Posted on 02/20/2012 3:37:29 PM PST by SunkenCiv
Warren Buffett, who appreciated their shared experience as newspaper deliverers, once told her that fashion changes but the home remains far more secure. In apparel every celebrity with a Q rating above zero either had a line or was pitching one. But precious few celebrity licensors dabbled in home furnishings, even though the dynamics of buying a dresser are no different from buying a dress. "A known brand name gives people a comfort level when buying," says furniture industry analyst Wallace Epperson.
In 1999 Ireland went to the biannual furniture convention in High Point, N.C. with a line of sofas, chairs and end tables. "She had a passion and she was very smart," says Irv Blumkin, head of Berkshire Hathaway's Nebraska Furniture Mart, a 450,000-square-foot megastore that helps drive the direction of the industry. "As she told me the stories of her different products I felt we should give her a chance."
With furniture Ireland mandated that her brand would mean something: "Finding solutions for families, especially busy moms," which is now the company’s motto. So rugs were treated with a spill protection chemical that also holds the colors and allows the rugs to have longer lives. Tables were designed with rounded corners so running children don’t get hurt falling on the edges.
The furniture business showed potential, and within a year Ireland signed with Berkshire's Shaw Industries to expand into carpets, flooring and floor tiles. She remains a staple for the company.
(Excerpt) Read more at forbes.com ...
Even at close to 50 — NOOOOOOT GUILTY!!!!!!!!!
She is also a Pro-lifer.
God Bless Kathy Ireland!
Kathy Ireland was my roommate for several years. She always wore the same green dress. And she liked Budweiser.
Dang.... The last gal I thought would be a rug merchant...
Aren’t all models rug merchants? :)
The #1 beer of Ireland.
Sometimes they shave.
A beautiful woman (in every way), but... ...what’s with the hair?
That hair could disconnect to cover & protect Manhattan in the event of a nuclear attack!
Hard wood, then?
Hope she triples it.
grrrrrrooOOWL!!!
Yes, if 149 other freepers did what I did, we’d have the 15,000 to replace the servers.
Will we be moving from vacuum tubes to 8086’s?
Sorry, I meant it’s the official beer of Ireland.
“guys who are there with 500-year-old copies of Sports Illustrated.”
I had tennis player Henry VIII sign my copy. So there, Big Hair.
Pro-life Kathy is smarter, better looking and richer than the liberal, pro-choice f-wording wife of Tom Brady.
And a homebrewer.
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