Alfresco Home defines outdoor rooms

Tuesday, 24 July 2007

Joseph Cilio saw the outdoor living movement coming. In 2004, when the term “outdoor room” was just beginning to gain ground, Cilio launched Alfresco Home -- a one-stop shop for garden decor and furnishings.

“One thing I sensed was that a lot of garden centers were void of the outdoor living category,” Cilio said. “I felt I could help a lot of friends and customers develop an outdoor living focus that would help them move forward in the next 10 to 15 years.”

Cilio said the dearth of outdoor living products stemmed from a fractured market. Garden center retailers had to place orders with five, six, even 10 vendors to get the goods needed for compelling displays. Many of these suppliers weren’t familiar with the unique needs of independent retailers. Alfresco Home differentiated itself by offering a large selection of outdoor living elements -- both big and small.

“We take casual furniture seriously, and we take the entertaining element seriously,” Cilio said. “All these things add to the outdoor living lifestyle. When the retailer can incorporate it in stores successfully, it gives the consumer a reason to come back to them for solutions.”

Cilio closely monitors outdoor living trends. Luxury outdoor furniture has made headlines in the consumer press lately. But Cilio has found only a small percentage of consumers say the sky’s the limit when purchasing casual furniture.

“The majority of customers in the U.S. really want a product that has high perceived value but is affordable,” he said. “That’s how we approach each design we manufacture. We want to make it affordable for most American consumers. There are a number of products that we developed where we really focus on value.”