- The Destin Collection, selected as the “coolest thing made in Mississippi,” provides custom designs for living rooms that include modern, modular designs with multiple fabric options.
On Wednesday at the Mississippi State Capitol, the Mississippi Manufacturers Association (MMA) announced their 2024 Makers’ Challenge winner as The Destin Collection by Kevin Charles Furniture.
The contest, sponsored by Hancock Whitney, selects the “coolest” things made in Mississippi and narrows down submissions to the top 16 products for a three-round bracket-style competition. This year, there were 71 products submitted with a total of 118,210 votes cast.
The top four finalists were all present for the announcement. The other three finalists included GOShelter Hands-Free Wearable Canopy from The GOShelter, Little Birdie Pillows from The Little Birdie, and Walk-In Coolers and Freezers made by Thermo-Kool.
“This competition highlights the best of Mississippi’s manufacturing community, and we want to congratulate Kevin Charles Furniture for winning the title of The Coolest Thing Made in Mississippi,” said MMA President & CEO John McKay. “We had four great finalists and an outstanding variety of products submitted into the competition. We hope this contest made a lasting impression on the public as we showcased all of the cool things made in our state.”
Governor Tate Reeves also participated in the announcement. He said there has been an unprecedented amount of investment in the state recently with the announcement of projects such as the Amazon Web Services facility in Madison County.
“New companies who move into our state are seeing companies, like those behind me that have been here, some for many, many years, make additional capital investments and continue to grow their number of employees here and capital investments here,” said Governor Reeves. “The reason we are seeing that is because Mississippi is open for business.”
Reeves thanked the company representatives who were present for their hard work within the state. He said they should be proud of the innovative work they are doing and the continued utilization of manufacturing in Mississippi.
Representatives from sponsor Hancock Whitney were also on hand for the announcement.
“We at Hancock Whitney extend our good wishes and gratitude to all of the Mississippi Makers’ Challenge nominees. Their commitment to manufacturing high-quality products helps our economy thrive and further affirms the initiative, ingenuity, and creativity that distinguish our state,” said Hancock Whitney Commercial Banking Senior Vice President James Kaigler. “We’re especially proud to recognize and celebrate Kevin Charles Furniture’s Destin Collection as the 2024 winner and congratulate finalists Thermo-Kool, Go Shelter, and Little Birdie.”
Sarah Ulmer
