BSET Company Profile

Bassett is a leading vertically integrated manufacturer, importer and retailer of high quality, mid-priced home furnishings. With Bassett Home Furnishings (“BHF”) stores, we have leveraged our strong brand name in furniture into a network of corporate and licensed stores that focus on providing consumers with a friendly environment for buying furniture and accessories. We created our store program in 1997 to provide a single source home furnishings retail store that provides a unique combination of stylish, quality furniture and accessories with a high level of customer service. The store features custom order furniture ready for delivery in less than 30 days, more than 1,000 upholstery fabrics, free in-home design visits, and perfectly coordinated decorating accessories. We believe that our capabilities in custom furniture have become unmatched in recent years. Our manufacturing team takes great pride in the breadth of its options, the precision of its craftsmanship, and the speed of its delivery. The selling philosophy in the stores is based on building strong long term relationships with each customer. Sales people are referred to as Design Consultants and are trained to evaluate customer needs and provide comprehensive solutions for their home decor. In order to reach markets that cannot be effectively served by our retail store network, we also distribute our products through other wholesale channels including multi-line furniture stores, many of which feature Bassett galleries or design centers, specialty stores and mass merchants. We use a network of over 25 independent sales representatives who have stated geographical territories. These sales representatives are compensated based on a standard commission rate. We believe this blended strategy provides us the greatest ability to effectively distribute our products throughout the United States and ultimately gain market share.

For several years we owned 49% of Zenith Freight Lines, LLC (“Zenith”). During that time the strategic significance of our partnership with Zenith had risen to include the over-the-road transportation of furniture, the operation of regional freight terminals, warehouse and distribution facilities in eleven states, and the management of various home delivery facilities that service Bassett Home Furnishings stores and other clients in local markets around the United States. On February 2, 2015, we acquired the remaining 51% of Zenith, which now operates as a wholly-owned subsidiary of Bassett. Our acquisition of Zenith brings to our Company the ability to deliver best-of-class shipping and logistical support services that are uniquely tailored to the needs of the furniture industry, as well as the ability to provide the expedited delivery service which is increasingly demanded by our industry. We believe that our ownership of Zenith will not only enhance our own wholesale and retail distribution capabilities, but will provide additional growth opportunities as Zenith continues to expand its service to other customers.

We have strategically aligned our business into three reportable segments: Wholesale, Retail – Company-owned stores, and Logistical services.

The wholesale home furnishings segment is involved principally in the design, manufacture, sourcing, sale and distribution of furniture products to a network of BHF stores (licensee-owned stores and Company-owned retail stores) and independent furniture retailers.

The wholesale furniture industry is very competitive and there are a large number of manufacturers both within and outside the United States who compete in the market on the basis of product quality, price, style, delivery and service. Additionally, many retailers source imported product directly, thus bypassing domestic furniture manufacturers and wholesale importers. We believe that we can be successful in the current competitive environment because our products represent excellent value combining attractive prices, quality and styling; prompt delivery; and superior service.

The retail furniture industry remains very competitive and includes local furniture stores, regional furniture retailers, national department and chain stores and single-vendor branded retailers. As a whole, our store network with 60 Company-owned stores and 33 licensee-owned, ranks in the top 30 in retail furniture sales in the United States. We plan to continue opening new stores, primarily in underpenetrated markets where we currently have stores. In this regard we are currently considering several locations for new store expansion over the next three years, with at least three of these planned to open in fiscal 2016. We continue to evaluate all stores in our fleet and plan to close three underperforming stores this year as well.

Zenith is a specialized supply chain solutions provider, offering the home furnishings industry the benefit of an asset-based network to move product with greater efficiency, enhanced speed to market, less damage, and a single source of shipment visibility. We provide fully integrated solutions with the highest commitment to customer care and service as we seek to go beyond our customers’ transactional expectations to create collaborative partnerships that provide a single source network to:


Better manage inventory across multiple locations and provide total audit-ready accountability

Reduce line haul and delivery costs

Ensure availability of high-volume items in stores

Integrate the omnichannel nature of today’s retail supply chain

Management and predictability of the total landed cost of goods

Achieve full visibility from vendor to showroom to final delivery