Official Blog of Gallery Furniture's Mattress Mack of Houston, TX

The Competition Does Not Compare!

Long-time customers Terry and Diane make it a point to go to Gallery Furntiure when purchasing a new piece of furniture.  They fell in love with Gallery Furniture during their first visit because of the “great sales people,” and quality customer service!  Their high expectations were met and exceeded during their recent visit.  Diane said the assistance received from Eric and Gregory while they shopped was “very good" and that they were "friendly and accommodating.”

Over the years Terry and Diane love how they continually receive great service and great deals! 

Many customers, like Terry and Diane only shop at Gallery Furniture because they have had horrible experiences at other furniture stores.  During one experience, when Terry and Diane went to another Houston furniture store, they made a purchase and were led to believe that they had 15 months of  no interest and no payments, but due to misinformation about the financing, their credit was harmed.  After this horrible experience they came to Gallery Furniture and found just what they were looking for!

So come to Gallery Furniture where the “deals are good and the sales people are wonderful!”

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Gallery Furniture and Home Trend & Design: the Beginning

Each year, Gallery Furniture sends some of its most trusted employees to High Point, North Carolina, to find the next fantastic thing in furniture for your home. It was there last April that John Brown, a former decorator for Gallery Furniture, met Brian Royce from Home Trend & Design. And it was there that the two became quick friends and spent hours talking about how their companies would do great business together.

When Ted Goldsman, a leading salesman at Gallery Furniture, was introduced to mango furniture and HTD, he instantly knew that mango wood furniture was exactly what Gallery Furniture needed. They convinced Hank Cravey, the owner of Mango Furniture, to bring a full truckload (pictured above) of furniture all the way from the tradeshow in North Carolina to Gallery Furniture in Houston, Texas to show Mattress Mack.  Brian Royce and Barrett Tucker jumped in their brand new Mega Truck and headed across the country.  “Mack was so impressed with the quality of the furniture that he bought everything in the truck,” Royce said. 

This was the start of a great partnership. Home Trend & Design, the company that produces mango wood furniture, began with just a small section of the sales floor in Gallery Furniture, but has steadily expanded as the partnership has continued. Home Trend & Design is even creating special pieces of furniture just for Gallery Furniture.

Home Trend & Design, based in Austin, has been in business for a short three years but has been growing at a rapid rate. Gallery Furniture is proud to say that they are the only store in Houston that carries this genuine, solid mango wood furniture. 

Mango wood furniture is made out of solid hard wood using quality construction processes. Mango trees are worth more when they are bearing fruit, and once they stop producing, they are cut down and they are quickly replaced with a new young trees. Usually the cut trees are burned, but Home Trend & Design buys the wood to utilize it for furniture.

Solid mango wood furniture uses sustainable production processes, is eco-friendly, and will be a beautiful addition to any home. Visit Gallery Furniture TODAY to see the large selection of mango dining tables and chairs, end tables, and bedroom furniture!

New Bedroom, Bargain Price

Gallery Furniture has the latest styles in bedroom furniture for your home available today.  The most recent addition:  the Sumter Lennox Square collection. 

This traditional furniture will add style to any master bedroom.  Solid wood construction and a classic design make the Lennox Square collection a stand out. 

Don't miss design features like the intricate carvings on the headboard and around the tops of the dresser and chest.  Each piece features a column motif on the edges.  The chest of drawers has a traditional chest on chest look. 

This furniture is decorative and practical.  There is plenty of storage space in the dresser and chest, while the matching armoire will hold even more clothing and lines.  Remove a few shelves and slide open the back of the armoire and to transform it into an entertainment center for the bedroom.

As if the features and design of the Lennox Square store weren't enough, Gallery Furniture makes it even better -- if you buy this solid wood furniture today at Gallery Furniture, you can get up to thirty percent off selected pieces!

Even better, it is in stock and ready for immediate delivery.  That means you can enjoy the Lennox Square bedroom in your home tonight!

There was a Dinner at Vegas Market: or, Dining with Mattress Mack

Welcome to... Las Vegas...

Las Vegas Furniture Market is all business, and Gallery Furniture does take time to shop dealers in the manner that befits how we serve our own customers: get a great deal, get a great price that is stated as is, get quality, no hidden lies, and Gallery Furniture demands NO BACKORDERS.  The vendors that Gallery Furniture does business with are aware that there will be no delays in getting furniture to the warehouses at Gallery Furniture to be ready for same day delivery to Houston customers.

With all the work, the Gallery Furniture Market Team has to eat.  Sure, food is available - just like at Gallery Furniture where customers can enjoy a meal with a purchase - but there is no time.  So, the team ate at night at Bradley Ogden's in Caesar's Palace - a great establishment that strives to be organic and green (just like the myriad of furniture that Gallery Furniture viewed that contained reclaimed woods or are made from sustainable sources).

Gallery Furniture dined with industry leader and watchdog Arty and some folks who sell thick, solid wood furniture that also has some eco-friendly properties in growth.  So, even at dinner, business was conducted during which Gallery Furniture took time to discuss the need for more solid wood furniture and to do so in an ecofriendly style.

Some Play, but Gallery Furniture works in Vegas

A lot of people think that Vegas is glamour, glitz, and gambling.  It is.

However, the dedicated team of Gallery Furniture turns Vegas into a work environment, never letting up in our pursuit of looking for great quality product for Houstonians who like quality but do not want to pay the outrageous prices of our competitors.  That's why the team goes through great lengths while in Vegas to get great prices for you.

Aside from that, the day to day responsibilities of business being conducted by Gallery Furniture has to go on - and the behind-the-scenes work still happens even when folks have left to go to Market.  So it Tuesday was a productive and still busy day for the Gallery Furniture Furniture Market Team as they went to Las Vegas.

Another day begins at the Las Vegas Furniture Market.

Gil in the foreground, patiently trying to explain some advertising scheduling to Steve Eason of the Houston Chronicle's advertising sales division.

Ted driving bargains with Chuck Massoud of Massoud Furnishings - Ted is driving the point to Massoud of the Gallery Furniture way - great savings and fast service, because Gallery Furniture of Houston means business when we say "buy it today, get it today" - even with high end furniture such as Kreiss and Massoud.

Fightin' Texas Aggie Intern Kelly explains to UT David what photos she took over at Sitcom Home Furnishings.  Just goes to show you that Aggies and Longhorns can get along.  This shot was taken inside of Massoud Home Furnishings showroom at the Las Vegas World Market.

Aggie Interns Kelly T. and Kristina W. are tired after yet another day of looking through hundreds of thousands of square feet of showroom space and seminars, but are ready to do it again.  Taken inside the very unluxurious parking garage of the Las Vegas World Market Center complex.

No Time for Blackjack, Gallery Furniture Works Hard at Market

Gallery Furniture's Market Crew has been busy in fabulous Las Vegas at the World Furniture Market. 

A rare moment of tranquility - one shot taken two nights ago that finally made it to the blog - the fountains at the Bellagio.  Credit: Kristina Whitcomb, Gallery Furniture Aggie Intern.

While the market crew of Mattress Mack, Chris "Chris-E" Etheredge, David the Salesperson, Matt "Baseball" Pitcher, Martha "Kolo" Kologinzack, Mary D, Kristina "KW" Whitcomb, Kelly "the KT" Thompson, Gil Velasquez, and Theodore "Ted" Goldman are hard at work, the crew is keeping in mind that the reason for Gallery Furniture's aggressive approach to market is to ensure that all savings are passed on to the family of customers.

Days and nights are spent negotiating, scouting, going to educational and design seminars, and keeping our eye on the ball to ensure that a wide array of products across all price points are ready for Houstonians to enjoy the same day.

So, how does the Gallery Furniture team work as a unit to bring you great quality at low prices?  This is the scene from Monday Night, the time is 6:30 p.m. and the Gallery Furniture Las Vegas Market Team is at Crown Mark Furniture.

At the table: Frances "Grandma" Brown of Crown Mark Furnishings tells Gallery Furniture's Ted Goldman not to scuff the showroom furniture when Gallery Furniture holds their meeting.  Thanks to Crown Mark for holding our furniture and allowing Gallery Furniture to have their meetings on site.

The stage is set as Kelly Thompson, Aggie Intern, along with Kristina Whitcomb (another Fightin' Texas Aggie Intern) go over the Bramble Furnishings Catalog - they will make their pitch to Mattress Mack as to why Gallery Furniture should carry Bramble.  Their idea?  It has that Anthropologie and Z-Gallerie look but with better quality and better pricing... we'll see how it goes.  In the background, Aggie Gil sits ready for his eco-friendly furniture pitch, UT Salesperson David has some notes, and Mary D has been looking at lamps and readies her pitch.  In the background, see Mattress Mack himself walking in.

Next up... all work, very little play... despite what folks may think, Vegas Market is ALL business.  Fourteen hour work days and reports due.  Since Vegas will always be here, no one sweats it - the Gallery Furniture Las Vegas Market Team is here for our dedicated customers.

Vegas, Baby, Vegas! Gallery Furniture goes to Market

The first day at Market in Las Vegas for Gallery Furniture was full of discoveries and concepts that Gallery Furniture wished to bring to Houstonians everywhere.  Vieiwng many products, and taking lots of pictures, Gallery Furniture's Las Vegas crew searched hundreds and hundreds of thousands of square feet of showroom space - and still have thousands upon thousands to go.

Yesterday in review:

The morning starts off, as always, with a breakfast at Planet Hollywood's Planet Dailies (open 24 hours, of course) on the casino floor,  Delicious pancakes, omelettes, bacon, and breakfast smoothies abound as the Gallery Furniture crew gets ready to go to work for Houstonians and save the money.

It all starts with a good breakfast at Gallery Furniture.

Kelly and Gil, in the morning, ready to rock, have a discussion with Mattress Mack, not seen in this photo.  Marching orders come in as blogs are written and Gallery Furniture preps for market and a day to bring Houstonians great savings on great furniture.

The crowd goes off to market, looking at the various sights on the strip.

An array of shots from the inside of the van from Gallery Furniture's own Kristina Whitcomb, a Gallery Furniture Aggie Marketing Intern.

No rest for the weary???  David the Salesperson was too exhausted for words and took a morning nap en route to market before Gallery Furniture crews went to the world market in Las Vegas Nevada.

Naturally, Gallery Furniture not only sought out the new and the hip, they also spoke with vendors with whom we are familiar - from Diamond to Crown Mark and so on - from traditional to contemporary, Gallery Furniture went ahead and pushed to make sure that our customers get the best deal in Houston. 

Viva Las Vegas

Gallery Furniture employees are at Furniture Market in Fabulous Las Vegas.

Last night, the Gallery Furniture Entourage flew out of IAH on the last flight out to conduct business and select new and remarkable furniture at great prices for Houstonians.  The crew consists of Mattress Mack, Ted Goldman (custom order sales), Chris Etheredge (a senior buyer and merchandiser), Martha Kolo (inventory specialist), Mary Dunson & Matt Pitcher (accessories and decorators), David Frederick (sales), Kristina Whitcomb & Kelly Thompson (Gallery Furniture Aggie Marketing Interns), and Gil Velasquez (marketing and e-commerce). 

Ted and Gil started off having a meal at Pappadeaux's in Bush IAH just above the Continental Airlines gate E2, because professional travelers do eat.

Ted, with his championship pint of milk.

Gil and Ted start to dine, Gil having one dozen oysters on the half shell and Ted proceeds with a scrumptious Asian Chicken Salad.

The kids are ready - David, Kristina, and Kelly ready to get on to Vegas as we get ready to save Houstonians money TODAY.

Mary and Chris contemplate the next generation of furniture at Gallery Furniture to save money and bring high quality furniture to Houstonians.

Staying at the luxurious Planet Hollywood, it will not be all fun and games for the Gallery Furniture crew - Gallery Furniture has hard work to do to - it takes skill and perserverence to make sure that Houstonians can save money on quality furniture.  For example, it was the previous market where Gallery Furniture discovered the eco-friendly Mango furniture that everyone is raving about (hand made and solid wood).

Gallery Furniture Market Report: Welcome Signature Home Furnishings

Part Three

Recently Gallery Furniture sent over the Gallery Furniture High Point Furniture Market Team over to High Point, North Carolina, to find new sources of furniture and pass the savings along to our Gallery Furniture customers.  Here's a report from the field from Ted and Gil over in North Carolina:

"Mack, greetings from beautiful North Carolina.  We just signed a deal with Signatgure Home Furnishings of Cerrito, California and they will be sending the paperwork over tonight for some of their beautiful line of traditional style home furniture - Gallery Furniture customers will not only love the prices, but they will love the style of this gorgeous furniture ready for their Houston bedroom, living room, theater room, and home office." -Ted and Gil

Signature Home Furniture comes to Gallery Furniture

That was quick, looks like my Gallery Furniture High Point Furniture Market Team already struck a deal and got things finished quickly.  We truly believe in TODAY here at Gallery Furniture, and it shows in everything we do - whether it is getting you to bed on your lovely Tempur-Pedic the same night or getting that new youth bedroom collection in your home the day you bought it, Gallery Furniture works hard to save you money. 

Keep up the good work, Ted!

Live From High Point, NC - The Gallery Furniture Market Report... Meet Icovia

Part Two

Recently, I sent out the Gallery Furniture High Point Furniture Market Team to High Point, NC for a variety of reasons - most of all to find out how Gallery Furniture can not only save you money, but also for how to come up with new and innovative uses of our great website, www.GalleryFurniture.com - so that all visitors can truly make their Houston house a home.

Here's an entry from one of the Marketing and Internet Division boys, Gil, live from the 12th Floor of the International Home Furnishings Center in beautiful High Point, North Carolina...

"Thanks Mack, wow - I wanted to stress a new feature coming soon to GalleryFurniture.com on the horizon - a space planner by the hyper intelligent and super creative team at Icovia (now called Icovia 20/20).  Turns out as I was attending a seminar on 3-Dimensional Visualization technology for furniture web sites, I ran into our awesome development team at Icovia Software that Hamilton and I have been coordinating with.

Icovia is working hard to make sure that they do things the Gallery Furniture way - and they have gone the extra mile in their new software and added a special bonus for us so that Houstonians can not only plan their furniture space online, they can also drop a rug from Fred the Rug Man onto the floor plan.  It also turns out we will be one of the first to roll out the newest version of the Icovia Room Planner software - folks visiting www.GalleryFurniture.com will be able to easily make their room happen and add tile and floor color to the room plan as well as pull item information sheets. 

They did a projector show for me of the new software they have demo-ing for us - and Mack, I gotta tell you, I am highly impressed.  It's better than anything else on the market currently, and we'll have a site that will allow all visitors to truly enhance their home and plan ahead before they buy with measurements, home furniture orientation, and so on.  I am truly excited for the opportunities afforded our web site visitors once we launch the new Icovia Space Planner with the extra Gallery Furniture add-ons that Icovia is designing for the Gallery Furniture faithful."

Wow, now that is good news.  I am glad folks from the Gallery Furniture High Point Furniture Market Team will all see this lovely piece of software and note the benefits of this software for our customers.  Gallery Furniture has been in business for over 27 years here in Houston, and our history of saving you money, same day delivery of Tempur-Pedic and Hastens mattresses, and our commitment to excellence is second to none.  To this, Gallery Furniture adds the value of being a technological leader - it's how Gallery Furniture has been doing what it has been for the first 27 years, and what we will continue to do for the next 27 years.