Mark Smith Named President at Emerson et Cie

June 13, 2006  by in UnCategorized   

By Home Furnishings Business in Case Goods on June 2006 Mark Smith has been named president of occasional and case goods importer Emerson et Cie. Smith, 41, is son of company founders Marvin and Connie Smith, who retain active roles in the company as joint chief executive officers.

With experience in the business dating from the mid-’80s, Smith has covered the Northern California sales territory, and in 2002 was promoted to vice president and national sales manager. He also has represented many companies as an independent sales representative since 1986, in categories ranging from upholstery to major dining room, case goods and occasional, and has been a member of several rep councils, including Jasper Cabinets and The Platt Collection.

Smith will be based in Greensboro, N.C., but will maintain an office in San Francisco, the High Point-based company’s original hometown.

With Mark Smith at the helm, Marvin Smith will spend more time building new relationships with domestic companies. Emerson et Cie now produces a third of its products in its High Point facility.

Mark Smith’s new role will include extensive travel, with an emphasis on product development. His influence on the line has been felt in the company’s successful April introduction, Prodigy, a pure, grand-scale reproduction of Louis XIII styling in authentically distressed oak.

“We are both excited that we have someone with Mark’s enthusiasm, energy and age to step into the position who just happens to be our son,” Marvin Smith said.

Martk Smith said he plans to build on the success of a company that just posted its fifth consecutive record market in High Point this April.

“I’m not looking to change a lot of how we operate,” he said. “I have a lot to learn and a good mentor to teach me what I need to know. We have a great reputation with our customers and vendors, which I look forward to enhancing for the next several years.”