by TAYLORSVILLE, N.C. – Roy Calcagne, the long-time president and CEO of upholstery manufacturer Craftmaster Furniture is retiring this fall the company said Monday.
Calcagne has been in his current leadership position for the past 16 years and has been with company parent Samson Holding since 2003, when he launched Universal Furniture’s import upholstery program.
From 2003 to 2006 he was senior vice president and general manager of the upholstery division of Universal. He oversaw the acquisition of Craftmaster Furniture by Samson in 2006 and was then named president and CEO.
He was vice president, merchandising of Broyhill from 1999 to 2003 and was vice president sales, of Joan Fabrics for just over five years before that. Before joining Joan Fabrics, he was merchandise councilor of Macys for about three years and was an upholstery buyer for Macy’s for 10 years before that.
In a statement, he said it was with mixed emotions that he was making the decision to retire.
“I have thoroughly enjoyed every step of the way and have developed some wonderful friendships over the past 41 years,” he said. “This industry is made up of a close-knit group of outstanding people from my co-workers, our customers, competitors and suppliers.”
“I had the benefit and distinct pleasure to have worked on three sides of this great industry, from being a large retail buyer in New York, then in fabric sales in (North Carolina) and lastly leading one of the best upholstery companies in the U.S.,” Calcagne added. “Now, I will enjoy more time with family and friends along with some bucket list travel plans.”
Samuel Kuo, chairman of Samson Holding, thanked Calcagne for his leadership at Craftmaster “and for the company’s outstanding performance and contribution to Samson Holding for the past 16 years. It has been a pleasure working with him and watching the company grow to over one million square feet of manufacturing space and 750 Associates.”
The company said that it will name a new president shortly and that Calcagne will remain CEO and work through a transition period with the new executive.
