Gardner-White Names Will Daughtrey as Vice President of Merchandising

Furniture World News Desk on 9/9/2022

Pictured L to R: Will Daughtrey, Aime Fitzhugh and Matt Kibler.

Gardner-White, Michigan’s #1 furniture and mattress retailer, has announced three new strategic management appointments as the 108-year-old family-owned and operated company continues its growth in the state and leadership in the industry. Will Daughtrey has been named Vice President of Merchandising at Gardner-White, Aime Fitzhugh has been promoted to President of Bedding and Matt Kibler has become its first Chief Information Officer. The announcement was made by Gardner-White President, Rachel Stewart.

“As Gardner-White evolves and cements our position as an influential leader with the best team in the home furnishings industry locally and nationally, we are committed to hiring and promoting the best of the best,” said Stewart. “Will Daughtrey, Aime Fitzhugh and Matt Kibler possess proven expertise as well as exceptional talent, strength, and vision. We are proud to welcome Will to the Gardner-White family as we also celebrate the achievements of Aime and Matt.”    

Vice President of Merchandising, Will Daughtrey, joins Gardner-White after serving as Vice President of Merchandising for Kane’s Furniture in central Florida. Prior to that, Daughtrey was Chief Merchandising Officer for Standard Furniture Manufacturing. He spent 14 years at Badcock Home Furniture & More in management training and as Supply Chain Analyst and Category Manager. He earned a bachelor’s degree in design from Clemson University and a Master of Business Administration from the University of South Florida.

Aime Fitzhugh has more than 40 years of experience in the retail furniture industry, and 24 of those years have been at Gardner-White. His promotion to President of Bedding comes after playing an integral role in establishing Gardner-White as a bedding giant in Michigan.

Matt Kibler served as Gardner-White’s Ecommerce and Web Development Coordinator from starting in 2016 and became Director of Digital Strategy at the company in November 2021, with responsibilities including digital marketing strategy, enterprise integration, process automation, and business intelligence. In his new role, Kibler will lead all future digital transformation initiatives. Prior to joining Gardner-White, he was a web developer at Igadea, LLC. 

About Gardner-White

Family-owned and operated for 108 years over four generations, Gardner-White is Michigan’s #1 furniture and mattress retailer with 12 stores in metro Detroit, Ann Arbor and Saginaw. Gardner-White is the presenting sponsor of America’s Thanksgiving Day Parade in downtown Detroit. For more information, visit www.gardner-white.com.