don allen hunziker
In 1956, Don Hunziker (b.1927 d. 2001) began a successful business career with the David M. Lea Furniture Company in Richmond, Virginia. In 1981, Hunziker, president of Lea, along with a number of other management personnel, bought Lea Industries, American Drew, and Daystrom Furniture, forming the corporate acronym LADD. They faced a serious recession, business that was on the skids, and a prime bank rate of 22%, putting their futures at risk.
Under Hunziker's leadership and direction, LADD become one of the largest furniture manufacturers in the country with estimated 1999 sales of over $600 million and 6,600 employees.
As president of the Furniture Factories Manufacturing Association, Hunziker supported consolidation and maintenance of the furniture market in High Point; promoted the market domestically and internationally; and strengthened travel and hospitality resources. He was chairman and director of the International Woodworking Machinery and Furniture Supply Fair, secretary and director of the Furniture Foundation, Inc., on the High Point University Home Furnishings Board, the Advisory Board of the Atlanta Market Center, and the Board of Governors for the Dallas and Atlanta markets.
Hunziker served as president of SFMA and is a director emeritus of AFMA. He was named Alumnus of the Year by Virginia Commonwealth University, Chief Executive of the Year by Financial World Magazine in 1988, and received the Distinguished Service Award from the American Furniture Manufacturers Association.