Thursday, October 13, 2005

Art Van Furniture Inc. Art Van is expanding its home furnishings line featuring Red Wings Captain Steve Yzerman to include 40 contemporary designs.

Art Van furniture line banks on region's love for Yzerman

By Tenisha Mercer / The Detroit News

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It's a marketing match made in hockey heaven.

Warren-based Art Van Furniture Inc. is expanding its home furnishings line featuring Detroit Red Wings Captain Steve Yzerman to include 40 contemporary designs. The Icon line is part of the chain's Steve Yzerman Official Collection that debuted last week.

"Steve Yzerman is a legend in his own time, and we thought it would be a perfect tie-in," said Cathy DiSante, marketing director for Art Van. "Steve is an icon and respected, so we thought he would be the perfect partner to come out with a collection of furniture."

Art Van rolled out the Yzerman line in fall 2003 with just a handful of products, mostly bedroom and dining room furniture. But growing interest in the line, most of which carries a solid brass steel logo, prompted the chain to expand the collection this fall to include more contemporary, upscale designs, DiSante said. The furniture ranges in cost from $400 to $2,400.

While connecting a local hockey hero to couches and bedroom sets might seem unorthodox, furniture sellers have a history of using recognizable names to help sell their wares.

Furniture manufacturer Thomasville launched a Humphrey Bogart Collection in recent years. Art Van has sold a furniture line featuring former Detroit Pistons star Grant Hill and sells a furniture line from model Kathy Ireland.

But Yzerman is believed to be the first Red Wings star to lend his image to furniture. The team's apparel and memorabilia consistently is among the top-selling National Hockey League merchandise.

Yzerman bobbleheads, posters and living room sofas?

"Only in Detroit," said Michael Bernacchi, a marketing professor at the University of Detroit Mercy. "Yzerman is so well-loved in this community, and you can almost see the pride swelling in people as they are going to buy this furniture. If I were going to launch hockey furniture after an icon, this is where I would start. It's a unique brand extension."

DiSante wouldn't divulge sales figures but said they have been "phenomenal."

Neil Schwartz, marketing director for Florida-based market research firm SportScanINFO, doubts fans will make the connection between their beloved No. 19 and the sofas they sit on.

But if anyone can do it, Yzerman can, Schwartz said.

"Furniture and hockey don't seem to go together," he said, "But you are talking about an incredibly popular athlete, and Yzerman is their top-selling player. Maybe the folks that are doing this feel his popularity can stretch to other products."

You can reach Tenisha Mercer at (313) 222-2401 or tmercer@detnews.com.