Hall of Fame inducts four leaders at market gala
By Furniture Today Staff -- Furniture Today, November 2, 2008
HIGH POINT — Three giants of furniture manufacturing and a leader of one of the largest U.S. furniture retail organizations were inducted into the American Furniture Hall of Fame during market.
Alfred J. Audi, Wogan S. Badcock Jr., K. Bruce Lauritsen and Pasquale Natuzzi were saluted at a market gala attended by nearly 400 guests.
“We are proud to honor the contributions of these extraordinary leaders in home furnishings,” says Donald Belgrad, president of the American Furniture Hall of Fame Foundation. “Each is a shining example of leadership, service and integrity in our industry. Their pioneering achievements and steadfast dedication will continue to serve as an inspiration in the years to come.”
Audi, the late president of L. & J.G. Stickley, and his wife, Aminy, transformed Stickley from a company of fewer than 25 employees into a thriving international business with three factories, 14 showrooms and more than 1,600 employees.
Badcock, who died in 1996, was president of W.S. Badcock Corp., a company founded by his great-grandfather. During his 30-year tenure, Badcock expanded the chain to more than 300 stores throughout the Southeast, providing entrepreneurial opportunities for more than 200 associate dealers in six states.
Lauritsen, who like Audi died last year, joined manufacturer Flexsteel as a sales trainee in 1968 and eventually rose to president and CEO. Flexsteel's revenues grew from $19.9 million in 1968 to $425 million in 2007. Lauritsen launched the company's first in-store gallery in 1984; today there are more than 600. He also was active in the American Home Furnishings Alliance.
Pasquale Natuzzi is founder, chairman and chief designer of the Natuzzi Group, the world's largest producer of leather sofas and Italy's largest furniture manufacturer. Natuzzi transformed the industry by democratizing the leather sofa, a product once reserved for the elite.
The inductees were elected by members of the American Furniture Hall of Fame Foundation. They join 74 people elected to the Hall of Fame in previous years.
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