Huddersfield, Yorkshire, UK — Camira Fabrics, a 40 year old, privately held English woolens weaver, expects to achieve $100 million sales worldwide by 2013 with the successful launch of its U.S. mill direct program to the contract interior designer.  

“Today, Camira has $80 million global sales and with the addition of $20 million in sales expected for the USA,  this should make the difference by 2013,” according to Paul Bennotti, director of business development, North America. Paul Bennotti

“The textile business is shrinking in the USA so unless you are going global you’ll have a tough time here.  Camira is positioned to sell worldwide,” he said.  He points out that US design firms, his direct customers are also going global, doing more work outside the USA than ever before. “Camira itself is selling to over 80 countries today. Even in Turkey, we sell our wool lines.”

 “Camira also dominates the European contract fabric market and also sells into China through Morphrow, a distributor in Shanghai,” he said. “We function like a jobber. Camira already converts some of its products in Europe and is constantly looking for potential acquisitions in order to grow its business. I see us converting in the States in the future.”  

In its business model, Camira eliminates the wholesale customer and sells direct to the architect and designer market through sample books and memo samples. Its ‘Second Nature’ fabric brand was recently placed through 800 sample books alone. Order minimums are one yard. Since it had no bridges to burn with the wholesaler in the first place, Camira is not concerned about alienating customers, namely the jobber, a middle market it never served in the first place. Contract jobbers are the primary customer of other contract fabric mills in the USA but not for Camira. Bennotti also sees the future in terms of direct sales to the A/D community from mills other than Camira. “I see this development occurring especially with European suppliers.”

Bennotti oversees a nationwide group of 17 reps that he hired who call on the A&D market and furniture OEM’s. He also has an agreement with the Woeller Group in Canada. His plan is to enter the hospitality and healthcare markets in 2013 but right now, his main concern is corporate business in 2012 where he expects to surpass $1 million in sales. 

“Camira stocks all of its lines in its Indianapolis, IN warehouse for the A/D community and also sells direct to contract furniture OEM’s like Leland, Hightower, Martin Brattrud Studio and Davis,” Bennotti said. “These firms are grading in Camira product to their fabric lines.  Delivery of Camira fabrics to all customers is in one to two weeks from receipt of order.” he said.  

“We don’t want to be about thousands of busy patterns or the signature design on a chair. Camira wants to be known as the open line mill with wholesale prices, producing classic, bread and butter items for the designer and furniture manufacturer.” For an example of what he means by ‘bread and butter,’ Camira offers recycled polyester fabrics to the trade at $26 a yard and 100 percent wool crepe in the $29-$52 range. It also offers a range of eight designs in wool in 30 plus colors in some designs and the balance in textures and stripes.

According to Bennotti, one of Camira’s most successful products to date is ‘Blazer,’ wool felt at $47 per yard, which represents a four percent price increase over 2011. ‘Smarty,’ a small dot jacquard, is another successful pattern. “Our competitors might sell the same thing for $60-$90 per yard,” Bennotti said. Camira is now providing product made from bast fibers derived from plants; some from nettles which is mixed with wool. This spring, Camira plans to unveil a 60/40 wool/hemp in 30 colors for $39 FOB Indianapolis. A recycled jute and wool product line is also planned. 

Adrenalin on a chairCatherine Watkins, director of product development works with a team of a dozen designers in Huddersfield on all of the products.  Right now, these designers are in the process of raising the aesthetics of all Camira lines, he said. For example, Bennotti points to “wool felt as a hot look for panels. We have it in 22 ounces and a 17 ounce version for vertical surfaces.”

“We offer the designer a value proposition with a five year and ten year warranty on everything we offer, depending on the product.  Camira is competing with other jobbers but is a mill.”

Bennotti said that Camira is in stock on everything it sells, about 280 sku’s either with the half million yard inventory in Indianapolis or in Huddersfield, UK. “We can deliver just as fast to the customer from either the UK or Indianapolis States and we’ll even provide cut yardage like any jobber would. Obviously, the line from Camira is abbreviated compared to the typical jobber but it is more than enough for the bulk of the basic business done in the U.S. contract arena, he said.

“The designers love our product, especially the deep brights and classic construction, including the good hand and finishing.” Camira is a completely vertical piece dyed operation. Bennotti got his first reaction to the line last June at Neocon. “All the major design firms stopped by our stand and this was only our second Neocon ever as a privately owned company.

Previously, Camira was owned by Interface Fabrics Inc. but was later sold and renamed. It was previously known as Camborne. True Fabrics, another contract supplier in Grand Rapids, Michigan was also part of the Interface Group. True was sold to Sun Capital while Camborne was sold to its new owners at a later date. Camira had to agree not to compete in the USA in favor of True Fabrics. Once that agreement expired, Camira stepped into the void in the States when the lockout ended in 2009.

Before joining Camira, Bennotti was with Victor Textiles in Canada based in Boston. Previously, he spent ten years (1996-2006) with the forerunner to Camira, working with the same crew as he works with now, namely Andrew Schofield,   marketing and sales director and Ian Burn, director of marketing.  Other top executives include Steve Bullas, managing director; Simon Whittaker, director of sales and Cheryl Kindness, director of product development.   F&FI