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Frank Hood Follows Hinshaw as Kingsdown CEO
August 13,
2012 by in UnCategorized 
By Home Furnishings Business in Executive Changes on August 14, 2012
Frank Hood, president of bedding vendor Kingsdown, will follow retiring Chairman and CEO W. Eric Hinshaw as CEO.
Hinshaw, 62, joined Mebane, N.C.-based Kingsdown in February 1976 after a brief career in public accounting. Five years later he was elevated to the post of chief executive officer. During his time with the company, he and his management team are credited with transforming Kingsdown from a regional manufacturer into one of the worlds largest sleep products companies with global sales in more than 21 countries. He is also the former chairman of the International Sleep Products Association and received its Exceptional Service Award in 2000.
Hinshaw and his management team achieved those results by developing a better sleep through science platform that changed the way consumers and retailers talked about sleep product purchases. Today, Kingsdown products are positioned to help people get a better nights sleep and contribute to better health and performance. More than 7 million consumers have gone through the companys unique bedMatch diagnostic system that helps them find the right mattress and pillow for their body type.
At the time he was appointed chief executive officer at the age of 31, Hinshaw was one of the youngest leaders of a mattress company. Now, 31 years later, he has been one of the longest serving chief executives in the industry.
Hood, who has been working in a transition phase with Hinshaw and the rest of the management team over the last several months, assumes his new responsibilities immediately. Hinshaw will remain an advisor to the company and remains one of its largest minority shareholders.
We are grateful to Eric for his visionary leadership of our company for more than three decades. We understand his desire to open a new chapter in his life and spending time with family and working on causes that are near and dear to his heart, said Hood. I appreciate the opportunity that the board has given me and the confidence that they have in our leadership team. We have an amazing roster of bedding industry talent with Kevin Damewood heading sales, Joe Schmoeller leading operations and Lee Hinshaw heading our international group. Each has many other industry veterans on their respective teams.
This is an exciting new chapter for our people and our customers. We will continue to invest in innovation, design and diagnostic technology to deliver the most cutting edge products for all of our retailers. Also, with five manufacturing facilities around the country, we will continue to expand our strong delivery system to service our client base.
I have never forgotten that we are in a business where consumers have entrusted their health and wellness to us by purchasing our products. That responsibility has driven us to constantly enhance our product offerings and get better at what we do, said Hinshaw. We have accomplished so much and I am confident Frank and his leadership team will deliver more great achievements for our company in the future.
Since joining Kingsdown in 2008, Hood has served in a number of senior positions at the company, including: chief information officer, president of the Sleep to Live Institute which licenses bedMatch technology and has overseen marketing efforts. In February of this year, he was named president of the company and assumed responsibility for the day-to-day operations.
Hood, 46, has extensive consumer products company experience, serving as a senior vice president of Quiznos and prior to that post, senior vice president of Krispy Kreme Doughnuts Inc.