by HIGH POINT — Upholstery manufacturer Kuka Home has hired Mary Ballard as director of merchandising for its North American division, a new position.
Ballard has more than 20 years of industry experience and most recently worked at Gabby as a senior category manager.
Before that, she was a principal at Bellwether Partners and was previously an upholstery product manager at Baker.
Before joining Baker, she was director of design at Maitland-Smith and before that was brand manager for the Barbara Barry line at Henredon.
She also was previously a retail designer for Bassett Furniture Industries.
In her new position, she will manage strategic product direction, design forecasts and merchandising management for Kuka Home’s product lines. The company added that her appointment is a significant addition as it continues to establish itself as “a leading home furniture design house.”
She reports to Sergio Barrios, senior vice president of product development and design.
“We are thrilled to welcome Mary Ballard to the Kuka Home team,” Barrios said. “With her extensive experience and passion for product, she will strengthen our product lines, showroom display and overall customer experience. We look forward to her contributions as we continue to expand into new product categories.”
