Kaplan Becomes President of Cone Decorative
August 2, 2000
Greensboro, N.C. (USA) - Cone Mills Corporation has named Burton H. Kaplan president of its Cone Decorative Fabrics Group. In his new position, Kaplan will be based in New York.
Kaplan has 30 years of experience in the home furnishings/textiles industry. He has a B.A. from George Washington University and also attended Boston University Law School. Most recently, he was a sales and marketing executive at Richloom Fabrics Group.
John Bakane, president and CEO of Cone Mills said, ''We are excited about Burt Kaplan joining the Cone senior management team. Burt is highly regarded throughout the home furnishings industry, and his merchandising experience gives him first-hand knowledge of our customers' needs. We are confident that Burt's leadership together with the strong team already in place at John Wolf and Cone Jacquards will take the Decorative Fabrics Group to a new level of performance.''
Cone Mills Corporation was founded in 1891, and is headquartered in Greensboro, N.C. It is considered the world's largest producer of denim fabrics, a supplier of khakis and twills, and the largest commission printer of home furnishings fabrics in North America. Manufacturing facilities are located in North Carolina and South Carolina, with a joint-venture denim plant in Coahuila, Mexico. The company has also announced a new value-added denim manufacturing facility to be built in Altamira, Mexico.
As a result of substantial expansions in Cone Jacquards, and rebounding sales at John Wolf, the Cone Decorative Fabrics Group reported annual sales of $73 million in 1999, up 70 percent from 1997. The John Wolf offices are in New York City; the Cone Jacquards operation is in Cliffside, N.C.; and a dedicated distribution center is located in South Carolina. Together, these operations employ about 400 people.
Meanwhile, Murray Engle, president of Cone Decorative Fabrics Inc. has resigned to become president of Kensington Furniture Co., formerly known as Washington Furniture Co. in Tupelo, Miss. Kensington is a manufacturer of stationary and action furniture in the $100 million sales range. In his new position, Engle will be based in High Point, N.C.
''Kensington is an incredible opportunity for me. I'll miss all of my friends at Cone, but we expect to become a big customer of Cone Decorative Fabrics,'' Engle said.
Engle had been with Cone since 1996, first joining as vice president of sales and marketing for the John Wolf print division and Cone Jacquards which were subsequently joined together as CDF. During the three years, business grew 72 percent at CDF, a Cone spokesman said.
''Becoming the top sales executive was consistent with Murray's career goals and we wish him well,'' said John Bakane, president and CEO of Cone Mills. ''The leadership of the Cone Decorative Fabrics division will now change hands but the direction the division is taking remains the same: The company will continue to integrate the print and jacquard divisions and continue the growth rate,'' he said.
Kaplan has 30 years of experience in the home furnishings/textiles industry. He has a B.A. from George Washington University and also attended Boston University Law School. Most recently, he was a sales and marketing executive at Richloom Fabrics Group.
John Bakane, president and CEO of Cone Mills said, ''We are excited about Burt Kaplan joining the Cone senior management team. Burt is highly regarded throughout the home furnishings industry, and his merchandising experience gives him first-hand knowledge of our customers' needs. We are confident that Burt's leadership together with the strong team already in place at John Wolf and Cone Jacquards will take the Decorative Fabrics Group to a new level of performance.''
Cone Mills Corporation was founded in 1891, and is headquartered in Greensboro, N.C. It is considered the world's largest producer of denim fabrics, a supplier of khakis and twills, and the largest commission printer of home furnishings fabrics in North America. Manufacturing facilities are located in North Carolina and South Carolina, with a joint-venture denim plant in Coahuila, Mexico. The company has also announced a new value-added denim manufacturing facility to be built in Altamira, Mexico.
As a result of substantial expansions in Cone Jacquards, and rebounding sales at John Wolf, the Cone Decorative Fabrics Group reported annual sales of $73 million in 1999, up 70 percent from 1997. The John Wolf offices are in New York City; the Cone Jacquards operation is in Cliffside, N.C.; and a dedicated distribution center is located in South Carolina. Together, these operations employ about 400 people.
Meanwhile, Murray Engle, president of Cone Decorative Fabrics Inc. has resigned to become president of Kensington Furniture Co., formerly known as Washington Furniture Co. in Tupelo, Miss. Kensington is a manufacturer of stationary and action furniture in the $100 million sales range. In his new position, Engle will be based in High Point, N.C.
''Kensington is an incredible opportunity for me. I'll miss all of my friends at Cone, but we expect to become a big customer of Cone Decorative Fabrics,'' Engle said.
Engle had been with Cone since 1996, first joining as vice president of sales and marketing for the John Wolf print division and Cone Jacquards which were subsequently joined together as CDF. During the three years, business grew 72 percent at CDF, a Cone spokesman said.
''Becoming the top sales executive was consistent with Murray's career goals and we wish him well,'' said John Bakane, president and CEO of Cone Mills. ''The leadership of the Cone Decorative Fabrics division will now change hands but the direction the division is taking remains the same: The company will continue to integrate the print and jacquard divisions and continue the growth rate,'' he said.
