Furniture to fixture

The difference between furniture and fixturing in a store is not always clear. Chances are the form serves as both—furniture to give the store a residential feel and a fixture that attractively displays merchandise.

Chattanooga, Tenn.-based Smart Furniture's modular shelving system is a product that blends furniture and fixturing. The shelving consists of 10 different components that are all interchangeable, so many different dimensions are possible. In fact, retailers can change the fixture's setup in a matter of seconds since assembly does not require tools—it slides together manually. "Retail personnel can build or reconfigure displays in a short time, after hours, with no interruption in business, and no saw dust," says Benjamin Pitts, executive vice president of finance and marketing, Smart Furniture.

Referring to the company as the "Dell computer" of furniture, Smart Furniture's founder and CEO Stephen Culp says that since retail trends indicate a more open and temporary floor plan, its modular shelving can accommodate a store's ever-changing display needs.

Made from a stain/water/scratch-resistant thermally fused laminate, Smart Furniture is available in a variety of finishes including black, white, cherry and maple. The company has developed its Web site to allow customers to "draw" their unit online. "It doesn't require touch and feel to order," Culp explains. The site has an "interactive smart designer" that enables customers to go online and configure their unit with the different components. Once customers are happy with the construction, they can order the pieces, and have a blueprint copy from the Web site of how they will put it together. Many times, people will create a different configuration (from the Web diagram) once the parts arrive, Culp says.

As for future product offerings for the retail industry, Smart Furniture is investigating its options. "We are currently developing a number of variations on our current product offering, including alternate materials, sizes and finishes," says Pitts. "The alternate materials will provide different strengths and weights that might be useful to specific retail applications. We are developing a version with deeper shelving components to meet demand in the apparel and other retail market segments."