Pitman to Lead Durham Furniture

September 25, 2006  by in UnCategorized   

By Home Furnishings Business in Case Goods on September 2006 Michael Pitman has been named president and chief executive officer of solid wood case goods maker Durham Furniture.

Pitman, a 25-year industry veteran, will succeed current CEO Keith McSpurren on Oct. 2.

Most recently, Pitman was vice president of the sales division for Schnadig Corp. He has also held senior sales and marketing positions with Lexington Home Brands.

“His primary focus has been on driving sales results for both of these significant case goods producers,” McSpurren said of Pitman. “He possesses a strong understanding of the Canadian and U.S. markets coupled with a reputation for integrity and strategic thinking. He consistently demonstrates an ability to bring together all functional areas of the business (sales, marketing, product development, manufacturing, finance and human resources) to deliver superior results.”

“This is an exciting time to join Durham in a leadership position and to continue growing the legacy of North America’s premier solid wood bedroom manufacturer,” Pitman said. “We will continue to provide our retail partners with fashion-forward, high quality furniture of unparalleled value supported by manufacturing excellence, superior service and supply chain stability. These strengths aid them to profitably grow their businesses.”

McSpurren will remain on Durham’s board of directors and return to playing a more active role with Flagstone Capital, the private equity fund he helped establish in 2001. The Toronto-based Flagstone also has an equity stake in Durham Furniture. He said his mandate as CEO was to lead the transition of Durham Furniture from being the hard-driving entrepreneurial company it was during most of the 1990s into a mature, stable, growing business.

“Although there are significant challenges ahead for all companies in our industry, Durham’s largest structural changes are behind us,” he said. “Now that the turnaround is complete, it’s time to execute the plan.”

Over the past 18 months under McSpurren’s leadership, Durham has moved to a lean manufacturing platform; assembled a new senior management team; helped lower retail-partner inventories with a just-in-time approach to production; reduced delivery times on virtually all orders to six weeks; expanded its sales network significantly; negotiated new arrangements with its financial partners; and launched a second brand, Orville & Mead.

“The last piece of the transition plan was to recruit a driven, open-minded leader with a significant track record in helping to build every business he has been involved in,” McSpurren said. “We needed to find someone willing to make a long term commitment to Durham that matches the loyalty and dedication of our own employees, sales representatives and retail partners.”