Welcome to 2016

January 12, 2016  by in Business Strategy, Industry   

Welcome to 2016

There’s nothing like a major industry announcement to kick off a brand new year.

And just like that,  2016 came in with a bang that echoed throughout the furniture industry. A mere three business days  into the New Year, and Hooker Furniture Corp. made one of the biggest announcements to hit the industry in the last 12 months.

The company plans to acquire Home Meridian International in a $100 million deal expected to close in the first quarter.

In case you missed it, here’s the gist of the news that will add significantly to Hooker’s stable of brands.

The acquisition of HMI is the largest acquisition in Hooker Furniture’s history, and the move will catapult the company into the top 5 of industry vendors. Not only will the merger create a larger company, it gives Hooker Furniture an entrée into more moderate price points. The acquisition will also open up additional channels of distribution for the company.

As part of the plan, Home Meridian will operate as a division of Hooker Furniture under the leadership of George Revington, current CEO of HMI. Once the acquisition is complete, Revington will become president and COO of the HMI division and report to Paul Toms Jr., chairman and CEO of Hooker.

What’s more, the management team of HMI’s companies is expected to remain on board.

That talent includes Page Wilson, president of Pulaski; Lee Boone, president of Samuel Lawrence Furniture; Shawn Cantrell, president of Prime Resources International; Greg Noe, president of Sourcing Solutions Group and on and on. The HMI management team runs deep and is filled with a breadth of talent and knowledge that will meld nicely with Hooker’s skilled management team.

The combined company will include upholstery manufacturing facilities in Hickory, N.C., and Bedford, Va., showrooms in High Point and Ho Chi Minh City, Vietnam, and eight distribution centers in North Carolina, Virginia, California, China and Vietnam. The company will employee about 900 people worldwide. 

Over the last trailing 12 months ended Oct. 31, the combined companies had revenue of more than $550 million and combined operating income of  $35.6 million.

With that, welcome to a New Year in the furniture industry where the landscape is always shifting.

Here’s to a year filled with good fortune, stronger relationships and great stories!

Cheers!