Benson steering Natuzzi
By Joan Gunin -- Furniture Today, January 13, 2008
High Point — Cary Benson, who has spent the past 15 years marketing leather hides and domestic upholstery, has just begun his new job as president of Natuzzi Americas, the U.S. sales and marketing division of the big Italian upholstery maker.
Benson, who started his furniture career with contract specialist Steelcase, was president and CEO of Elmo Leather before joining Dallas-based custom upholstery specialist American Leather in 1997, where he became co-president, chief marketing officer and an equity partner. He left in June 2006 after a company buyout.
At that time, Benson said he looked forward to playing golf, consulting and possibly writing a book on marketing. He has since golfed, consulted and written — a little. "I contributed one chapter on marketing and branding to someone else's book and realized this isn't easy," he said.
He also discovered he missed the furniture industry, its challenges and its people. And he was "intrigued" by the Natuzzi opportunity.
Benson, 48, takes over from Fred Starr, 75, who will retire Feb. 29 after 6½ years at Natuzzi.
As head of Natuzzi's U.S. arm, Benson's biggest challenges will be those he can't control: the euro's high value in relation to the U.S. dollar, and the economy's impact on furniture sales.
But in an interview with Furniture/Today, Starr said Natuzzi is turning a corner. "It's great timing for Natuzzi. We are in a transition."
He said the company is well positioned because of its sound combination of brand segmentation, product lineup, manufacturing, distribution, customer base and organization.
In the first nine months of 2007, Natuzzi reported its net shipments were down 15.7% from the same period in 2006. By year's end, however, Starr said orders for 2007 were running slightly ahead of 2006, although shipments had not kept up.
"Orders have been running ahead of shipments for most of the year and ended up ahead of 2006, so we entered the (2008) year with a backlog," said Starr, "and shipments are starting to catch up (with orders)."
In the first nine months of last year, the United States represented 46.3% of seating units Natuzzi shipped and Europe accounted for 47.2%.
Starr said Benson's experience at Elmo and American Leather qualifies him for the Natuzzi job. "Cary is knowledgeable in marketing, merchandising and advertising. He has an intimate background with branding. He 'gets it' better than anybody."
Starr also praised Benson's leadership qualities and his relationships with higher-end retailers.
Benson said he'll spend his first 90 days meeting customers and the company's sales force, and "picking Fred's brain." He said his goals at Natuzzi Americas are to "increase market share, define brand segmentation and find new markets."
The Natuzzi brand is not as well-defined in the United States as it is internationally, he said. In addition to continuing to develop new U.S. distribution channels, Benson said he would work to heighten brand awareness.
"The consumer may know the name, but she doesn't know where the company stacks up within the marketplace," he said.
Benson also intends to simplify Natuzzi's internal communications between the United States and Italy, as well as external communications within the marketplace. He also wants to heighten teamwork and better use the Internet to reach consumers and drive traffic to retailers.
"I am a big believer in the theory that the battle is won or lost at the retail level.... You just have to give them the tools and education," he said.
When he was interviewing for the job, Benson spent a week at Natuzzi facilities in Italy, talking to Chairman and CEO Pasquale Natuzzi, touring the showroom and plant, and observing product development.
Although Natuzzi and American Leather both have high-end product lines, Benson said there is little dealer overlap. "American Leather is more upmarket across the board," he said. "They have fewer people to target and call on (than Natuzzi)."
But a common thread running through both companies is "integrity," he said.
"At American Leather, we did what we said we would do," he said.
Both companies are product innovators, he added.
Benson will manage 60 U.S. employees in accounting, customer service, marketing, brokerage and transportation. He'll oversee a sales force including Senior Vice President of Sales Joe Mussallem and regional sales managers Peter Halunen (eastern region), Dale Zimmerman (central region), Bob DeSantis (west) and Hugh Landes (Latin America).
Gaetano De Cataldo, executive vice president of administration/finance; Cam Creech, advertising manager; Todd Kraft, a veteran of Ralph Lauren Home who charts market analysis and brand development; and Don Harris, retail development, also report to Benson. Benson reports to Pasquale Natuzzi.
Benson will remain based in the Houston area with his family, but will travel regularly to High Point and to visit retail customers.
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