WinsLoew Forms Lodging Division in Conjunction With Recent Acquisitions

Business Wire, Oct 12, 2000

Business Editors

BIRMINGHAM, Ala.--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Oct. 12, 2000

WinsLoew Furniture, Inc. has formed a new Lodging Division with its existing Lodging by Loewenstein operation (Liberty, NC) and its two new acquisitions Stuart-Clark (Liberty, NC) and Charter (El Monte, CA).

WinsLoew previously announced that it had acquired the assets of Stuart-Clark, Inc. and its affiliates ("Stuart-Clark") and the stock of Charter Furniture Corporation ("Charter"). These acquisitions, along with the Lodging by Loewenstein business, will provide the Company with a lodging business revenue base exceeding $50 million.

WinsLoew moved Stuart-Clark's operations into its Liberty, NC facility which produces seating products. In connection with the Charter acquisition, WinsLoew acquired a West Coast manufacturing facility and management expertise. WinsLoew entered into employment agreements with the former owners of Charter and certain key employees of Stuart-Clark.

WinsLoew will market its lodging products with an independent sales force comprised of certain Charter and Stuart-Clark representatives. The Company's lodging products will be marketed under the names "Charter" and "Lodging by Loewenstein".

WinsLoew announced that Arnold Bertram, previous President of Charter and Jim Pepping, previous Vice President of Sales and Marketing of Charter will be heading up the new division along with Donald Clark previously of Stuart-Clark. Jim Fennell, previously of Alexvale Furniture, Hickory, NC, a division of Lazyboy Furniture, was hired as General Manager of the Liberty, NC facility and will report to Arnold Bertram.

WinsLoew Furniture, Inc., with total annual sales approaching $220 million, is engaged in the design, manufacture and distribution of casual furniture for the residential and contract markets, seating products for the commercial and lodging markets and promotional ready-to-assemble products for the mass merchant and catalog markets.