Ferguson Joins Home Meridian

January 28, 2010  by in UnCategorized   

By Home Furnishings Business in Executive Changes on January 29, 2010

Sourcing veteran Tony Ferguson has joined case goods and motion upholstery vendor Home Meridian International as vice president of operations for Southeast Asia.

Reporting to HMI's COO, Lamont Hope, Ferguson will manage operations in all all Asian countries excluding China. Those countries include Vietnam, the Philippines and Malaysia. Ferguson has responsibility for product sourcing, quality, and supply chain management for four of five HMI companies (Pulaski Furniture, Samuel Lawrence Furniture, Creations and Prime Resources International), and will work out of Home Meridian's facility in Ho Chi Minh City.
 
Ferguson is an engineer by trade with more than 30 years of furniture operations experience at Standard Furniture, Hammary, Aspen, Bassett and most recently as director of manufacturing and quality services for North America sourcing at Kimball International.  HMI Asia is organized into groups of factories.  Each business unit is assigned a dedicated team that is responsible for all aspects of supply chain management which includes a quality team in each factory, a dedicated product development person to make samples, and an analyst who measures performance against best practices.  Each of these business units excluding China will report to Tony Ferguson.
 
"Tony is an experienced Far East manager with a proven track record," said George Revington, president and CEO of Home Meridian International. "He will spearhead our plans to grow our Asian organization and expand our sourcing base in Southeast Asia. The winners in the next generation of furniture marketing will be those that can provide superior value, consistent quality, and deliver when promised. Superior supply chain management requires sophisticated integrated systems and exceptional people to manage them. Tony is one of those exceptional people and we have the systems in place to manage business growth.
 
Hope said Ferguson has the experience and contacts to grow Home Meridian's solid base of off-shore business and to bring the company's supply chain management to the next level.

"We are staffing in Asia to improve our flow and quality," Hope said. "Tony has a reputation for being an excellent communicator and team builder. He has managed large staffs, has a consistent record of accomplishment, and has successfully transitioned manufacturing from one country to another. He is a perfect fit for our needs."
 
"My passion is to be the best in the business for our dealers, our Asian partners and HMI stakeholders," Ferguson said. "We must deliver product that meets specific price points, deliver them on time, and with superior quality. Living here where the manufacturing is done, with the relationships we have developed, we truly believe we can deliver this to HMI customers."