Friitala/Branaa's tannery operations renamed Zenda
By Joan Gunin -- Furniture Today, December 31, 2006
Connelly Springs, N.C. — Branaa, the South American leather tannery that has traded in the United States under the Friitala/Branaa brand, has changed its name worldwide to Zenda.
The Branaa family's 63-year-old tannery based in Montevideo, Uruguay, changed its corporate name and consolidated all of its businesses globally under a single brand, said Juan Diego Casaretto, managing director of Zenda USA, its newly renamed U.S. domestic sales and marketing arm.
Zenda, which showed at the Showtime fabric show in High Point last month, also unveiled a new tag line: "Enjoy leather."
With 10 plants worldwide operating under various names and a 50,000-square-foot U.S. warehouse here, privately held Branaa Tannery decided to strengthen its image and enhance its business relationships with a uniform corporate identity, Casaretto said.
In 1994, Branaa Tannery became the exclusive sales and marketing agent for Friitala of America in the United States and Canada. Branaa acquired the Friitala of America operations in December 2004 and renamed it Friitala/Branaa.
The tannery produces aniline, semi-aniline, pigmented, distressed and antiqued leathers for the aviation, automobile and furniture industries. Furniture accounts for 40% of sales, Casaretto said.
In addition to production facilities in Uruguay and the North Carolina warehouse, the company operates a tannery in Argentina and cut-and-sew plants in Mexico, Germany and South Africa. Many of the facilities had different corporate names, such as BMX in Mexico or Friitala/Branaa in the U.S.
Zenda produces nearly 5,000 hides a day at its plants in Uruguay and Argentina and exports to more than 30 countries. Its facility in South Africa produces 1,000 hides per day for the automotive industry.
Zenda is in a growth mode, realizing "significant double-digit growth" in sales over 2005, Casaretto said, with estimated 2006 sales of $150 million.
The company has remodeled its High Point showroom in Market Square Tower with a contemporary flair to reflect the name change.
In addition, Linda Long has joined Zenda as a sales representative, responsible for the Southeast and reporting to Casaretto. She has had stints at tanneries Trio Leather and Arpel Leather.
Casaretto recently was appointed co-chair of the Joint Industries Leather Committee for the American Home Furnishings Alliance. The committee oversees industry standards and guidelines.
He succeeds Heather Bolick on the committee. She resigned from the post in August after leaving LSA-Wipelli to join retailer Cardi's in Swansea, Mass., as a buyer of leather upholstery, motion seating and rugs.
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