MR Division for Home and Lifestyle Publisher

US publisher Progressive Business Media, which owns eight titles in the home furniture, furnishings and gift markets, has launched a new research division. The unit, Progressive Market Research, will be headed by Director of Research Dana French.

The Greensboro, N.C.-based business produces titles including Furniture/Today, Casual Living, Kids Today and newly acquired HFN, and says the new division will offer the home furnishings industry 'customized, proprietary and confidential research aimed at facilitating data-driven decision making'.

The division will provide exclusive research for the company's publications - including the Furniture/Today Top 100 Furniture Stores, Beyond the Top 100 and Consumer Buying Trends Survey and Home Accents Today's biennial Universe Study, 50 Retail Stars and Retail Store Operations Surveys; and confidential and exclusive research for clients including competitor intelligence, market trends, insights into consumer preferences and lifestyle, and business opportunities. Methods include online and telephone surveys, panels and focus groups.

French comments: 'More and more companies have been coming to us wanting to know how to grow their business. Since the recession, data has become critically important. You can't just make decisions without facts behind them.' The firm says it will recruit new staff to meet increasing demand for the exclusive surveys.

Web site: www.progressivebusinessmedia.com .

All articles 2006-23 written and edited by Mel Crowther and/or Nick Thomas, 2024- by Nick Thomas, unless otherwise stated.