Scott Eckman Named Executive Vice President of Marketing and Furniture Leasing For International Market Centers

Furniture World News Desk on 11/15/2014

International Market Centers today announced that Tom Mitchell, president of home furnishings, will retire at the end of this year. Mitchell has spent much of his career as an industry leader - leasing space, managing operations and as the president of a variety of venues from design centers to marts and markets. In High Point, Tom oversaw the Merchandise Mart Properties’ portfolio and later fulfilled the same function with the International Home Furnishings Center (IHFC). When IMC was created through a series of acquisitions in High Point and Las Vegas in 2011, Tom took on the role of president of home furnishings for both High Point and Las Vegas. Tom will assist through a transition period and continue to play an advisory role going forward.

“Tom has had a noteworthy and illustrious career in the home furnishings industry, and we have been fortunate to have his expertise and leadership at IMC,” says Bob Maricich, Chief Executive Officer of International Market Centers. “As Tom departs, we are also very fortunate that we have a strong bench of talent. Not only did Tom perform at a very high level personally but he also developed a team of strong performers and future leaders – leaving IMC well positioned to navigate his departure.”

With Tom’s departure, Scott Eckman has been promoted into a newly created position of Executive Vice President of Marketing and Furniture Leasing. Currently IMC’s Chief Marketing and Strategy Officer, in his new role Scott will continue to provide senior leadership to the marketing team but in addition will work with the furniture leasing teams in High Point and Las Vegas to set direction and drive leasing activity for both markets. Julie Messner, vice president of home furnishings leasing for High Point, and Craig Staack, vice president of home furnishings leasing for Las Vegas, will maintain their current roles and report to Eckman. Dorothy Belshaw continues with her responsibilities as president of gift and home décor. Both Eckman and Belshaw report to Maricich.

Eckman brings many years of experience leading sales teams and full P&L’s for other businesses to this new role. Further, he has a proven track record in developing talent and creating growth opportunities for high performance team members. Prior to IMC, Eckman had several roles at GMAC Insurance Personal Lines including CMO as well as time managing each of the company’s two divisions. Eckman managed a commercial paper product line at Georgia Pacific for several years and he spent four years at the Boston Consulting Group where his work generally focused on sales force effectiveness and B2B and B2C marketing. He received his MBA from Harvard Business School and his undergraduate degree from LSU.

“Scott’s leadership and critical thinking capabilities have been an incredible asset to our corporate strategy and marketing functions over the past several years,” said Maricich, “Through his new role, Scott will play an even more pivotal role in developing a platform and structure to position IMC for continued success.”

About International Market Centers, L.P.:  International Market Centers, L.P. (IMC) is the world’s largest operator of premier showroom space for the furnishings, home décor and gift industries. IMC owns and operates 11.4 million square feet of world-class exhibition space in High Point, N.C. and Las Vegas, including the 13 primary buildings at the High Point Market. In addition, IMC operates the Las Vegas Design Center, a year-round resource open to both the design trade and consumers with more than 40 showrooms and hundreds of designer brands. IMC’s mission is to build and operate an innovative, sustainable, profitable and scalable platform for the furnishings, home décor and gift industries. For more information, visit www.imcenters.com.