Camilla Franklin
Stretch-knit supplier Tricots-Liesse Inc. has named industry veteran Camilla Franklin vice president of sales and marketing. She is tasked with building a sales team and devising the strategy to spearhead the Montreal-based knitter’s entry into the sleep products category. The company’s official launch as a knit ticking supplier will be at ISPA EXPO 2018 March 14-16 in Charlotte, North Carolina.
Tricots-Liesse is a privately held company founded in 1965 as a supplier of circular knits to the apparel industry. It currently serves customers around the world in the sportswear, fashion, swimwear and protective wear segments. Its vertically integrated business occupies 250,000 square feet in Montreal and includes dyeing and finishing operations.
Franklin has more than two decades of experience in ticking design, sales and global sourcing. Most recently, she was design director with BekaertDeslee. Prior to that, she held the same position with the former DesleeClama, before the two companies merged. Previously, Franklin spent 16 years with the former Blumenthal Print Works, where she was vice president of design and research and development, with responsibility for the design teams in the United States and China. She also has worked with AEC Narrow Fabrics and Lava, and has consulted independently for bedding major Serta Simmons Bedding LLC and other mattress makers.
Franklin reports to company principals Claude Helwani and Abie Sterner.
“After having done our due diligence, we have found, throughout Camilla’s career, she has brought compassion and (innovation) to the industry,” Helwani said. “She is highly regarded amongst her peers and her customers, therefore, blending her business style and our model of doing business for five decades, we can only assume she will soar.”
Commenting on her new post, Franklin said: “Textiles have always been my passion, even before specializing at college and in my postgraduate work in the United Kingdom. I am thrilled to work with Tricots-Liesse and I can honestly say, having been in this industry for 21 years and having worked with mills both in the U.S. and abroad, (this company) brings a uniqueness to textile manufacturing which I have not seen before.
“The team at Tricots-Liesse is wonderful to work with—they make things happen. We have a super design and technical department with associates from around the world. They are talented, creative and quick to respond, and have decades of experience. Being a vertical operation permits us to control deliveries, and quality, to a very high level and, as a result, the speed with which product is brought to market is impressive. I am very much looking forward to our launch at ISPA EXPO and seeing everyone there.”
