Lexington Expands Global Sourcing Team

July 22, 2007  by in UnCategorized   

By Home Furnishings Business in Case Goods on July 2007 Full-line vendor Lexington Home Brands, Thomasville, N.C., has reorganized and expanded its global sourcing team with four new appointments.

Jeff Hunt has been named general manager of operations in Asia, based in Dongguan, China, and reporting to Bob Sitler, senior vice president of operations. Hunt is now responsible for managing all aspects of Lexington Home Brands business in Asia, including vendor relations, supply chain management, quality assurance and upholstery operations. Most recently, he was manager of business operations for Asia, and prior to that he was director of international sourcing in Indonesia.

“We are pleased to have someone of Jeff’s caliber to manage and lead our efforts in Asia,” Sitler said. “He understands what it takes to be successful in sourcing and supply chain management, and has the experience to lead the organization in Asia as we continue to grow offshore initiatives.”

Mike Koonts has been named finishing manager for Asia, reporting to Jeff Hunt. Koonts previously was project manager for finishing in Indonesia, and is now responsible for the management and coordination of all aspects of finishing in partnership with key suppliers and vendors in Asia. He is based in both Indonesia and China.

“Mike has extensive hands-on experience and knowledge in finishing, which will support and facilitate a level of differentiation in our products,” Sitler says.

Lexington also expanded its upholstery team in Asia with the appointment of Julia Huang to upholstery coordinator, reporting to Jeff Hunt. Based in Hangzhou, China, Huang most recently was product development manager for American Signature. She is now responsible for the coordination of all upholstery projects in China as well as quality control inspections of upholstered frames and fabrics.

Finally, Jerry Sipes has been named product development coordinator, working with Lexington’s upholstery plant in Hildebran, N.C., and the Asia sourcing team. He reports to Kevin Holshouser, upholstery operations manager. Sipes was most recently senior import upholstery product technician for Thomasville Furniture, where he worked for 11 years.

Lexington Home Brands is an affiliate of Boca Raton, Fla.-based Sun Capital Partners Inc.