Fairmont Designs buys N.C. upholstery plant
Thomas Russell -- Furniture Today, March 15, 2011
HICKORY, N.C. — Case goods and upholstery producer Fairmont Designs has acquired a former Thomasville upholstery plant here that it will use to make upholstery for East Coast accounts.
The company has closed on the purchase and plans to begin production in April. The purchase price wasn't disclosed.
The company also has named Paul Savicki vice president of manufacturing. In that role, he will oversee the 210,000-square-foot operation, which includes about 160,000 square feet of manufacturing space and about 50,000 square feet for warehousing and distribution.
He comes to the company from Bernhardt Furniture, where he was plant manager of the company's contract seating division. Earlier, he was with Cochrane Furniture, Isenhour Furniture and Highland House Furniture.
Savicki said the facility will produce fully upholstered sectionals, sofas, loveseats and chairs and initially employ about 45 workers. Employment could grow to about 70 by the end of the year. Initially, it will produce about 50 pieces a day, and is projected to produce 150 a day pieces a day by year's end.
Fairmont Designs also has a 200,000-square-foot upholstery plant in Rancho Dominguez, Calif., which produces about 200 pieces a day, primarily for West Coast customers. The North Carolina plant will serve customers east of the Mississippi.
Brian Edwards, president of Fairmont Designs, said the company realized it needed an East Coast manufacturing presence to be competitive in servicing East Coast accounts. He said the North Carolina plant will significantly reduce transportation costs.
"You can make it efficiently wherever you are, but the cost of freight becomes a dictating factor in how well you can be a value in the marketplace," Edwards said. "If we were going to service that part of the country and be competitive in what we were offering, freight is a huge factor. That issue is being resolved by having a facility in North Carolina."
Featured Company
-
FurnitureCore.com
FurnitureCore.com is a dynamic web application aimed at the furniture industry. Retailers and manufacturers alike will find our deep reserve of tools to be exactly what their furniture business needs.www.furniturecore.com... more
VIEW ALL GALLERIES
