Furnished Quarters Donates Surplus Furniture to Charity

Furniture World Magazine

Furnished Quarters, one of the East Coast’s largest providers of furnished apartments, has donated two truckloads of furniture to families in need. Collaborating with the National Furniture Bank Association (NFBA), the charitable arm of the home furnishings industry, most of the donated furniture will be distributed to victims of Hurricane Katrina. “The NFBA provided us with the perfect opportunity to make a difference by contributing to the dearth of furniture inventory for Katrina’s victims,” said Furnished Quarters’ president Steven Brown. “We continually update our apartments with new furniture and now the pieces being replaced will go directly to those that need it most. We hope our efforts will serve as an example for the corporate housing industry.” Furnished Quarters had previously sold their used furniture, but found it to be difficult to administer and not cost effective. “We’re not in the business of selling furniture,” said Brown. “We’re in the business of providing furnished apartments. Our new partnership with the NFBA provides the ideal outlet for our company.” Retailers and manufacturers within home furnishings industry support the NFBA not only because it helps hundreds of thousands of Americans each year, but also because it keeps used furniture off the secondary sale market. Additionally, thousands of tons of furniture that would otherwise head for landfills and incinerators are put to good use. Phil Van Poetsch, executive director of the NFBA, says the donation by Furnished Quarters will provide much needed relief to Hurricane Katrina victims. “It’s difficult to comprehend that nearly a year after Hurricane Katrina, there are still children sleeping on the floor,” said Van Poetsch. “We served 40,000 hurricane victims over the course of ten months, and are still receiving dozens of requests for assistance each day.” The NFBA and Furnished Quarters both stated separately that the companies believe this is the first of many donations to come in a long-term agreement. “I’m thankful to the management of Furnished Quarters,” said Van Poetsch, “and I’m hopeful that other companies will follow their example.” About the National Furniture Bank Association (NFBA) The NFBA is the 501(c)(3) non-profit organization of the home furnishings industry. Representing 70 furniture banks across the country, the mission of the NFBA is to increase the service capabilities of existing furniture banks and open new ones. Furniture banks collect home furnishings from the general public and corporations, then donate them to children and those in need, such as mothers and children escaping domestic violence, victims of natural disasters, and working families below the poverty line. Help1Up is the national public awareness campaign of the NFBA. No child in America should have to sleep on the floor. Kathy Ireland is the Help1Up Ambassador. About Furnished Quarters Founded in 1998, Furnished Quarters LLC is the leader in extended stay apartment rentals throughout Manhattan. From West Side brownstones to Midtown high rises, Furnished Quarters has created individualized environments that complement and highlight each property’s location. The firm’s Principals put the knowledge they have acquired from 20 years of Manhattan real estate ownership into creating a personalized New York experience for each of their guests. This knowledge coupled with a veteran hospitality and operations staff and in-house, internationally networked design team has made Furnished Quarters’ properties the corporate housing choice for many of the Tri-State area’s leading firms. Furnished Quarters leases over 1000 apartments throughout the Northeast region and in partnership with BridgeStreet Corporate Housing Worldwide, leases 10,000 across the country and throughout the world. The firm is the newest entry into the Massachusetts and New Jersey corporate housing markets. In Massachusetts, Furnished Quarters has over 100 unique units throughout the Back Bay, Financial District, and Seaport neighborhoods in Boston as well as multiple locations in Cambridge and the Boston suburbs. In New Jersey, the firm has a current inventory of over 110 units in Hoboken and Jersey City and expects to add another 40 units by year’s end. Locations throughout Central and Northern New Jersey are slated for first quarter 2007. For more information on how to donate, contact: National Furniture Bank Association Don Lawrence (800) 576 0774 dlawrence@help1up.org www.Help1Up.org