CORT Helps NBC's "The Apprentice" Contestants Stage Office Space

NEW YORK, NY (September 20, 2010) Contestants on the season premiere of “The Apprentice” began the ultimate job interview by staging office space. Contestants turned to CORT, the nation’s leader in furniture rental, to launch their path to success with a visit to CORT’s Manhattan showroom.

Contestants chose from Herman Miller workstations, artwork, office chairs and other commercial pieces to create a professional, ergonomic workspace fit for one of the world’s most famous businessmen.

Many commercial property owners and managers are hiring staging consultants to help distinguish their properties as property values fall 35 percent from the market’s peak and vacancies are predicted to climb to 17.6 percent in the first quarter of 2011, according to Moody’s Investor Services and the National Association of Realtors. Whether staging a lobby or reception area, cubicle configurations or executive offices, staging is successful for commercial properties the same as it is for homes and apartments – a tool to highlight a property’s best features and help prospective tenants envision themselves in the space.

CORT, a Berkshire Hathaway company, has served the staging industry for more than a decade by providing short-term leases on unique, high quality pieces to match a variety of tastes and styles. Contestants on last season’s “The Celebrity Apprentice” used CORT furniture to stage an apartment for lease. Staging is proven to reduce the time a property is on the market and to increase or maintain the selling price.

“In one case, my team went in to an office building which was bare, just concrete floors and metal studs. We came in to this large, open space and built three paneled sections, an executive office and a typical Herman Miller workstation,” said Kathy LaMarr corporate account executive and home staging support for CORT in the Dallas-Fort-Worth metroplex. “Similar to staging a home, this allows a prospective buyer or tenant to imagine working and thriving in that space.”

The housing downturn left many businesses burdened with an excess inventory of residential properties that are expensive to market and maintain. In 2009, CORT launched a national home staging program to connect their national network of independent home staging professional with these business including relocation management companies, real estate asset management companies, banks and corporations that are responsible for managing the sale of properties, often purchased from relocating employees.

CORT is in the business of renting furniture and accessories – what is called the “rent-to-rent” segment of the industry, unlike other furniture rental companies in the “lease-to-purchase” business. CORT has worked with more than 80 percent of the Fortune 500 companies and supports more than 75 federal government agencies, including setting up more than 500 offices across the country for the 2010 U.S. Census.

For the past four decades, CORT, a Berkshire Hathaway company, has been a leading provider in rental furniture and has provided services to more than 80 percent of the Fortune 500 companies. CORT has more than 2,500 employees with offices in every major U.S. market. For more information about CORT, visit www.cort.com.