FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE:
Valdese Weavers Promotes Key Executives Blake Millinor and Laura Levinson
Valdese, North Carolina - April 15, 2013 - Michael Shelton, President and CEO of Valdese Weavers, is
announcing today the promotion of Blake Millinor and Laura Levinson to expanded executive roles for
the company.
Blake Millinor will become Senior Vice President and Chief Marketing Officer for Valdese Weavers, after
having served as President of the Valdese Weavers Contract division. He joined Valdese Weavers in 2001
to direct the company’s efforts to identify and develop opportunities with both manufacturers and
distributors in the hospitality, office furnishings, healthcare, and textile wallcovering markets. “Blake’s
dynamic leadership has established Valdese Weavers, through the exceptional development of our VW
Contract division, as a market leading supplier to all of the leading brands in the various segments of the
contract industry. Blake’s transition, to include under his direction the company’s residential sales and
marketing efforts, has been enhanced through the interaction he has experienced for the past five years
working closely with Laura Levinson and Zack Taylor (former company VP/ Residential, and now
president of Wesley Hall Inc.) to fashion the overall product, sales, and marketing strategies across all
markets that have resulted in the substantial growth that Valdese Weavers has experienced. I have
absolute confidence in Blake’s ability to help lead our company to even greater heights, for many years
to come“, said Shelton.
Millinor is an alumnus of The Citadel. He began his textile career at Milliken, and held a variety of
responsibilities in the contract units of Mastercraft and Tietex prior to joining Valdese Weavers. He
resides in Hickory, NC with his wife Laura, and their children Nick, Jack, and Sarah.
Laura Levinson will become Senior Vice President / Design and Merchandising for Valdese Weavers and
in this role will direct all of the creative aspects of the business. She most recently has served as Sr. VP/
Product Development and Design. “Laura has for many years provided the creative impulse for the
design and development of our products. This has undeniably been the predicate for our growth and
allowed for our significant gains in market share. Her vision and leadership has inspired the individual
design and development directors and staff at each of our brands: Valdese Weavers, Circa 1801, Home
Fabrics, Valdese International Products (VIP), and Valdese Weavers Contract. Beyond this responsibility,
Laura has a unique skill set that has established her also as a great business leader inside our company
and in our industry. Her broader role within our executive team will give us the benefit of her vision
across a broader range of disciplines inside Valdese Weavers”, according to Shelton.
Levinson graduated from North Carolina State University/ College of Design and began her career at
Valdese Weavers as a design associate in 1990. She received a Masters of Fine Arts from the Rhode
Island School of Design in 1995. She relocated to New York and established a design studio for Valdese
Weavers to enable enhanced design integration with key customers’ creative teams. Laura was named
the first female Vice President in Valdese Weavers history, and relocated to North Carolina in 2001.
From that point she has consistently gained added responsibilities, and as Senior Vice President
extended her role to the executive leadership of the company.
Laura is a member of the Philadelphia University Textile Board, as well as the NC State School of Design’s
Leadership Council. She resides in Newton, NC with her husband Jon, and their children Benjamin and
Sarah.
Further announcements will be forthcoming from Millinor and Levinson concerning organizational
changes to their departments in the wake of their promotions.
About Valdese Weavers, LLC:
Valdese Weavers is the leading producer of decorative textiles in the United States for a variety of uses
in both residential and contract markets. The company operates four facilities in Burke County, North
Carolina, which trade under the brand names Valdese Weavers, Valdese Weavers Contract, Circa 1801,
Home Fabrics, and Valdese International Products (VIP).
For more information, contact:
Jennifer Wood, Communications & Marketing Manager
(828) 893-4388
jwood@valdesweavers.com