USA: FTADirect Appoints Chief Executive Officer

FTADirect www.ftadirect.com , a business-to-business marketplace for the fiber, textiles, and finished goods supply chain, today announced the appointment of Alf Sherk to the position of chief executive officer. Sherk, founder of e-Chemicals, joined FTADirect in June following FTADirect's acquisition of FiberMatch.com. "Alf Sherk has exceptional vision and aptitude in building Internet marketplace infrastructure, and he will strengthen our competitive advantage in this essential measure of online performance," said Nick Hahn, chairman of FTADirect and founder and former CEO of Cotton Inc. "His successful B2B track record strategically positions FTADirect to lead the e-business revolution within the softgoods industry. In his new role as CEO, Sherk will be guiding the company's strategic direction. Prior to joining FTADirect, Sherk founded e-Chemicals, a business-to-business exchange for the chemicals industry that was named among the top ten B2B sites by AMR Research. e-Chemicals provides end-to-end supply chain solutions for the chemical industry, linking raw materials providers, chemical manufacturers, channel intermediaries and chemical purchasers. Headquartered in Ann Arbor, Michigan, e-Chemicals is a partner company of Internet Capital Group. Before founding e-Chemicals, Sherk served for 16 years at Dow Chemical Co in sales and marketing. Sherk holds a BS in Chemical Engineering from Queen's University in Canada.