by Company also has added 10 new reps to expand distribution west of the Mississippi
SOPHIA, N.C. — Custom upholstery manufacturer Braxton Culler is looking to expand its distribution by adding nine new sales territories, 10 new sales reps and a guaranteed freight rate program to support the initiative.
Long known for having a devoted customer base east of the Mississippi, the company is now looking to achieve national distribution under the sales leadership of Matt Sorensen, senior vice president of sales, a dual role he also holds at parent company Classic Home.
Since assuming the dual sales role with the Braxton Culler division earlier this year, Sorensen has hired experienced sales reps in key markets across the country, which aims to more effectively service customers across the U.S. The sales force now has a total of 23 territories from coast to coast.
“Knowledgeable sales professionals have never been in higher demand in our industry,” said Donnie Lesley, senior vice president of operations at Braxton Culler. “We are very excited about the caliber of sales representatives Matt has assembled to service our customers. All of them are well-known and well-respected by retailers in their regions and all are also experts in the custom furniture business.”
Lesley told Home News Now that the territories the the new reps are covering include Northern and Southern California, the Pacific Northwest, Arizona, New Mexico, the Mountain region, Texas, and Hawaii and Guam.
As part of the expansion, the company also has created a guaranteed freight program to address high logistics costs for traditional furniture retailers of all sizes, from boutiques and small independents to multistore chains, along with design clients.
“There are multiple upholstery companies that one can buy from, and our goal since Classic Home acquired Braxton Culler has been to eliminate any hurdles that customers may encounter,” Sorensen said. “At the top of the list, freight is a huge hurdle in the industry today, and one of the first things buyers and designers look at when they are creating a lineup or planning a project.”
Braxton Culler said it has negotiated guaranteed freight rates with freight specialists Brooks and Sun Belt to support the national distribution push and to give customers options depending on where they are located in the country. For designers, the company has secured guaranteed rates with RPM, a final-mile delivery service that can handle deliveries to homes, as well as project installs depending on the designer’s needs.
“We can now service every customer, from designers and single-store furniture owners, to any type of mass business with an accurate quote on freight so they know with absolute certainty what a piece will cost to land,” Sorensen said. “For the first time in Braxton Culler’s nearly 50 years in business, this market, everybody, no matter where they are in the country, has the opportunity to floor an amazing, quality product that continues to be hand-built with care in North Carolina.”
