Hammary, a La-Z-Boy company, announced that it is working with lifestyle expert, television personality and restaurateur Barbara Smith; who will be designing a collection of transitional casegoods.
The B. Smith Home Collection will include approximately thirty-four pieces including occasional, bedroom and dining room collections. This is Hammary's first celebrity licensing program.
The B. Smith look embodies contemporary design inspired by transcultural influences. "That look," B. simply states, "is 'Afrasian' and it fills a void in the market." Believing in an accessible approach to design, B. Smith merges eclectic style with ethnic influences that draw their inspiration from her world travels as a model, author, and business professional.
"My new collection for Hammary incorporates global accents that will appeal to a broad range of customers who embrace the unique combination of bold, dramatic lines enhanced by natural and subtle elements. This interaction reflects the synthesis that occurs when the best of each culture comes together to create something beautiful, and embodies what the 'Afrasian' world view and this collection are all about," says Smith.
Among the signature items in the collection are a platform bed and coordinating dresser in a luxurious, dark mahogany finish with dramatic, carved accents. "The bed is a statement piece that is a fusion of Asian, African and Caribbean influences," Smith says. "It epitomizes my vision of blending design with a world view."
Smith's furniture collection for Hammary is a natural evolution of her lifestyle brand that also includes the successful B. Smith with Style® Home Collection sold exclusively for the past eight years at Bed Bath & Beyond® stores nationwide and the "B. Smith with Style" television show. Her flagship New York restaurant is celebrating its 24th year in business; her D.C. restaurant, host to one of the official Inaugural gala events for President Obama, recently marked its 15th anniversary; and the Sag Harbor restaurant celebrated its 12th season in May of this year.
"We are excited to welcome B. Smith to Hammary," said Hammary's President, John Labarowski. "B. Smith knows style whether it's on the runway, in a restaurant or in the comfort of your home. When it comes to casual yet elegant living, her sophisticated approach has been an inspiration to many for years."
Hammary is targeting better department and furniture specialty stores for the B. Smith collection which will be launched at the October High Point Furniture Market.
About Hammary: Hammary Furniture was founded in 1943 as a manufacturer of covered lawn furniture. Today, Hammary is a well-known residential marketer of eclectic, high-fashion furniture for every room of the home. Its product line is distributed throughout the United States and internationally. Hammary is part of La-Z-Boy Incorporated's family of companies. For more information on Hammary, please visit: www.hammary.com.
About B. Smith:
B. Smith is a fashion model turned lifestyle expert - TV talk show host, author, entertainer, brand spokesperson and entrepreneur - an African American woman who easily merges cultures through a shared appreciation for style. The first African American featured on the cover of Mademoiselle magazine, she is credited with myriad other milestones: the first black woman to have a national lifestyle brand, the first to sell products nationwide at Bed, Bath and Beyond, the first to publish an entertaining/cooking tabletop book (she will publish her third book this year), the first to have a nationally distributed television lifestyle show, as well as the first African American woman on the board of directors of the Culinary Institute of America. Ms. Smith was recently the recipient of the Entrepreneur Award at the 2009 BET Honors. For more information, please visit: www.bsmith.com.