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By Mitch, July 15, 2009 8:34 pm

I’ve been getting a lot of interest lately from the Hospitality Industry.  These are the folks who run the hotels, resorts, and B&Bs we all stay in from time-to-time.  It seems they’re not too happy with the crappy sofa-beds they have, and are looking for something better.  I wonder if any of them realize that their “queen” size mattresses measure only 72″ instead of the standard 80″.  Or if they’re tired of the 4.5″ thickness of the average hide a bed mattress.  You don’t think it could POSSIBLY be that bar-in-your-back that most convertible sofa beds feature, do you?  Maybe it’s the weight….I mean those suckers are heavy!!! I dunno, but whatever it is, I know I’ve got a story they’re gonna want to hear.

So I added a new page to the website just for this industry.  I decided to upgrade the foam density so that I could promise them more durability.  And I’m throwing in an extra pair of hinges with every unit because I know how people treat furniture when it’s not their own…..and if anything’s gonna break, it’d be the hinges. And, lastly, I’m giving them a volume discount of $100 per unit as a reward for ordering in quantity.

So, we’ll see.  If this catches on, I could be selling LofaBeds all around the world before long.  I mean the only reason I don’t sell overseas now is the cost of freight to ship one LofaBed.  But if you’re ordering a container, which holds about 50, then freight becomes a non-factor.  I’ve added a bunch of keywords to attract the search engines, and my webmaster in Vancouver is working on adding Metatags.  So now I’m supposed to sit back and wait.  That’s the tough part…..waiting for something to happen.

Mitch Wapen
www.lofasofa.com
lofasofa@videotron.ca

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By Mitch, June 28, 2009 2:20 pm

Ever since inventing the LofaBed back in 1996, I’ve let the woman who co-owns the factory choose the material posted on my website.  As a guy, I was reluctant to tell a female of the species which fabrics to buy.  I mean, what the hell do I know?….I’m a typical guy!

But over the years, a certain alternative logic began to penetrate my thinking:  ”She may know more about upholstery fabrics than I do, but all her customers are French-Canadian, as is she, and I’m selling Americans and English-speaking Canadians, whom I know a lot more about than she does.”   So, fortified with this new resolve, I began the process of selecting new materials.  Oh yeah, one thing I forgot to mention…..I’m the factory’s biggest customer, so when I told Michele (co-owner with husband, Jean-Marc) of my intentions, she gave me her blessing forthwith.

First of all, I decided to restrict the suppliers we buy from.  I’ve always believed in “leverage” as a basic business principle, and because we’re small, the best way to generate leverage is to buy whatever you buy from as few companies as possible.  So I limited myself to three Montréal suppliers….all of whom I’ve known since the days when I used to own Canada’s largest futon furniture factory.  And my criteria was simple:  I wanted as many microfibers, in a variety of textures, as possible.  I’ve learned from women over the years that the attributes that make microfibers so popular (stain-resistant, liquid repellant, anti-cat scratching), are timeless.  So why worry about what’s fashionable in any particular year, when it’s a no-brainer that microfibers will always be “in?”

The only roll-overs from last year are Monet and Plush…both too popular to cancel.  In fact, I even added three new colors to Plush.  And I specifically looked for off-whites, blacks, and burgundies; since customers have been requesting these colors for years.  But the textures I was able to find, while still maintaining a “solid” look, surprised even me.  Kiri is what I’d call a “checkered chenille,” a beautiful blend of several colors into a thick, woven material.  Savoie and Rawhide fill the need for a leather-look, which so many people have been asking for.  Splendor is a polyester/nylon, but looks and feels a lot like a “brushed cotton,” which has always been a favorite.  Attraction is a pinwale corduroy and comes in some gorgeous colors.  And Paris, my favorite, is a handsome microfiber with an embroidered design….very cool.

There are more, of course, including seven multi-colored patterns, which lend themselves to be color-coordinated with many of the solids mentioned above…. 75 in all.  And that, my friends, will be THAT for a while.

Mitch Wapen
www.lofasofa.com
lofasofa@videotron.ca