ITA to launch Textile Hall of Fame amid industry controversy

HIGH POINT — The International Textile Alliance (ITA) has reaffirmed the launch of its new Textile Hall of Fame, a recognition honoring exceptional leadership and lifelong contributions within the textile industry.

This, in spite of the American Home Furnishings Hall of Fame board stating it is considering legal action against the ITA because of the new honor. Board members from the American Home Furnishings Hall of Fame recently announced ITA honor bears the same name as the industry-wide organization commonly known as “the Hall of Fame” founded in 1988, as the industry’s most prestigious honor.

“To copy our name and award has already created confusion,” said Gat Caperton, American Home Furnishings Hall of Fame board first vice president and founder of Gat Creek. “Moreover, the timing and manner in which ITA has chosen to position and launch its new venture is uncannily similar to ours, opening their nominations at the same time and adopting a selection criterion that just changes a few words.”

According to David Lappert, president of the ITA Board of Directors, textiles represent a distinct and dynamic industry defined by design innovation, technical expertise, global manufacturing and supply chain leadership.

“The textile industry stands on its own in scope, history, and global impact,” said Lappert. “It is also integral to home furnishings. The Textile Hall of Fame ensures that the executives, entrepreneurs, designers, educators, sales leaders, members of the press and innovators who have dedicated their careers to textiles receive the focused recognition they deserve.”

At the same time, Lappert agrees that textiles are an essential part of the home furnishings industry as a whole, shaping its aesthetic, performance and commercial success.

“The American Home Furnishings Hall of Fame has spent millions of dollars to establish the brand and more recently to construct a bricks-and-mortar Hall of Fame as the industry’s home to honor our leaders, to gather and to learn,” said Jeremy Hoff, American Home Furnishings Hall of Fame board president and CEO of Hooker Home Furnishings. “It is in our logo and the name on the outside of our building.”

The ITA board said the Textile Hall of Fame is a strategic effort of the International Textile Alliance, developed through ITA’s established board governance process, using the phrase “Hall of Fame” as a widely used designation across industries to recognize excellence and achievement.

ITA’s Textile Hall of Fame focuses exclusively on individuals whose work has advanced the textile industry. Eligible honorees include leaders across manufacturing, design, sales, education, innovation, global commerce, along with trade and consumer press whose influence has elevated textiles within the marketplace.

Selection criteria — including enduring excellence, innovation, leadership, service, and philanthropic contribution — reflect widely accepted standards for industry recognition programs. A dedicated hall of fame for the textile industry preserves the history and legacy of textile leadership, highlights contributions unique to textiles, inspires future generations entering the profession and elevates recognition across the broader home furnishings industry, according to the ITA.

“As we all know and appreciate, textile fabrics used in upholstery, pillows, draperies, bed coverings, linens and more are a crucial element of home furnishings,” said John Schultz, American Home Furnishings Hall of Fame board second vice president and co-CEO of John V. Schultz Furniture and Levin Furniture. “We all know that fabrics introduce color, patterns and tactile textures as a vital and significant element of what makes us a fashion industry and turn a house into a home. So much so that our Selection Committee actively considers this segment of the industry for induction.”

Added Hoff, “It is for these reasons that we are defending not just our brand but our very name for past and future inducted members of the Hall of Fame representing the textiles and upholstery segments.  We are protecting the value of receiving the industry’s highest honor.”

The ITA Board said that the Textile Hall of Fame will officially launch at the Interwoven Textile Fair by ITA, May 19-21. ITA will announce its inaugural class of inductees in the coming months.