rockin' recliner; The Comfort Swing is designed to help people deal with stress, "like when you listen to beautiful music," says the inventor.(BUSINESS WEEKLY)

Byline: MICHAEL BRAGA michael.braga@heraldtribune.com

Michele Wilson was busy Christmas shopping at Westfield Shoppingtown Southgate and didn't feel like slowing down and testing some comfy chair.

But when she saw it swinging, curiosity overcame her. She lowered herself into the plush ultra-suede seat, kicked back into the recline position and gently began to move forward and back.

"Wow ... Oh dear," she said. "I feel like I'm floating in a cloud."

Pretty much everyone who tries the Comfort Swing, a luxury recliner designed by Bradenton inventor Tom Garland, has the same reaction.

"When you sit in it, you immediately relax," said Garland, a tall, Massachusetts-born patrician with a soft, soothing voice. "It's like when you listen to beautiful music. Your body just responds."

It took the 53-year-old inventor 5 1/2 years to bring the Comfort Swing to market.

In the process, he faced a variety of design, engineering, manufacturing and marketing challenges.

But with help from American Leather, an innovative, rapidly growing, Dallas-based furniture company, the …