FurnitureFan's strong growth

The web-based marketing service FurnitureFan Inc., is enjoying explosive growth, including a 300% increase in page views and a 72% increase in unique visitors to the site since August 2000 (source, PC Data). FurnitureFan added 916 new brick-and-mortar retailers, 8,261 new product listings and 50 new manufacturer's catalogs to its web site. The company has almost doubled its workforce from 12 to 22 employees since August 2000.
FurnitureFan CEO Mitchell Russo credits the company's growth to its using the site as a web-marketing tool for the furniture industry, rather than as a competitive e-retail site. He explains, "Furniture retailing is an industry where consumers prefer to test-drive the product prior to purchase and that is impossible over the Internet. Instead of competing with our brick-and-mortar counterparts, FurnitureFan.com aligns itself with retailers and manufacturers as their Internet marketing-services company. We offer brick-and-mortar stores web exposure while directing consumers into their showroom to test the furniture and make a purchase." FurnitureFan.com currently has partnerships with over 1,300 retail stores in the U.S. and Canada.