Signature Hardware is heading outdoors: The direct merchant of antique-style reproduction fixtures for the home has expanded its merchandise line to include outdoor furniture.

The company now has more than 60 new outdoor furniture items, including stone benches, teak lounge chairs, and dining sets. The stone benches are hand-carved from natural granite to withstand the elements, and the teak products are naturally water resistant.

Founded in 1999, Signature Hardware includes a retail showroom, a six-year-old print catalog and a Website. The Erlanger, KY-based company started out selling bathtubs and plumbing items and has been adding a variety of items for the home.

So what prompted Signature Hardware to branch out into outdoor furniture? “We are continually looking for new products to offer our customers, and we realized that we could provide outdoor furniture and decorative items that are both unique and functional,” says marketing manager Celia Arthur.

“We are currently in the process of adding new outdoor decorative products at this time, such as teak, stone and copper planters, watering cans, birdbaths, birdhouses and garden torches,” Arthur says. “We will continue to add new items as we see the opportunity to provide something different for our customers.”

Is fulfilling outdoor furniture vs. hardware fixtures a problem for the merchant? Not really, Arthur says.

Some of these larger items, such as the stone benches, do pose a challenge, she admits, “but we are already equipped to handle larger home items (like marble bathtubs and 72-in. vanities) and have adapted those techniques for our new offerings.”