HICKORY, N.C. - Design Foundry, a year-old North Carolina furniture maker, will invest more than $3 million in a new manufacturing facility, creating 200 jobs over five years.

 

The company will manufacture upholstered furniture in a partnership with an unnamed leading furniture and home goods retailer. The expansion was possible with the assistance from a $1.5 million state grant.

 

Craftspeople, as well as workers with experience in materials science, engineering, and technology, will be hired. The average salary for the new positions will be $57,000 - considerably higher than the county average of $41,000. The North Carolina Governor's office says the project should grow the state's economy by $320 million over the next 12 years.

 

Design Foundry CEO Eric Fulcher is also the founder of Sutter Street Manufacturing, an upholstered furniture manufacturing subsidiary of Williams-Sonoma. Sutter Street is also in the midst of expanding, with a new manufacturing plant on the way in Mississippi. That plant will create 350 jobs.