is less than a year old but is getting a great response from our dealers and designer clients.”
Describe your outdoor design style.
Kevonian – “With more than 50 outdoor collections, we offer a wide range of design styles from transitional to traditional, contemporary and mid-century modern. We also offer a variety of outdoor weave colors and frame finishes, wood and aluminum frames, all with ultra plush outdoor cushions. We also have a new and interesting grey-colored weave that tends to look a bit olive and is getting lots of attention from retailers, designers, and stagers that want something a bit different from what they are seeing in the marketplace.”
How has your category grown over the last 4 years?
Honigsfeld – “Our expansion in the trade industry has led to exponential growth for our company over the last four years. Especially in our outdoor category which we now design 70% completely in-house.”
Are your outdoor collections aimed at the residential market? Or hospitality as well?
Kevonian -“As our outdoor designs continue to set our brand apart for their originality we are seeing expansion in our hospitality division from customers who want beautiful and affordable outdoor living collections to elevate their outdoor living spaces. We have also seen that many of our existing designer clients also do a fair amount of “resimercial” and need outdoor furniture for vacation rental properties, to other mixed-use spaces.”
Honigsfeld -“Hospitality is a relatively new channel for Armen Living and right now it only makes up approx 5% of our business. By exhibiting at HD Expo over the last several years, we have gained new hospitality and contract customers that love our custom options that effectively and efficiently meet their project needs. From contract designers, and hospitality brands, to commercial design firms our outdoor designs have been featured in hotels, bars, restaurants, universities, and resort destinations all over the country.”
What sets Armen Living apart?
Honigsfeld “With innovative and original designs that make up the majority of our collections, this has definitely helped our brand to stand out. This began approximately two years ago as we started to strategically shift our product development to focus more on our own designs. As our original designs not only gained interest, and the sales for these original designs grew, it began to be clear that our trade buyers had started to shift away from buying our off-the-rack pieces to wanting those collections we designed in-house.”
What led your brand to make this shift in product development?
Kevonian – “One of the other priorities we have for shifting our product development was that we wanted to create original outdoor designs that seamlessly blended stylish indoor-outdoor living spaces. With the same quality, durability, and extreme comfort of our indoor furniture. Our company is also based in Southern California and the indoor-outdoor living concept is a huge design focus and is one of the reasons we pride ourselves in developing fashion-forward furniture, made with durable materials, and with exceptional style.”
Do you sell more outdoor collections to retailers or designers?
Kevonian – “We do a fair amount of business with retailers big and small and independent designers and design firms all over the country. We also create custom container programs for many of the Top 100 retailers who tend to focus on a more seasonal approach to outdoor. Thankfully, we have both seasonal outdoor buyers and outdoor sales throughout the year for those customers like us that have warmer climates and have a need to purchase outdoor throughout the year.”
Can you share any insights on the sales growth for your outdoor category?
Honigsfeld – ”Our average annual sales on outdoor used to make up only 2-3% of our business and last year our outdoor sales were above 15% – which is a significant increase. We also design and manufacture more than 400 outdoor SKUs so that is a big increase in this category from when we first started offering outdoor just four years ago. It also helps that we heavy stock outdoor inventory year round – that our customers in CA, NV, AZ, FL, and throughout the Caribbean absolutely love!”
Do you have a best-selling collection?
Kevonian – “Our new Koda Outdoor Lounge Collection is one of our best sellers. Since we debuted this collection, buyers and designers have shared that they all love the clean lines and simplicity of the design. We also recently won an award for one of our most popular collections, the Cayman 4 Piece Black Aluminum Outdoor Seating Set with Dark Gray Cushions by Armen Living. It was named the 2023 Director’s Choice by the ADEX Awards.
Can you share more about your custom and container programs?
Honigsfeld – “Providing unsurpassed and unparalleled attention to detail, our fully integrated sales and product development team work closely with our customers to handle each piece of their product development, from creating original products to providing detailed drawings, and managing the entire manufacturing process. We also provide supply chain solutions and build customized container programs from four major distribution points overseas. Whether the final destination is located in the USA or within a worldwide market, with flexibility and speed, we meet the demands of each of our customers while we continue to exceed our customers’ expectations at every level and interaction.”
What outdoor trends are you featuring for Spring – Summer 23/24?
Kevonian – “Some of the hottest trends for indoor furniture have been darker frames with lighter grey upholstery and we carried this into our outdoor designs. We found that offering neutral outdoor fabrics helps the end consumer when they want to switch up their style and play with adding new colors and patterns to their outdoor space.”
Honigsfeld – “Our 23/24 outdoor collections will have some exciting new introductions as we balance innovative designs with more mixed media that will focus on the eucalyptus wood and aluminum frames, with durable outdoor weave materials. We are also debuting more substantial frames and styles that are beautiful stand-alone pieces you would have indoors but are specially designed for outdoor living.”
Are you excited about exhibiting at the upcoming Causal Market in Atlanta?
Honigsfeld – “We are very excited to be a first-time exhibitor in booth B1 7-1104, and to meet outdoor buyers and specialty stores at the upcoming Casual Market in Atlanta (July 10-13, 2023). We have a 20’ x 50’ booth to showcase many of our outdoor collections. Now in our fourth year of selling outdoor furniture, we can’t wait for the response and to meet even buyers who are attending the summer shows.”
What can buyers expect to see Armen Living debut for 23/24?
Armen Living’s National Sales Manager Reb Nicholson – “Our dealers and consumers are loving our fresh designs. They see that our quality and mixed media elements give them an opportunity to take their “look” that they have inside their home to their outdoor living space. Our unique designs are very current and on-trend for today’s market.”
Armen Living will be showcasing its newest arrivals at the Casual Market in Atlanta, July 10-13, 2023 in booth B1 7-1104, and at Las Vegas Market July 30-Aug 03, 2023 in showroom B759.
About Armen Living
Armen Living is the Quintessential Modern-day Furniture Designer and Manufacturer, providing a fully integrated supply chain solution from the product design drawing board and manufacturing process to distribution throughout the USA and worldwide markets. With flexibility and speed to market, Armen Living exceeds client expectations at every level of interaction. Armen Living not only delivers sensational products but also offers extraordinarily powerful reliability and capability only limited by the imagination. Our client relationships are fully supported and sustained by a stellar name, legendary history, and enduring reputation. Continuity of brand both in terms of exceptional quality and an outstanding commitment to customer-centered business practices ensures optimal profit opportunities.
For those in the hospitality industry, Armen Living is also pleased to extend our full contract capabilities to effectively and efficiently meet all of your needs with characteristic attention to detail. Building upon its legendary 40-year company history, the groundbreaking Armen Living line represents a refreshingly innovative creative collaboration with top designers in the industry. The result is a uniquely modern collection gorgeously enhanced by sophisticated retro aesthetics. Armenliving.com
About Casual Market in Atlanta
As a co-sponsor of the only market dedicated exclusively to indoor and outdoor casual furnishings and accessories, the ICFA’s new location for the Casual Market in Atlanta tops an almost-400,000-square-foot exhibit area event. Held at AmericasMart (240 Peachtree Street N.W.Atlanta, GA 30303) and includes five-and-a-half floors of showrooms dedicated to casual furniture and outdoor living, with a dazzling array of products and resources for building your outdoor business.
About Las Vegas Market
Las Vegas Market is the leading home furnishings and gift market in the western U.S., presenting thousands of furniture, home décor, and gift resources in an unrivaled market destination. Las Vegas Market’s diverse product offerings allow for cross-category commerce among these industries. The next Las Vegas Market runs January 29 – February 2, 2023, at World Market Center Las Vegas. Registration for the winter 2023 Las Vegas Market is open now at LasVegasMarket.com.
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Lee Honigsfeld, VP of Sales
Armen Living
+1 818-767-6626
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