Who’s new in the news this week

Welcome to our weekly roundup of employee comings and goings and other people-related news across the home furnishings industry. Here’s the latest:

Taylor King, a supplier of custom upholstered furniture, has appointed Michael Bingham as its new chief financial officer. Bingham succeeds Spencer Thompson, who is retiring after serving as CFO for several years. With nearly 20 years of experience in finance, accounting and management, Bingham most recently spent the past seven years at Bernhardt Furniture as assistant controller.

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Liberty Furniture has added Jenni Jungers to its product team as the vice president of product development. Jungers brings more than 32 years of experience in the furniture industry, most recently with Hooker Furniture where she focused on merchandising, supply chain diversification and product development of imported goods. Prior to that, she worked with Flexsteel Inds. in merchandising and product development. In her new role, Jungers will be responsible for leading product innovation, enhancing design strategies and executing the overall vision for Liberty’s product lines, with an emphasis on the motion upholstery program.

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Neil Hegwood has joined Annie Selke parent company, Rugs USA, as the company’s chief merchandising officer, overseeing design and development across the company’s entire portfolio of brands including Annie Selke brands Dash & Albert and Pine Cone Hill as well as the namesake Annie Selke brand, plus Rugs USA and NuLoom. Hegwood brings nearly three decades of rug industry experience working with many well-known brands, including Shaw, Mohawk and Loloi, where he most recently held the position of vice president of design.

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Mud Pie has promoted Adam Shapiro to chief financial officer. He has served as its executive vice president of finance since 2023 and brings more than 14 years of financial leadership. Shapiro will take over the position of former CFO Mark Miller, which Miller held for 26 years before transitioning to a role as a member of the board. During his tenure at Mud Pie, Shapiro has played a critical role in several key initiatives, Mud Pie said, including the successful launch and go-live of a new enterprise resource planning system, optimizing company cost structures, strengthening financial controls, and advising on the direct-to-consumer strategy alongside Mud Pie’s eCommerce team.

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After 41 years at the helm of the business she helped found, Susan Gravely is stepping down as Vietri’s CEO. “The board of directors wants to extend its deepest appreciation for Susan’s extraordinary tenure,” said Lisa Church, Vietri’s board chair. Holli Draughn, current Vietri president, has been appointed CEO. During her 15 years so far at Vietri, Draughn has served as the company’s national sales manager, vice president of sales and marketing, and most recently as president. Draughn brings a “concentrated focus, highly effective planning and execution strategies, and huge respect from Vietri’s staff, retailers and customers,” Vietri said.