AUGUSTINE TANTILLO RECEIVES CHAPMAN AWARD

Augustine Tantillo, National Council of Textile Organizations (NCTO) has been awarded the Chapman Award, named in honor of James A. Chapman, Sr., James A. Chapman, Jr. and Joseph W. Chapman of Inman Mills. The Chapman Award was established by the Southern Textile Association to recognize individuals for exemplary service to the textile industry. By vote of the Board of Governors, Augustine Tantillo, President and CEO of the National Council of Textile Organizations, received the Award during the STA Business Breakfast Session of the Joint Annual Meeting of the STA and Fiber Buyer Groups at The Marriott Resort & Spa at Grande Dunes in Myrtle Beach, SC. The Award was presented by Randy Blackston, Vice President of Operations, Glen Raven Custom Fabrics and Past President of STA.

Augustine Tantillo was named President and CEO of the National Council of Textile Organizations (NCTO) in August 2013. NCTO is the voice of the domestic textile industry in Washington, DC. With more than 130 current members, NCTO represents manufacturers from every major sector of the U.S. textile industry, including fiber, yarn, fabric, home furnishings and vertically integrated apparel producers.

Prior to joining NCTO, Mr. Tantillo served as Executive Director of the American Manufacturing Trade Action Coalition (AMTAC) for more than 10 years. AMTAC represented U.S. producers dedicated to improving international trade policies in order to bolster U.S. investment and employment in the manufacturing sector.

Mr. Tantillo began his thirty-plus year career in Washington, DC after graduating Clemson University in 1981. Other notable aspects include forming Washington consulting SRG & Associates in 1993, and an appointment by President George Herbert Walker Bush in 1989 to serve as Deputy Assistant Secretary of Commerce for Textiles, Apparel and Consumer Goods. In that position, he developed and implemented policies to enhance the international competitiveness of the U.S. textile and apparel sector, as well as major consumer goods industries. In addition, he served as chairman of the Committee for the Implementation of Textile Agreements (CITA). Prior to his appointment at the Department of Commerce, he served as Chief-of-Staff to United States Senator Strom Thurmond of South Carolina in the late 1980’s.

On a personal note, Auggie was born and raised in North Augusta, SC, and is the youngest of nine children. He is married to Lisa Shuping of NC, and they have three wonderful daughters and two grandsons.