Textile veteran Howard Rosenberg dies at 73
By Susan M. Andrews -- Furniture Today, March 14, 2004
Los Angeles — Los Angeles— Howard Rosenberg, a home furnishings textile industry veteran who is credited with helping to bring woven polyester microfiber suedes to American upholstery, has died. He was 73.
Rosenberg was vice president of sales and marketing at Dorell Fabrics at the time of his death. He spent almost 30 years with Quaker Fabric, retiring as West Coast sales manager in 2001. Previously, he served for several years as sales manager of Quaker's Southwest territory, including Tupelo, Miss.
After leaving Quaker, Rosenberg became associated with Dorell, a fabric importer and converter based in Los Angeles. He and Arnie Chasen, president of Dorell, saw woven polyester microfiber suede in the Far East and recognized the fabric's potential importance for furniture applications. The company's mid-priced D'Oro Suede line is widely considered the genesis of the category in this country.
Rosenberg's daughter, Karla Schmidt, said her father "started his career in the fabric industry as a fabric cutter at the age of 17 in New York and never left the industry he loved."
Chasen said Rosenberg's personal charm helped make him an "industry icon and legend. He had the ability to be as comfortable with a shipping clerk as he was with the head of a company."
"Howie was a great guy," said Tom Finneran, president of American Century Home Fabrics, who worked with Rosenberg for years at Quaker. "He was really a roaming ambassador for Quaker over the years and he was outstanding in sales and design. We were friends for 30 years."
Sid Blitz, president of upholstery producer GuildCraft, said, "I lost my best friend."
Memorial contributions may be made to the American Diabetes Assn., by mail to Always and Forever Memorial and Honor Program, Attn: ADA Web, P.O. Box 2680, North Canton, Ohio 44720; by telephone at (800) 342-2383; or online at www.diabetes.org.
Survivors include his wife, two daughters and three grandchildren.
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