NEWS
MAKERS
HUNTER DOUGLAS ANNOUNCES ORGANIZATIONAL
CHANGE
Hunter Douglas Inc., Upper Saddle River, NJ, has announced organizational
changes effective in March.
Dominique Au-Yeung, previously general manager of the Hunter Douglas
Northern California fabrication division, has been promoted to president
and general manager of the Hunter Douglas National Accounts Group,
which includes both the Alta and National Accounts divisions and
is based in Los Angeles, CA. He succeeds the late Don Lumbatis,
who died in January (see D&WC, February 2005, page 18).
Au-Yeung first joined the company in 1987 as the controller for
Hunter Douglas Canada. He became the company’s general manager
in 1995. In 1999 he became general manager of the Hunter Douglas
Northern California fabricator division. From 2003 until the end
of 2004, Au-Yeung also served as vice president of Hunter Douglas
Canada.
Stephan Pirylis has been appointed to succeed Au-Yeung as general
manager of the Hunter Douglas Northern California fabrication division
based in San José, CA. He joined the company’s fabrication
division in 2004 as director of special projects. Prior to that
Pirylis worked as the head of one of the largest distribution operations
for Wilsonart® International, Temple, TX. He also had worked
as sales manager and operations manager for Wilsonart.
Marko Sonnenberg, president of the Turnils Group, has been given
additional responsibilities. Au-Yeung and Tom Marusak, president
and general manager of Comfortex Window Fashions, Maplewood, NY,
now will report directly to Sonnenberg.
Sonnenberg joined Hunter Douglas Europe in 1992 as Silhouette®
product manager, then became general manager of Ameubla, a Belgian-based
Hunter Douglas fabricator. In 1995 he became general manager of
the Hunter Douglas Southeast (U.S.) fabrication division. In 1997
he joined the Turnils Group in Sweden and subsequently became president
and general manager of that worldwide Hunter Douglas subsidiary.
He returned to the United States in 2000 to focus on Turnils’
expansion and growth in North America. In 2004 he also was named
a vice president of the Hunter Douglas Group, Rotterdam, Netherlands.
FISH NAMED PORTER PRESTON SALES, MARKETING
DIRECTOR
Porter Preston has announced the addition of Margie A. Fish as its
sales and marketing director. Porter Preston, Waterbury, CT, is
the Northeast’s only full-line Levolor Kirsch fabricator and
distributor.
In this position, Fish will oversee the sales and marketing efforts
focused largely around increasing customer awareness of Porter Preston’s
ability to provide wider product offerings such as: motorization
of blinds (with suppliers such as Somfy, BTX, Techniku and Electronic
Solutions); New England’s largest stock of Kirsch drapery hardware;
Norman Shutter distributor; Paris Texas drapery hardware; and Nottingham
custom wood drapery hardware.
Fish, while new to the industry, has a bachelor’s degree in
marketing and a master’s degree in business management.
IN MEMORIAM: ANDREW TOTI
Andrew Toti died on March 20, 2005, at his home in Modesto, CA.
He was 89.
Toti held more than 500 patents, many of which he licensed to leading
window coverings manufacturers. He is credited as the inventor of
the vertical blind. His safety lifting system, which eliminates
cords from window blinds and shades to prevent possible choking
accidents, has become a standard in the industry.
Just before his death, Toti and Jay Kotin, president of Merlyn Associates,
completed work on a PVC draping system, which Kotin says will be
introduced for licensing in about 12 months.
Kotin worked closely with Toti in window coverings. He believes
that Andrew Toti will be remembered as one of our nation’s
most important inventors. “Andrew has been honored for his
remarkable achievements by the Edison Society and, in 2004, received
a Congressional citation praising his many contributions,”
Kotin says.
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