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COVER STORY
1996 - 2001 / The New Millennium
First we prepared for Armageddon with the approaching Y2K bug, then
we heaved a sigh of relief as nothing much happened.
As the 20th century gave way to the 21st century, more Americans
connected to the World Wide Web, and more window coverings retailers
and suppliers met them there with Web sites in this period’s
ultimate expression of going global. D&WC led the way premiering
its home page on the World Wide Web in 1996. Following the same
lines, the annual International Directory & Buyer’s Guide
is added online and D&WC creates a consumer dealer locator site:
BuyWindowCoverings.com.
D&WC sports a new look on its cover and inside the magazine
in January 1996, which is updated to its current look in August
1998.
As the whole industry prepares to meets its future, a new window
coverings educational conference is announced: D&WC: A Whole
New World.
1996
January: Hunter Douglas acquires Allison-Dize.
March: Britain is alarmed by an outbreak of “Mad
Cow” disease.
The International World of Window Coverings show is held at the
Indiana Convention Center, Indianapolis, IN.
April: FBI arrests suspected Unabomber.
D&WC announces the launch of its Web site: www.DWCdesigNet.com
Conso Products Co. acquires The Claesson Co., Inc.
Astrup Co. celebrates its 120th anniversary.
June: Eclipse Blind Systems acquires Montage, Inc.
August: Republican National Convention nominates
Bob Dole and Jack Kemp.
November: Democratic National Convention renominates
Bill Clinton and Al Gore.
1997
Leonard Siegel joins ITA with the goal of
developing ITA’s own
product lines. Meridian Home® is introduced as the company’s
flagship brand.
January: Hunter Douglas acquires Shade-O-Matic.
February: Insolroll, Inc. acquires Superblinds
of Denver, Inc.
March: Heaven’s Gate cult members commit
mass suicide in California.
The International World of Window Coverings show returns to the
Orange County Convention Center, Orlando, FL,
Newell Co. purchases Kirsch from Cooper Industries, Inc.
The Window Covering Manufacturers Association (WCMA) adopts a looped
cord safety standard.
April: A car bomb explodes outside the federal
office building in Oklahoma City, OK, killing 168 persons.
July: U.S. spacecraft begins exploration of Mars.
Stephen Thomas is named president of Kirsch.
August: Timothy McVeigh is sentenced to death for
Oklahoma City bombing.
1998
ITA introduces Capri, a line of textured
woven shades, as the first Meridian Home branded product.
Minutes Matter introduces the first QuickBooks
manual for the design industry helping designers use QuickBooks
to the fullest extent.
Vista announces new, high light transmissions spectrally select
films.
January: President Clinton denies allegations of
an affair with Monica Lewinsky.
March: Rowley Co. is presented the 1998 Industry
Achievement Award by the Window Coverings Association of America
(WCAA).
May: Europeans agree on a single currency, the
euro.
Borden Decorative Products and Imperial Wallcoverings merge into
the Imperial Home Decor Group.
September: Techniku Holland acquires Daylighting,
Inc.
October: Cary Findlay resumes as president, CEO
of Conso Products Co.
Memorial services are held for Jerry Fuchs, chairman of Hunter Douglas,
Inc.; and J. Reese Phifer, chairman of Phifer Wire Products, Inc.
December: U.S. House votes to impeach President
Clinton on two charges of perjury and obstruction of justice.
Newell Co. announces merger with Rubbermaid Inc.
1999
Somfy launches Radio Technology Somfy®
(RTS) enabling its remotes to operate without a line of sight with
the automated window
treatment and eliminating the need to point and shoot the remote.
February: U.S. Senate acquits President Clinton
in impeachment trial and rejects censure.
March: Scientific Plastics, Inc. becomes part of
the Eclipse Group.
April: Students Eric Harris and Dylan Klebold open
fire in Columbine High School in Littleton, CO.
Royal Group Technologies acquires the U.S.-based assets of U.S.
Polymers, Inc.
June: Nelson Mandela steps down as South African
president.
Hunter Douglas announces it will acquire Comfortex Window Fashions.
July: John F. Kennedy Jr., Carolyn Bessette Kennedy
and Lauren Bessette are lost at sea off Martha’s Vineyard.
Dian Garbarini, founder of the DraperyPro online networking forum,
is appointed to head its board.
November: Elián González is rescued
from the Atlantic Ocean off the coast of Florida.
Memorial service is held for Alexander “Zandy” Leaderman,
founder and chairman of the board of Rockland Industries.
2000
ITA debuts the Mikronwood faux- wood horizontal
blind in the
composite blind category.
Vista launches nano-ceramic technology films.
BTX enters the motorized roller shade market introducing the patented
MLS 40 lift system.
January: Computer calendars switch to year 00,
and virtually nothing bad happens.
April: Microsoft loses in antitrust suit.
July: Douglas R. Kelly is named president and CEO
of The Imperial Home Décor Group Inc.
August: Republican National Convention nominates
George W. Bush and Dick Cheney.
Democratic National Convention nominates Al Gore and Joseph Lieberman.
September: After six years, the Whitewater inquiry
into President and Mrs. Clinton ends finding no evidence that either
committed crimes.
October: Hunter Douglas announces the acquisition
of ISO-Teck Industries, Inc.
November: U.S. presidential election “too
close to call.”
The Window Covering Safety Council alerts manufacturers to a new
problem with horizontal blind lift cords.
2001
ITA’s Meridian Home line adds cellular
and pleated shades.
January: The new millennium officially begins.
U.S. presidential election confirmed by Electoral College just days
before George W. Bush is sworn into office.
February: Hunter Douglas Group announces the formation
of Tapestria, a to-the- trade international online market place
for interior fabrics.
April: The first D&WC: A Whole New World educational
conference opens at the Cobb Galleria Center, Atlanta, GA.
2002
- 2006
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