Show opens today Waterbeds popular

Press, 12 June 1986, Page 23

Show opens today Waterbeds popular

The Canterbury Furniture Show, which opens at the Addington Raceway today, is now a well-estab-lished event, having taken place during each of the last 15 years. The show outgrew its original Town Hall venue, and this year’s show will be the third held at the raceway. There are five floors of furniture in two buildings, and Mrs Pat Van Der Lely, secretary of the furniture show committee, stresses that visitors to the show should allow themselves plenty of time to see everything. It would not be difficult to spend a whole day at the show, and visitors would be wise to allow at least two hours to do it justice. Mrs Van Der Lely describes the show as "a once-a-year effort by manufacturers to show what they have achieved

and what they have to offer.” It would not be possible for a single store to stock the range of furniture available, and the show is the one opportunity for the manufacturers to make their full ranges available to the public. Furniture is very much a craft industry, according to Mr David Orr, chairman of the furniture show committee. That is why it is an important aspect of the show that the manufacturers themselves will be on hand to explain details of construction or material to interested members of the public. Also available on the stands will be retailers’ representatives. They will be able to offer advice — visitors are welcome to bring carpet or wallpaper samples for matching, for instance. They will also

take orders and offer help with financing. Canterbury visitors to the show may be surprised to learn just how up with overseas fashion locally manufactured furniture is. Most of the manufacturers go overseas regularly in order to keep in touch with trends. "I travelled overseas last year and I was really amazed at how up-to-date our New Zealand furniture is,” Mrs Van Der Lely said. Not all the furniture on display at the show is of the latest, trendy variety. Traditional furniture of classical elegance is well represented also. “From the work of traditional craftspeople to the ultra-modern glass and brass style of furniture — there’s something for every taste,” Mrs Van Der Lely said.

A successful market research project by the McKenzie and Willis furniture retail group helped make waterbeds more acceptable to a wider age group, said Mr Donald Lee, the merchandise manager for McKenzie and Willis, Christchurch. “When waterbeds were first introduced to New Zealand we found that buying was largely limited to the younger age group, so McKenzie and Willis did some research into the matter,” said Mr Lee. The survey showed that the older age group was put off by the “gimmick” image of waterbeds. Advertisers gave it very sensual, even sexual connotations, and the older generations felt that only young, even single people, had such beds.

McKenzie and Willis, as part of the Retail Traders Society, adopted the Charisma brand of waterbed along with other

R.T.S. members and helped promote the waterbed to a wider age group. “Now waterbeds are accepted by all age groups and, furthermore, it has been found by buyers that the waterbed isn’t just a gimmick. It has worked wonders for the backaches and sleeping problems that many people previously suffered from,” Mr Lee said. He said the waterbed has gone beyond mere commercial advertising. The best sellers of waterbeds, he said, are those who have already bought one. “It’s mostly on recommendations from friends and relatives that many people come in to buy waterbeds now, which I think is great,” Mr Lee said. Other brands of waterbeds that McKenzie and Willis now supply are Aquabliss and Signature. Aquabliss looks much like

a conventional bed with base and mattress, with the exception of a softsided mattress filled with water. With the Aquabliss, one can tuck in blankets and sheets at the sides like a conventional bed. The Signature brand of waterbed is another addition to the range of McKenzie and Willis waterbeds. This type offers the customer a waterbed with fabric covered side-boards that can be matched with a duvet specially made for the waterbed. All McKenzie and Willis stores in Christchurch — the newest addition to the group being A. J. Whites at the corner of Tuam and High Streets — have a wide range of bedding as well as matching bedroom suites to offer. The A. J. Whites store is soon to have the entire ground floor devoted to bedding and bedroom furniture.