Homer Laughlin Names Elizabeth McIlvain To Succeed Brother As President

For the first time in the 142-year history of The Homer Laughlin China Co., the mantle of leadership is being handed down, not to a successive generation, but from brother to sister. The privately held Newell, W.Va., company has announced executive v.p. Elizabeth McIlvain as its new president; she assumed the office March 18. As a fourth-generation owner of the company, she takes over the position from her brother, Joseph Wells III, who is stepping down after 50 years of service. He will take his father’s place as chairman of the board.

As president, McIlvain will assist the board in overseeing all operations of the company’s two principal divisions, retail and commercial dinnerware, which both operate out of the 37-acre manufacturing plant. Her main focus is a continued emphasis on increasing sales companywide. HLC companies include Homer Laughlin China; Hall China; and the Kenilworth Trading Company, the exclusive U.S. distributor of RAK Ceramics.