La-Z-Boy Incorporated (NYSE:LZB) is in talks with online retail giant Amazon.com, Inc. (NASDAQ:AMZN) to seek out and pursue opportunities in the e-commerce market.
La-Z-Boy is planning to expand its reach by venturing into e-commerce specifically to reach out to millennials who are more predisposed to buying products online. The company’s CEO Kurt Darrow spoke to analysts during an earnings call on Wednesday revealing that his firm has been discussing business opportunities with Amazon. He also pointed out that the discussions were focused towards supporting and complementing the furniture maker’s already existing distribution.
Darrow also revealed that the talks are in their early stages and that they do not currently have a full proposal to move forward. The CEO also pointed out that the new initiative of expanding to the online market has also led to changes in how the company displays its products on the Wayfair online retailer. This includes videos and photos which the company claims have helped boost traffic.
La-Z-Boy claims that the majority of online shoppers are millennials, thus the need to reach out to them. This is one of the reasons behind the firm’s decision to dive more aggressively into e-commerce. The discussions with Amazon suggests that the company has plans to team up with the e-commerce giant so as to broaden its reach.
“While the La-Z boy brand is extremely powerful, it has a core demographic and we recognize the brand does not effectively reach all consumers, particularly millennials and Gen X consumers, who are looking for non-traditional brands and experiences,” stated Darrow.
The CEO also told analysts that the firm has confidence in the investments as an effective use of capital. He also added that investors will get strong returns from the strong combination the investments with the advantages and strengths offered by the company’s supply chain. If all goes well, La-Z-Boy expects to significantly boost its revenue and performance through increased online sales which is why it is determined to come up with a strong business on Amazon’s platform.
La-Z-Boy stock closed the latest trading session on Wednesday at $24.95 after tanking by 20.16 percent compared to the value of the stock during the previous close.
