La-Z-Boy Announces Planned Retirement of Darrell Edwards, COO; Names Mike Leggett SVP and Chief Supply Chain Officer
03 March 2022 - 08:15AM
La-Z-Boy Incorporated (NYSE: LZB), a global leader in residential
furniture, today announced the planned retirement of Darrell
Edwards, SVP and Chief Operating Officer. Mike Leggett will be
promoted to Senior Vice President and Chief Supply Chain Officer,
assuming Edwards’ responsibilities, at the beginning of May 2022,
the start of the company’s fiscal 2023 year. Edwards will remain
with the company through July 2022 in an advisory role.
Melinda D. Whittington, President and Chief
Executive Officer of La-Z-Boy Incorporated, said, "A well-respected
industry veteran, Darrell led the company’s supply chain
transformation over the last two decades. Under his leadership,
La-Z-Boy redesigned its global supply chain network, while
engineering a more sustainable carbon footprint by improving energy
conservation and achieving zero-waste-to-landfill status at many
sites. He also oversaw our continued move to cellular production
for the La-Z-Boy branded business, established cut-and-sew and
upholstery operations in Mexico, and formed our Asian-based
sourcing team in Hong Kong. These strategies have contributed to
our lean operating structure and delivered cost savings even as we
maintain award-winning employee safety and customer service levels.
We thank Darrell for his many contributions to La-Z-Boy and wish
him all the best in his well-deserved retirement.”
Edwards said, “It has been an absolute pleasure
to spend the past 18 years at La-Z-Boy, a fantastic company with an
incredibly bright future. I am honored to have played a role in
La-Z-Boy’s history and to have worked with so many talented and
committed individuals across the globe at every level of the
organization. I am humbled and grateful to have been part of the
La-Z-Boy family and I look forward to watching the company continue
to grow and prosper.”
Whittington continued, “At the same time, we are
delighted to appoint Mike Leggett as SVP and Chief Supply Chain
Officer. Joining us this past December from outside the industry,
Mike brings new perspectives to La-Z-Boy. He is leading multiple
initiatives to improve the agility of our manufacturing operations
as we navigate an unprecedented environment with strong demand, a
record backlog and the challenges of global supply chain
disruption. Mike’s expertise will also serve us well into the
future as we execute Century Vision, our winning strategy for
growth through our centennial year in 2027. We expect this work to
unlock the power of our consumer brands to drive sales growth that
will outpace the industry and deliver double-digit operating
margins over the long term.”
Leggett said, “It is a privilege to work for
La-Z-Boy, an iconic company with a rich history and multiple
opportunities for growth and market share gains as we drive our
Century Vision strategy. With an industry-leading supply chain
structure and team in place, we will be nimble as we leverage our
many strengths to adapt to this dynamic environment and drive
increased agility across all operations.”
Leggett joined La-Z-Boy Incorporated in December
2021 as Vice President and Chief Supply Chain Officer, with more
than 20 years of supply chain and manufacturing leadership
experience. Prior to joining La-Z-Boy, Leggett was with Dentsply
Sirona, a $4.5 billion leader in the dental supply space, where he
led the Global Supply Chain Group through acquisitions of
manufacturing plants and a reorganization of the supply chain
infrastructure. Before that, Leggett spent eight years at Masonite
International, a leading global designer, manufacturer, and
distributor of interior and exterior doors, where he held multiple
positions of increasing responsibility in sales and operational
planning, customer service, logistics, and global operations. He
previously held various supply chain roles with Abbott Laboratories
and Kimberly Clark. Leggett holds a B.S. in Finance and Supply
Chain Management from The Ohio State University and attended a
post-graduate leadership and lean executive leadership development
program taught by Harvard Business School professors.
Cautionary Note Regarding
Forward-Looking Statements
This news release contains “forward-looking”
statements within the meaning of the Private Securities Litigation
Reform Act of 1995. Forward-looking statements can be identified by
the fact that they do not relate strictly to historical or current
facts. Generally, forward-looking statements include information
concerning expectations, projections or trends relating to our
results of operations, financial results, financial condition,
strategic initiatives and plans, expenses, dividends, share
repurchases, liquidity, use of cash and cash requirements,
borrowing capacity, investments, future economic performance,
business and industry and the effect of the coronavirus disease
2019 (“COVID-19”) pandemic on our business operations and financial
results.
The forward-looking statements in this press
release are based on certain assumptions and currently available
information and are subject to various risks and uncertainties,
many of which are unforeseeable and beyond our control, such as the
continuing and developing impact of, and uncertainty caused by, the
COVID-19 pandemic. Additional risks and uncertainties that we do
not presently know about or that we currently consider to be
immaterial may also affect our business operations and financial
results. Our actual future results and trends may differ materially
depending on a variety of factors, including, but not limited to,
the risks and uncertainties discussed in our fiscal 2021 Annual
Report on Form 10-K and other factors identified in our reports
filed with the Securities and Exchange Commission (the "SEC"),
available on the SEC's website at www.sec.gov. Given these risks
and uncertainties, you should not rely on forward-looking
statements as a prediction of actual results. We are including this
cautionary note to make applicable and take advantage of the safe
harbor provisions of the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act
of 1995 for forward-looking statements. We undertake no obligation
to update or revise any forward-looking statements, whether as a
result of new information, future events or for any other
reason.
Additional Information
This news release is just one part of La-Z-Boy’s
financial disclosures and should be read in conjunction with other
information filed with the SEC, which is available at:
https://lazboy.gcs-web.com/financial-information/sec-filings.
Investors and others wishing to be notified of future La-Z-Boy news
releases, SEC filings and quarterly investor conference calls may
sign up at: https://lazboy.gcs-web.com/.
Background Information
La-Z-Boy Incorporated is one of the world’s
leading residential furniture producers, marketing furniture for
every room of the home. The Wholesale segment includes England,
La-Z-Boy, American Drew®, Hammary®, Kincaid® and the company's
international wholesale and manufacturing businesses. The
company-owned Retail segment includes 163 of the 350 La-Z-Boy
Furniture Galleries® stores. Joybird is an e-commerce retailer and
manufacturer of upholstered furniture.
The corporation’s branded distribution network
is dedicated to selling La-Z-Boy Incorporated products and brands,
and includes 350 stand-alone La-Z-Boy Furniture Galleries® stores
and 559 independent Comfort Studio® locations, in addition to
in-store gallery programs for the company’s Kincaid and England
operating units. Additional information is available at
http://www.la-z-boy.com/.
Contact: Kathy
Liebmann (734)
241-2438
kathy.liebmann@la-z-boy.com
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