ITASCA, Ill. – Workplace furnishings giant Fellowes announced a number of changes to its Contract Furniture division, formerly known as Trendway, including the closure of the Holland, Michigan, production facility in 2024 and the discontinuation of a portion of its furniture product offerings, including systems, casegoods, filing, storage and tables. 

Fellowes said it will continue to accept orders of these discontinued products until June and ship orders through July 2024. Further communication is being provided to customers to support the transition.

Fellowes acquired Trendway in 2019. The company said despite significant investments in equipment and process upgrades, including ERP and WMS systems, "it was ultimately decided the business was in an unrecoverable condition."

“We are saddened by the impact this decision has on our customers and our valued employees.  Unfortunately, Fellowes has now reached the point of exhausting its resources and support while still experiencing meaningful shortfalls to our brand promise and financial responsibility in this area of our business.  As difficult as it is, we must face our reality and plan a future which confronts and definitively resolves these challenges”, said John Fellowes, CEO of Fellowes.  “We are truly grateful for the many employees that have supported this operation, some for decades.  The dedication of our employees has been displayed in many ways through these difficult times and I would like to express gratitude and appreciation from our entire Fellowes team.  Despite our significant losses in this operation, in the coming months we will help our employees make their personal transitions in a way that is consistent with our values, and wish each employee impacted the best outcome possible.”

Fellowes first expanded into the contract furniture segment in 2017 with its acquisition of ESI, followed by Trendway in 2019. It ranked #78 on the 2023 FDMC 300, a listing of the largest wood products manufacturers in North America based on sales; the 2024 FDMC 300 will be published in April.

The company said it will continue to serve the contract furniture industry with its full line of monitor arms, power solutions, height adjustable tables, desktop lighting, keyboard solutions, organizational products, networked air purification, air quality monitoring and modular walls. Founded in 1917 and privately owned, Fellowes is headquartered in Itasca, Illinois, and operates from 24 locations across the globe.