Office Furniture

Herman Miller, Inc.

Herman Miller <% if gsSubBrand = "aolsnapshot" then Response.Write("(Nasdaq: MLHR)") else Response.Write("(Nasdaq: MLHR)") end if %> of Zeeland, Michigan, is number two in the big, bad world of office furniture, after industry giant Steelcase. The company concentrates on the freestanding, modular office partitions and furniture that characterize the greater part of corporate America. The company has offices all over the world and has sales representatives in at least 45 countries. The company is an integrated manufacturer that also runs a furniture management subsidiary called Coro, Inc. Unlike its brethren in the RTA market, international expansion is a high priority.

The company has its own internal sales staff as well as distributors and marketers throughout the world. In fiscal 1996, the company's internal sales group generated 25.6% of sales. The company has focused on staying ahead of the trends in office furniture and recently has pioneered the first designs for the open office. Only one customer accounts for a significant concentration of sales (7.4%). Its ten largest customers account for 13% of sales. The company had a $203.1 million backlog at the end of fiscal 1996.

Herman Miller has a history of remaining very sensitive not only to customer suggestions, but to suggestions of employees as well, which has proven to provide a competitive advantage. Although the Miller family once had a great deal of control of the company, Max Miller banned family from the firm in the 1980s and resigned from active management in 1988 to pursue teaching opportunities. The second successor was fired in 1995 after two months, but things have been stable since then.

Latest Financials

In fiscal 1997, Herman Miller earned $1.55 per share on $1.5 billion in revenues versus $0.91 per share on $1.3 billion a year ago.

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