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Healthcare Furniture for Hospitals & Clinics: Dining Center Furniture,... nemschoff.com |
First opened in 1997, Ashley Furniture HomeStore is a chain of independently owned and operated furniture stores licensed to sell Ashley Furniture products exclusively - including mattresses and accessories. Since 1997, over 300 HomeStores have opened in North America.[1] Currently there are over 371 Ashley HomeStores operating worldwide.
[edit] HistoryThe first Ashley Furniture HomeStore opened in Anchorage, Alaska in 1997. In the years since, the company has become the top selling furniture brand in the world and the top furniture retailer in the United States.[2]They have stores located throughout the United States, Canada, Mexico, Central America, and Japan.[3] Though each Ashley Furniture HomeStore is technically an independent franchisee, all of the furniture sold in them is manufactured by Ashley, then shipped to HomeStore’s via a privately owned transportation fleet. Because Ashley controls the processes from design and manufacture to delivery, they are able to control their costs. That structure has allowed the HomeStores to open quickly. They opened their 100th store in 2003, their 200th HomeStore store in 2005 – the same year it became the world’s largest manufacturer of furniture, become the fastest-growing furniture chain and top selling furniture brand worldwide in 2006 and open their 300th store in 2007.[4] [edit] Green InitiativesLike other companies over the last few years, Ashley Furniture HomeStore has hopped on the green bandwagon. Because the stores are locally owned many actively promote and participate in various charitable events,[5] and initiatives.[6] The HomeStores are reportedly encouraged to participate in Ashley Industries slate of Green Initiatives the at a local/community level. [edit] ManufacturingBecause solid lumber manufacturing only uses 63% of a tree, Ashley has instituted the use engineered 100% recycled wood in much of their furniture. They’ve also implemented the use of water-based solvents and finishes in place of chemical solvents. Such measures have allowed them to cut harmful emissions by 86% between 1997 and 2007 and reduced their hazardous waste production from 188 drums per month in 1994 to three drums a month in 2007.[7] [edit] FootprintTo reduce their carbon footprint Ashley has restored and enhanced wetlands totaling roughly 87 acres, including farm land and an area formerly classified as industrial. They have also distributed roughly 25,000 Arbor Day trees and have planted over 600[8]trees in the community around their Arcadia, Wisconsin facility. [edit] FleetBy employing fuel efficient engines in their trucks Ashley has cut their fuel consumption down to 1/10th of a gallon of diesel per. They’ve instituted use of bio diesel fuels when/wherever possible. And as of 2008, the motors in their shipping fleet vehicles return cleaner air to the environment than they intake. [edit] RecyclingAshley also has a corporate recycling program that recycles roughly 65,000 tons of wood by-product, 157 tons of sheet metal, 60 tons of paper, 34,944 dumpsters of worth solid wood, 7000 pounds of computer equipment, 24 trailers worth of plastic film, 11 trailers worth of cardboard and 50 trailers worth of Styrofoam each year.[9] [edit] Ashley Furniture IndustriesThe parent company of Ashley Furniture HomeStore,[10] Ashley Furniture Industries, is a furniture manufacturer headquartered in Arcadia, Wisconsin. Currently owned by father and son team Ron and Todd R. Wanek[11], the company manufactures and distributes home furnishings throughout North America. The three Ashley Companies (Ashley Upholstery, Ashley Casegoods and Millennium) produce dining room, home office and bedroom furnishings. The Ashley Brand is the top selling and largest furniture manufacturer in North America. It licenses its name to more than 300 HomeStores in the U.S., Mexico, Canada, Japan and Central America. Ashley Inc. also maintains a manufacturing facility in Whitehall, Wisconsin. [edit] Glenn Beck SponsorshipOn Aug. 27 Ashley joined the growing number[12] of former sponsors boycotting controversial Fox News Channel and talk radio host Glenn Beck.[13] [edit] References
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