Textiles Pascual ups commitment to U.S.

Staff -- Home Textiles Today, 10/1/2001 12:00:00 AM

Textiles Pasqual

Alcoy, Spain

President: Rafael Pasqual

Vp, Costa Blanca: Jack Korngold

Diversified textiles: Dale Paccione, Audrey Jordan

Principal businesses: top of bed, window coverings, pillows and slipcovers

Though it had exported in the past, Textiles Pascual solidified its commitment when it opened its U.S. division, Costa Blanca, in 1999, said Rafael Pascual, president. He wanted to export to the U.S. because "it's the largest single market in the world, a high-value market." Already the company exports approximately 15 percent to the U.S., he said, and in its second year of business it's heading toward a $7 million turnover, up from $1.2 million in 2000.

Founded in 1962, Textiles Pascual is an industrial conglomerate made of different companies owned by Industrial Investments, and whose main commercial companies are a wovens division, Interfabrics, and a non-wovens one, Antecuir. Both Interfabrics and Antecuir operate independently worldwide, except in the U.S. and Canada, where they are represented by Costa Blanca.

The company has a total of four mills in Spain, including facilities for printing and dyeing, as well as an agent, Diversified Textiles, in New York on Fifth Avenue.

Costa Blanca is based in High Point, NC, headed by Jack Korngold, vp. "We came on pretty fast," Korngold said of its opening. "Now we're an important chunk of the company's business." Besides the High Point show, it also exhibits at Showtime.

Ninety percent of the product produced for the U.S. is 54-inch middle range upholstery fabric for furniture manufacturers, though it is making "significant inroads" to the home textiles industry, including top-of-the-bed, window coverings, pillows and slipcovers, with its 108-inch fabrics.

Pascual felt that the top-of-the-bed category will grow for the company. "We don't want to sell to everyone," he said, "but we're looking to have partnerships with manufacturers."