GOIRLE, Netherlands — While the rest of Europe, especially Southern Europe, bites its nails over economic consolidation and deteriorating sales, Textaafoam has seen sales rocket to somewhere between $50- $100 million from humble beginnings 43 years ago. (Exact sales  figures are not available.

The business was started by Franz, the father of Wim and Ton Van der Aa. Today, Textaafoam is a major European distributor of middle to upper price upholstery fabrics with no decrease in its turnover since it began business in 1970. “We see a turnaround coming in the upholstery business,” says Wim Van Der Aa, one of the three current family owners. “We have seen a loss of smaller buyers but the bigger customers will survive. Small companies will have a hard time unless they can invest in new products,” he feels. “We have no complaints about our business. We have the right sales team, are privately held and have no debt.”  

Textaafoam offers 4,000 skus with mostly plains. “Flock as a  category has stabilized in Europe but it has declined as a category in Russia where we do not sell.” Textaafoam lines are in the 3.50-20 Euro range and cover everything from chenille through velvet. “Velvet is definitely trending up right now,” he adds.

Textaafoam has seen a sales increase every year over the previous year according to Wim, 63 and his brother Ton who retired, 66, who run the business with their sons Mark 31, CEO  and a principal of the firm, and Mike, 35. Once Ton (67) retires in 2014, the two ‘boys’ will continue the third generation family business with Wim, 63, who plans to stay on a while longer, he says. He has been involved in the business his father started for 37 years. Michael does the buying, marketing and design for Textaafoam while Mark handles sales. He thinks about his future in the company. “I learn something new every day. I like the business and still feel useful in the company,” he says. He likes to play golf and on Thursdays, he rides his racing bike 50 kilometers. Textaafoam showroom

Textaafoam competes with Eurotex and Hopke in Germany but in terms of serving all of Europe, Textaafoam is believed to be the single largest upholstery supplier out there today and one of the biggest upholstery buyers in the world. Aside from private label lines it buys from 30 mills worldwide in Asia, China, Europe and the USA.

Textaafoam is also the distributor for Microfibres since 1987 under the name ‘Microfibres Logistics.’ Here, Textaafoam handles Mircrofibres product lines made in Laarne, Belgium, Winston-Salem and Pawtucket, Rhode Island. (See separate story about Microfibres in this issue) Wim helps Microfibres with the styling and color work on all of the European product lines. Textaafoam stores all lines for shipment  in its 14,000 square meter warehouse in Goirle, Holland and delivers fabric by the cut to small manufacturers and editors or pieces primarily to large furniture manufacturers in Sweden, the entire EU plus the UK. It sells through eight fulltime agents with a total of 40 employees in the company.

Textaafoam shows its lines in Cernobbio during Proposte in May and participates in the Poznan Furniture Fair in Poland and the ‘Haus’ Shows in Germany in Hohenstein/Coburg.