Rowe to restructure top management
Morphis done as CFO
By Furniture Today Staff -- Furniture Today, January 11, 2006
MCLEAN, Va. -- Upholstery maker and retailer Rowe has filed a plan with the Securities and Exchange Commission to restructure its top management, as it also prepares to undertake a refinancing plan.
The company said it was terminating Gene Morphis, its chief financial officer, and had promoted Garry Angle, the company’s vice president and treasurer, to the principal financing and accounting officer.
Gerald Birnbach, chairman and president of Rowe Cos., which includes manufacturer Rowe Furniture and the Storehouse chain of stores, also will now serve as president of Rowe Furniture.
Bruce Birnbach, who was president of the Rowe Furniture, has been named president of a newly formed division of the company called Rowe Sourcing, which will focus on the acquisition of raw materials and imported products.
Timothy Fortune, who was vice president of human resources and strategy, has been named senior vice president of operations for the furniture division and will oversee human resources, information and technology, finance, process improvement and manufacturing.
Stefanie Lucus will continue as senior vice president of Rowe Furniture overseeing marketing, sales and merchandising.
Barry Birnbach will continue as vice president of corporate development and will oversee customer service and sales support.
The changes follow an organizational review of the company by the Carl Marks Advisory Group, which said three of its consultants would assume full-time interim responsibilities with Rowe Furniture. Rowe Cos. announced in November that it hired the Marks group to perform financial and management consulting services.
Edward Spinelli will serve as interim vice president of manufacturing, Melvin Henson will serve as interim vice president of finance and Tyler Montague will serve as interim process improvement manager. All will report to Fortune.
Earlier this week, Rowe Cos. announced that it had executed a credit agreement with GE Commercial Finance for a secured credit line up to $50 million and for a secured loan of $7 million, to replace an existing credit line with Bank of America and capital lease with SunTrust Bank.
Under terms of the agreement, the company must raise equity capital of $9.5 million and secure a commitment for at least $2 million in equity capital by Feb. 10. Until it raises the equity, the maximum amount of the revolving credit facility is limited to $45 million.
Rowe said that if it fails to raise the equity by Feb. 10, it will be in default of the credit agreement if the lender does not grant a waiver or amendment. It also said that until it meets the equity requirement, the amount of eligible assets required to secure the borrowings will be increased.
As it announced earlier, Rowe has retained an investment bank to help it in raising capital.
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