Seventy years on, Homecrest Outdoor Living is still finding new markets for its craftsmanship
For more than 70 years, Homecrest Outdoor Living (Homecrest) has been creating high-quality outdoor furniture, building on a rich heritage of American craftsmanship, innovation, and manufacturing excellence. Serving both residential and commercial markets, the Minnesota-based company proudly offers American-made products known for their exceptional quality, comfort, and extensive customization options. “While our products and capabilities have continued to evolve over the decades, our commitment to craftsmanship, quality, and customer service remains at the foundation of everything we do,” opens Philip Payne, Director of Commercial Sales.
Through the years, that commitment has remained evident in Homecrest’s product portfolio, which is designed to serve as a complete outdoor solution. “Our range includes deep seating collections with coordinating occasional tables, dining chairs, dining tables in a variety of sizes and configurations, in-pool furniture, fire tables, umbrellas, and a wide selection of additional outdoor accessories. We also offer an extensive range of performance fabrics, including Sunbrella, alongside our signature double-layer sling fabric, designed for exceptional durability, comfort, and shape retention. Customers can further personalize their furniture through numerous frame finishes, tabletop options, and other customization opportunities. Our goal is to be a true one-stop resource for outdoor spaces, serving residential customers and commercial markets alike, including hospitality, multifamily, country clubs, restaurants, and food service,” Philip elaborates.
Anticipating trends
Looking ahead to 2027, Homecrest is particularly excited about two additions to its portfolio: the new Olive collection and its Artworks table options. These introductions demonstrate the innovation and forward-thinking taking place within the company. Both represent a major evolution in the company’s design direction, moving more deliberately into transitional and contemporary aesthetics. Far from departing from what has made Homecrest successful, these introductions are designed to broaden its appeal by reaching new customers and specifications while continuing to serve the loyal customers who have trusted the company for decades.
All Homecrest’s products are manufactured on site in Wadena, Minnesota, through a clear, strategic research and development process. Philip explains what it takes to create such innovative solutions. “Our product development process begins by looking beyond the outdoor furniture industry. We closely monitor trends in other areas like interior design, architecture, materials, colors, and finishes to identify concepts that have not yet fully transitioned into outdoor environments. Our new product development team regularly brings new ideas to the table, evaluates them collaboratively, considers where the market is heading and how we can introduce new materials, technologies, or aesthetics while maintaining the quality and durability our customers expect. Our goal is not simply to follow outdoor trends but to anticipate where outdoor living is going next,” he shares.
Durability and performance
To support those ambitions operationally, Homecrest has recently made a significant investment in updating its ERP system. The new platform improves customer visibility, streamlines internal operations, and enhances the company’s ability to respond quickly. Ultimately, this ensures that the team can deliver the level of service Homecrest customers have come to expect, while making the processes behind it more efficient.
Innovation in product development is influenced by what is happening in the wider market, and one of the strongest trends Homecrest is currently seeing in outdoor furniture is the growing use of all-weather poly and mixed-material designs. “Consumers and designers are increasingly looking for outdoor furniture that combines durability and performance with the warmth and visual interest traditionally associated with indoor furnishings. We recently introduced our new Wells collection at Casual Market Atlanta, which combines our premium powder-coated aluminum construction with all-weather poly accents to create a distinctive mixed-material aesthetic. The collection received outstanding feedback and was recognized by many attendees as one of the strongest new introductions at the show. From a design standpoint, we see many of the same trends influencing both residential and commercial environments. The primary difference is that products intended for commercial applications must also satisfy additional performance, durability, safety, and testing requirements associated with high-use settings,” Philip continues.
One commercial segment that has become a particular area of strategic focus for Homecrest is food service. The company recently launched a national Food Service and Restaurant initiative to complement its established Dock Furniture Program and expand its presence in the premium dining sector. “Our Dock Furniture Program has been successful for several years, and we are now increasing the level of resources we dedicate to it given the strong long-term growth potential we see in that category. The Food Service and Restaurant initiative is a newer strategic focus for us. The market represents an attractive growth opportunity, and our extensive dining selection, customization capabilities, and domestic manufacturing position us well to serve this segment,” he explains.
What makes this expansion particularly well-timed is that Homecrest is building on existing strength rather than entering the market with an entirely new product strategy. The company already manufactures many of the products the food service market requires, and its industry-leading four-week lead time on custom furniture, American manufacturing, wide range of dining and table options, custom design flexibility, and competitive pricing give Homecrest a distinctive position in this market. These advantages make the company particularly well-suited for national and regional programs within the food and beverage sector, where consistency, quality, competitive pricing, dependable lead times, and reliable service are critical.
Homecrest is passionate about refining its products and operations to align with evolving demands, and that mindset is now opening doors in markets with high growth potential. For a company built on craftsmanship and consistency, its expansion in the food service sector is a natural yet well-timed next step.
