Excelsior Designs® Adds to Management Team

Furniture World Magazine

Upscale, contemporary producer of Italian home furnishings, Excelsior Designs has hired Bobbie Hughes as Design Director. The newly created position is in response to the company’s recent increased sales and plans for strategic growth in the coming years, according to Steven Kayne, company president. “The expectations of our retailers mean that we must be consistently offering new designs, support, and sales opportunities. As our design director, Bobbie will enable us to better anticipate their needs with innovative product. For nearly 10 years she has worked with us on a freelance basis and we are extremely pleased she will now be working with us fulltime. She will prove to be a tremendous asset to Excelsior Designs and Casa Novalia,” said Kayne. Hughes previously provided design expertise in the areas of showroom design, photography, and design direction to Excelsior and several other home furnishings clients. Recently, she began assisting with product design. For the April 2003 Market she developed a new line of custom bed linens designed to complement specific Excelsior and Casa Novalia collections. The new bedding is available to retailers who will not only show it with the product but also sell it to their customers. In her new role Hughes will assist in the design of new product and will work closely with company management and the Italian factories that produce the goods. She will also be involved in retail merchandising and will continue to design the company’s High Point showroom and direct photography. Hughes will be based in High Point. Company Overview: Excelsior Designs and its lifestyle division, Casa Novalia are headquartered in North Amityville, NY with a permanent showroom in the International Home Furnishings Center on the 11th floor of the Design Center in High Point. The casegoods, all crafted in Italy, feature exotic veneers and inlays, and exquisite finishes. Also included in the product mix are complementary lighting and bed linens. The lines are sold through a broad range of contemporary specialty and upper end furniture stores throughout North America.