Hekman, Woodmark merge mgmt.
By Jay McIntosh -- Furniture Today, August 26, 2002
GRAND RAPIDS , Mich. — Sister companies Hekman and Woodmark have merged management, with some positions eliminated at Woodmark and Hekman President Dan Henslee taking responsibility for both manufacturers.
Subsidiaries of manufacturer Howard Miller, Hekman produces mainly occasional and home office furniture and Woodmark upholstery.
Gone from Woodmark are Craig Adams, who was president; Mickey Waldrup, who was vice president of sales and marketing; and Scott Styers, who was in charge of human resources. The Woodmark and Hekman credit departments also have been merged.
Robert Cribbs has been hired as vice president of sales for both companies. He was most recently vice president of sales and marketing at Jasper Cabinet, and previously was general manager of Kimball Home.
Joseph Franz, most recently general manager of upholstery at Pennsylvania House, has been named to the newly created position of general manager of Woodmark.
Neil McKenzie, who was Hekman's vice president of sales and marketing, now is vice president of product development for both companies. Jane Rettan, who managed human resources at Hekman's Lexington, N.C., plant, now will do the same job for the combined Hekman-Woodmark.
"Woodmark sales were holding up extremely well and still are," said Henslee. "This is not a situation where somebody was doing something wrong and we had to correct it."
He said the companies were merged to improve efficiencies in management. They already shared many of the same retailers, and about 95% of Hekman sales representative sell Woodmark and vice versa, he said.
The companies don't disclose annual sales, but industry estimates put Hekman at about $40 million and Woodmark at about $15 million.
