Rio Brands ventures from the beach to the patio
The booming market for outdoor living has created a demand for more products centered around activities on patios and lawns, particularly products that are high-quality and affordable. And several suppliers are bringing new lines to retail during the next few months to help satisfy that demand.
Rio Brands is best known for its beach furniture and colorful umbrellas but the company has decided to branch into patio furniture, a move that Rio sales manager Angela McLaughlin says is a natural.
“We’ve been in the business of manufacturing beach and outdoor furniture for more than 60 years so it makes sense for us,” said McLaughlin.
“And it’s a business that many of our customers have asked us to go into.”
Rio expects to launch its first line of stack aluminum and steel patio furniture in early 2008 but already has some patio products on the market. “We have some folding patio furniture in stores now that launched this spring,” said McLaughlin. “There are several different folding sets in the $99 to $199 price range and we have product in places like CVS stores and Dick’s Sporting Goods.”
The folding sets are considered Rio’s way of easing into the market. The first major launch is scheduled for March or April of 2008 and the company had some of its new product on display at the National Hardware Show & Lawn and Garden World in Orlando in May.
“We received the best response for our Laguna set, which is pebble colored, and our Monterey set,” said McLaughlin, who said that retailers are still in the process of ordering the new furniture for their spring 2008 sets.
The first round of patio sets will range in price from $249 to $599 and come in a variety of colors and furniture combinations. Most of the furniture will be available in both steel and aluminum (except for the Monterey set) and will include dining sets, open-stock stacking chairs, bistro and conversation sets, loungers and accent tables. Rio expects next year’s rollout to be the start of a three-year program that will increase the breadth and depth of its outdoor product.
And though Rio is best known for its beach product, it’s no stranger to producing furniture. It introduced the first wire grid patio stack chairs to the United States in the 1980s and helped launch the concept of an outdoor dining set in a box.
Other suppliers launching new product include La-Z-Boy, which recently debuted a new line of outdoor furniture at Sam’s Club that features a mix of standard outdoor product and pieces usually associated with high-end living rooms. They include the outdoor Whitley lounge chair and Whitley recliner, both with deep cushions, all-weather fabric and rust-proof aluminum frames. The most elaborate piece is a conversation set with a full-size sofa, two lounge chairs, two ottomans and a coffee table.
And for people interested in patio furniture that’s really unique there is Stone 2 Furniture. As the name suggests, the company specializes in sculpting “ergonomically correct” patio furniture out of stone and scrap metal. The Livermore, Colorado-based company creates custom-made chaise loungers, chairs, tables and benches in a variety of stone including marble and jade.