Southern Elegance Launching New Line of Eco-Friendly Amish Furniture

Southern Elegance is launching a new line of environmentally friendly furniture that is handcrafted by the Amish in Sarasota, Florida.

In 2010, the company plans to launch both a line of indoor furniture made of bamboo and similar products made from ecologically friendly materials. The furniture will feature superior craftsmanship of experienced Amish woodworkers.

Southern Elegance President James Miller says that the furniture blends time-honored traditions in Amish woodworking with new concepts in modern design and ecologically friendly materials. Miller's son, Jim Miller II, is the CEO of JMX International, a Sarasota company that was a pioneer in internet retail of Amish furniture and many other products, including polywood furniture and bamboo mouldings. JMX imports the bamboo, has vast experience in Amish furniture and will provide Southern Elegance with a sales platform from the beginning as the exclusive internet retailer of the products.

"We see the beauty of opportunity in this joint venture," said Jim Miller II. "JMX has never been interested in manufacturing our own products, but with the special relationship we enjoy with Southern Elegance, we believe that we can certainly bring some things to the table to help make this venture successful. They will provide the manufacturing and will retain ownership of the product line, and we will serve as supplier, consultant, and partner in sales."

James Miller, Sr projects that the blend of eco-friendly materials with the tradition of Amish furniture will be a key to success. "Many consumers today are tired of inferior imported products. We have something special here. It's American made, Amish handcrafted. Yet it's also a new concept in Amish furniture. Many of the [Amish] woodworkers we talk with have never seen the bamboo before. They understand it's appeal to a new type of customer and are generally eager to get their hands dirty, so to speak, in the manufacturing process," he explained.

In addition to designing and manufacturing the products, Southern Elegance will sell directly to businesses and set up a dealer network.

For more information, contact James Miller at southernelegancefurniture@gmail.com.