American Furniture to Open Facility in Mississippi

December 23, 2015  by in Business Strategy, Industry   

The company plans to invest $560,000 in a factory and plans to hire 140 people.

The Mississippi Development Authority will kick in $194,000 to help the company renovate a 130,000-square-foot building while Monroe County and the city of Amory will each split a 10 percent match.

Headquartered in Ecru, Miss., American Furniture currently employs 757 people.

The expansion will add six upholstery lines, as well as warehousing and distribution, in the facility formerly occupied by Madison House Furniture.

“AFM is excited about our start-up in Amory and being located in Monroe County,” said Al Wiygul, American Furniture CEO. “Our hope was to attract skilled associates that could jump start the operation, and our expectations have been surpassed by the number and skill levels of applicants we have received. Without the support of Mississippi Development Authority, the city and county, and the Monroe County Chamber, this project would not have happened so quickly. Having grown up in Amory, I am proud to give back to a community that gave so much to me as a child growing up here.”

Production in the facility should begin by the end of January, Wiygul said, adding that the company has grown by more than 20 percent for the last three years.

Founded in 1998, American Furniture was sold in October to a private investor group including members of the company’s management team. The deal was valued at $24.1 million. 

“MDA salutes the talented teams at the city of Amory, Monroe County and the Monroe County Chamber of Commerce for their leadership, which along with the MDA team, supported American Furniture’s expansion into Amory,” said Glenn McCullough, MDA executive director. “We look forward to this great company’s continued successful growth in North Mississippi.”