Amid $5M expansion, Hafele of Archdale, NC, furniture firm plans to add 100 workers

August 31, 2016

The CEO of cabinetry and furniture hardware firm Häfele America Co. said this week that a $5 million expansion of the company's Archdale headquarters that began this week ties into a plan to add 100 Triad workers over the next five to 10 years.

Häfele America CEO Paul Smith told the Triad Business Journal that the expansion that will bring Häfele's headquarters to 44,000 square feet will allow room for 50 additional jobs once it's completed in fall 2017. But the long-term plan is to expand from a total of 250 Triad workers to 350 "over a five to 10 year horizon" depending on how quickly the company grows, said Smith, whose company was founded in 1973 and headquartered in Archdale since 1989.Häfele America is the largest of 37 Häfele subsidiaries worldwide.

"If we grow with 50 more people in the office, we are clearly going to have more people in our operations buildings nearby," Smith said.

The first step toward growth is to enhance the company's headquarters with a new showroom facility that will showcase products to residential and commercial customers who do business in the office interiors space. The exterior of the new facility will incorporate glass and make use of natural light while the building's interior will feature an open office concept to foster creativity and collaboration.

"This space, both inside and outside, takes on a new meaning for us form a brand perspective," Smith said of the headquarters. "It takes our brand from being this old world German brand to a modern brand that represents the latest in (furniture, cabinetry and architectural) hardware products around the world."

The expansion comes as Smith has changed the direction of the organization to one that is looking forward to growth after the recession.

"We wrote a very extensive strategy around ‘how do we move forward and pick ourselves up and really play offense instead of defense?'" he said. "That really was a key thing that occurred when I came here, that whole ‘lift everybody up, and renew the spirit of the company.’"

Source: Triad Business Journal - Katie Arcieri covers manufacturing, transportation/logistics, aviation, textiles, tobacco and furniture. Contact her at 336-370-2913.