western reporter—january 2009

Western Home Furnishings Association500 Giuseppe Court, #6Roseville, CA 95678

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Jou rna l o f the Wes te rn Home Furn i sh ings Assoc ia t ion

the future

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westernreporterjanuary 2009

Featured “Oslo” DiningWater Based FinishRenewable Bamboo VeneersRecycled Paper Corner Blocks

Showrooms:Tacoma, WALas Vegas, NVLas Vegas, NV

Contact:Customer Service (253) 922-1400Fax (253) 922-3747

COME HOME TO EMERALD: WHERE FURITURE MEETS ECO FRIENDLY DESIGN

EE m e r a ld H o m e Fu r n i s h i n g swww.emeraldhome.com

Contact WHFA at www.WHFA.org or (800) 422-3778. JAnuAry 2009 3westernreporter

Social Media . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .12

Web Simple . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .16

Retailer Resource Center Info . .19

EDITORIAL STAFF

Managing Editor: Melissa Dressler ............................... [email protected]

PublishEr: Melissa Robinson ........................................... [email protected]

2008 WhFa oFFiCErs and EXECutiVE CoMMittEE

WhFa PrEsidEnt

Keith Koplan - Koplan’s Furniture, Vancouver, WA ............................(360) 695-3388

PrEsidEnt ElECt

Marty Cramer - Cramer’s Home Furnishings, Ellensburg, WA ..........(509) 933-2172

ViCE PrEsidEnt

Claudia LeClair - Fiesta Home Furnishings, Scottsdale, AZ ..............(480) 951-3239

trEasurEr

Angel Lopez - Dearden’s, Los Angeles, CA .......................................(213) 362-9600

sECrEtarY

Chris Sanders - Everton Mattress Factory, Inc., Twin Falls, ID .........(208) 326-3407

EXECutiVE CoMMittEE Chair

George Nader - Nader’s La Popular, Gardena, CA ...........................(310) 327-8585

Past PrEsidEnts

Marvin Kerby - Kerby’s Furniture, Mesa, AZ ......................................(480) 834-3888

Cherie Rose - The Rose Collection, Los Gatos, CA ..........................(408) 395-7773

EXECutiVE dirECtor

Sharron Bradley - WHFA, Roseville, CA ............................................(916) 784-7677

at largE EXECutiVE CoMMittEE MEMbErs

Bob Ammirato - Design Galleria By Valentine, Sacramento, CA .......(916) 922-2200

Howard Haimsohn - Lawrance Contemporary, San Diego, CA ......... (619) 291-1911

Lael Thompson - Broyhill Home Collections, Aurora, CO ..................(303) 360-9653

WhFa/nhFa liaison

David Harkness - Harkness Furniture, Tacoma, WA ..........................(253) 473-1234

WhFa board MEMbErs

Gary Absalonson - Walker’s Furniture Inc., Spokane, WA.................(509) 533-5500

Eric Blackledge - Blackledge Furniture Co., Corvallis, OR ................(541) 753-4851

Dave Cavitt - Furniture Enterprises of Alaska, Anchorage, AK ..........(907) 264-5210

Gene DeMeerleer - Furniture West, LaGrande, OR ..........................(541) 963-5440

Greg Follett - Follett’s Furniture, Lewiston, ID ...................................(208) 743-0177

Eric Foucrier - Linder’s Furniture Mart, Garden Grove, CA ...............(714) 210-4848

Giff Gates - Gates Furniture, Grants Pass, OR .................................(541) 476-4627

Ron Hoesterey - Royal Mattress Company, Inc., Orange, CA ...........(800) 987-6925

Paula Holt - Home Collections/Dining Collections, Salem, OR .........(503) 589-4358

Jerome James - Hafer’s Home Furnishings, Manteca, CA ................(209) 823-2122

Julian Jeppe - Reeds Furniture, Agoura Hills, CA .............................(818) 597-7800

Doug Kays - Premiere Home Furnishings, Los Angeles, CA ............. (310) 268-0811

Chuck Kill - Bedmart, Tucson, AZ ......................................................(520) 887-7039

Tim Koerner - Koerner Furniture, Coeur D’Alene, ID .........................(208) 666-1525

Karen Kohlman - West Harvard Furniture, Roseburg. OR ................(541) 673-4221

Don Lemieux - Naturwood, Rancho Cordova, CA .............................(916) 638-2424

Sandy Lundgren - Olsen Furniture, Shelton, WA ...............................(360) 426-4702

Robert Myers - Ashley Furniture HomeStore, Chico, CA ...................(530) 345-2616

Michael Nermon - Ergo Customized Comfort, Irvine, CA ..................(208) 326-3407

Ray Nunez - Furniture Savings Center, Sacramento, CA ..................(916) 487-6005

Sally Servidio - Silverado Home & Design, Napa, CA .......................(707) 251-0888

Tom Slater - Slater’s Home Furnishings, Modesto, CA .....................(209) 522-9097

Valerie Watters - Valerie’s Furniture and Accents, Cave Creek, AZ ...(480) 483-3327

WESTERN HOME FURNISHINGS ASSOCIATION STAFF

Executive director: Sharron Bradley ...............................................(916) 960-0345

asst. Exec./Marketing director: Kaprice Crawford .........................(916) 960-0346

business Manager: Janice Carlson .................................................(916) 960-0347

Events Manager: Cindi Williams ......................................................(916) 960-0277

operations/Warehouse Manager: Jef Spencer ..............................(916) 960-0386

Communications Planning Manager: Melissa Robinson ...............(916) 960-0349

Managing Editor & Webmaster: Melissa Dressler ..........................(916) 960-0385

Membership Manager: Michael Hill .................................................(916) 960-0263

Member services specialist: Margie Jacobs ..................................(916) 960-0199

Member services rep: Adam Gardner ...........................................(916) 960-0291

accounting assistant: Melody King ................................................(916) 960-2476

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table of contentsJou rna l o f the Wes te rn Home Furn i sh ings Assoc ia t ion

westernreporter

Western Home Furnishings Association is the western affiliate of National Home Furnishings Association

contactPhone: (800) 422-3778 (12 western states)

(916) 784-7677

Online: www.WHFA.org

Fax: (916) 784-7697

Mail: 500 Giuseppe Court, Suite 6 Roseville, CA 95678

in every issueIndustry Beat . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 8

Board Member Q&A with Chris Sanders . . . . . . 8

Retailer Notes: Utilizing Social Networking . . . 10

Member Profile with Forma Furniture . . . . . . . 24

Program of the Month: Financing . . . . . . . . . . 31

Industry Dates . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 43

featured articles

Snap Out Of It! Market is Not Just for Buying . . . . . . . . . . . . .26

Back to the Future Technology Meets Retail . . . .35


president’s message

It’s hard to believe this is the end of the “President’s Message” for this president of WHFA. On the other hand, it would be disingenuous to suggest that this has not been a very long and trying year for our association, our industry and probably most of us in business. This issue takes a look at the future, and while I don’t know about you, even if I wrap my crystal ball in rose colored cellophane; the near term future still has a dark grey feeling of uncertainty.

This past year, whenever writing this column, I have tried to be pragmatic about the industry and its future; 45 years of being in the furniture business 24/7 can do that to someone. Here’s what I see today, and I won’t win any awards for optimism or kindness. After all, we are an industry very dependent upon the home building industry; it’s no secret that every time someone moves to a new or different home a new customer is created. It’s also no secret that housing sales have dropped to levels thought impossibly low as recently as 18 months ago.

The entire wholesale-retail supply chain is in disarray with very few financially healthy vendors and an equally unhealthy retail community. Most of the vendors are nothing more than marketing companies; there is nothing wrong with that, they just aren’t manufacturers anymore.

I often feel most vendors don’t really understand retail; “we design it and build it, you sell it” is the attitude. We’ll bring something new out every six months and take nine months to a year to deliver it and ask you to buy something new before you even have the last new merchandise you bought… just keep selling, and we’ll keep trying to find something that works. Oh, and don’t worry too much about making a profit; just pay your bills on time. Pretty harsh, but now let’s take a look at many retailers.

We are totally complicit in this broken chain; we still are trying to drive every customer on price and trying to sell things for less than we did 20 years ago. We also brag that we are selling it at a huge discount when we really aren’t. Is it any wonder that as the economy has plummeted, so have our sales when we have done so little to develop customer loyalty with service as well as value? We gave up trying to do things different and exciting years ago.

Retailers and vendors need to start listening to their customers; we all need to work together to excite the buying public. We need to create style driven “I wants” that also meet the needs of today’s customer. How do I see the future? Vendors and retailers are at a crossroads; we are all suffering and those that are capitalized and prepare for the future will have a bright future. If I’ve offended anyone but caused them to think about what they are doing, then no apology is needed.

Thank you for your support and many kind thoughts this past year. I love this industry and in spite of the rough road ahead, with hard work we can move forward together.

ON THE COVERThe Bel Air Collection by Roche Bobois USA.For more information, please visit www.roche-bobois.com.

Keith Koplan 2008 WHFA president Koplan’s Furniture Vancouver, [email protected]

6 JAnuAry 2009 Contact WHFA at www.WHFA.org or (800) 422-3778.westernreporter

2008 — It was a year that will be remembered in our history, and not in a good way. We’ve had more than our share of economic upheaval and our industry has been slammed hard against the wall. But there is something we all must remember — 2008 has taught us about individual strength and tenacity and about the importance of good leadership. Those that have these traits will survive tough economic times and will come out on top with the competitive advantage.

As you transition your business to compete in this new economy, lean on us for guidance and support. That is what your association is all about. Utilize all the resources at your fingertips to learn the new business and leadership skills you need to come out on top. It has never been more important to be a member of WHFA. Those who collectively stand together will prosper. Together we are stronger and can command the cost advantages, and program and product innovations we need to better serve our customers.

When times are tough we need each other’s support and expertise more than ever. We need opportunities to talk about our issues and concerns and to share messages of hope about the future. We need to take time to learn new skills that will focus us on that future, learning to survive and thrive. We need time away from the stresses of day to day business to gain new perspective and passion. Your Board of Directors is planning just that opportunity for you in Hawaii this May during WHFA’s annual conference. It is extremely important to your business, your family, your customers, and to our industry, that you be there with all of us this year. You won’t be sorry. You’ll come back able to face any challenge with new enthusiasm and a sense imminent success.

In the meantime explore your online home furnishings business community through WHFA’s discussion forums at www.WHFA.org. This is your place to share what’s on your mind and to find the answers to important questions from those that have encountered and solved similar problems. And let us help you simplify your life by getting a handle on costs with group discount programs and a host of other resources that will help you run your business more effectively. Call us any time for a word of advice, support or for a helping hand.

There is light at the end of the tunnel as they say and together we can find our way there. We’ll come out of this with accomplishment and pride in the work we do to help our many customers feel the comfort and sense of place that our products and services bring to them.

Warm wishes for a successful 2009.

executive director’s message

Last month’s feature articles are available online at www.WHFA.org.

Western Home Furnishings Association500 Giuseppe Court, #6Roseville, CA 95678

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looking forwardto February 2009

Sales Contests

Working with Manufacturer’s Reps

Creating a Layaway Program

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Member Profile: Cramer’s Home Furnishings, Ellensburg, WA

Sharron BradleyWHFA executive [email protected]

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Industry Pulls Together and Raises $60,000 for Herron Family

Last October, the furniture industry pulled together and raised $60,000 to help the Herron family with medical bills. Debbie Herron has been battling cancer for a few years and even with insurance, her medical costs were beginning to add up. Her close friends, Marty and Michelle Cramer, decided to help Debbie and her husband Kevin raise money by throwing a fundraiser golf tournament and dinner auction. Marty and Michelle’s initial goal was to raise $10,000, which they thought might be a long shot due to the current economy. After sending out a letter to everyone he knew in the industry, Marty was overwhelmed by the positive response, “As hard as these times are, the response was overwhelming. So many people and companies were calling me from the day the letter went out wanting to know how they could help,” he said. “I was so overwhelmed by the outpouring

of support from an industry that for the most part is struggling, it made me so proud to be a part of it all.”

The golf tournament and dinner auction were a success, with people flying in as far away as St. Louis and Colorado and $60,000 was raised for the Herron family.

Design House Furniture Wins People’s Choice for Best Customer Service

Design House Furniture in Murrieta, CA recently received the honor of Best Customer Service in the Inland Empire by Valley Living Magazine. For three months, people voted for their top choices of businesses in categories such as: best winery, best restaurant, best salon and best customer service. Design House Furniture’s owner, Kim Barriga, was surprised by this honor and said, “It was very nice, especially in these times, to be honored as having the best customer service.”

Q What motivates, invigorates and inspires you about our industry? A This is an industry that continues to test our individual skill sets found in all areas

of business. Currently, you have to have the mind set of “can do” to survive and hopefully accomplish some small victories. Working within an economy that is unpredictable as ever, our business needs to be adaptable both in the aspect of providing better values and services to our consumers and also building a great work environment for our employees.

Q If you could travel anywhere in the world, where would you go? A New Zealand

Q What do you value most in an employee?A Ambition and Trust

Q What are the rules you live by? A The Golden One

Q What do you do for fun? A Fly fishing in rivers and lakes found throughout Idaho and Montana and

downhill skiing with family and friends.

Q I earned my first paycheck: A When I was 12 years old. I was a setter/puller at a Trap & Skeet Club located in

Butte, MT.

Q What do you enjoy most about being a WHFA member? A The ability to build relationships with a broad variety of diverse personalities,

and hopefully, to add or give back something to an industry that I have worked within for over the last 20 years.

Chris SandersownerEverton Mattress Factory529 North StreetFiler, ID [email protected]

Q&A

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May 17-19, 2009The Westin Maui Resort & SpaMaui, Hawaii

With more than 30 educational sessions, endless networking opportunities, fun social events and all of your meals included, the value of Escape sounds like Paradise.Maui on your own: $635/day*

Westin Maui inclusive package offers:• Yourhotelroom• Dailybreakfast• Threecoursedinner,twococktails• Doubleoccupancyrequired

Maui the WHFA way: $220/day** WHFA Conference exclusive/inclusive package: • Yourhotelroom• Waivedresortfee• Dailybreakfast• Twodailyrefreshmentbreaks• Twocomplimentarycocktailsdaily• Dailylunch• Dailyreceptions• Dailyfourcoursedinner• ComplimentaryLateNightLounge• 30educationalsessions• BusinessExpo• Golf,spa,activitiesdiscounts• RetailerRoundtables• Souvenirtotebag

*Multiple restrictions apply, limited availability, group reservation required. Minimum stay required.

**One time per person conference registration fee applies, guest room tax not included.

Expand Your Mind.

Escape to Paradise.

Register for conference at www.WHFAconference.com.


For the last year, all of my employees have been involved in sites such as MySpace, Facebook, YouTube, Craigslist — virtually every social networking and social media site out there. Our

IT department holds a training program for employees interested in participating and have personal training that shows employees what they can and can’t do on various sites. Each of the social networking sites has different levels of restrictions, so we give them parameters of the site and how it should be used for business and let them go with it.

The goal for our employees on these sites is to be the furniture friend — whether it is to offer advice, meet new people, or let them know where we are and what we can offer. We don’t do furniture solicitations through our social networks but our employees let people know that they work in a furniture store, are experts in furniture and they are there to service them and help potential customers with anything they may need. For some salespeople it has been tremendously successful and their social networking has resulted in additional sales. Other salespeople really like the results and have made a lot of great contacts, but haven’t had many sales from it. Utilizing social networking sites for business is a little different then just emailing a friend on MySpace and asking what they are doing – it gives us a purpose to talk to people. There is a whole different level of questions that are asked and it personalizes the experience for the customer.

We also post all of our commercials on YouTube, and we receive a lot of response off of that. On MySpace and Facebook, people will ask our employees questions, and we can easily direct them to our advertisements on the Internet.

We decided to participate in social networking because the Internet is the future and it is a new form of communication, and I have been a believer in that for a long time. When we opened our store in 2004, our system was based off of technology for the future. Studies show that 80 percent of people pre-shop for furniture on the Internet. The Internet has a very reliable future and the more that you can get communication out about the industry, the better off you are. Just having ads in the newspaper or on TV doesn’t really educate the consumer on what the industry is about, it more or less just tells them about an upcoming sale. By using social networking tools, we are able to educate the consumer on what our retailing is about. I think that is more relevant to today’s consumer.

Robert Myers owner Ashley Furniture HomeStoreFull-line Store (530) 345-2616 x11Store founded in 2004Locations: 4 [email protected]

How do you utilize social networking in your store?

During our travels, we often ask members different questions about their furniture retail operation and publish their answers in Western Reporter for other members to try. Retailer Notes is a unique column that allows you, the retailer, to participate. If you are interested in submitting your own question or would like to answer our next question, please email Melissa Dressler at [email protected].

retailer notes

What is the difference between social media and social networking?

While both of these things are definitely “social”, there is actually a huge difference in the two. You can have social media without social networking, but in today’s world you can’t have social networking without social media!

Social media is a technology type, one where the media is designed to be easily shared amongst users based on things such as common interests, local communities, relationships and other demographics.

Social Networking is connected to social media, but is vastly different. Social networking is geared towards using the technology benefits of social media (ease of use, interconnectivity, and relationships) to form new bonds between individuals and strengthen old ones. Social networking is based on understanding what types of social media and people create “hubs” of connections, and then leverages those points to create even stronger relationships with other focal points.

For more information on social media and social networking, read the feature article on page 12.

800.325.2018www.profitsystems.com/groups

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“We love the group participation. They help us view our operation from a different and critical perspective. Many times it has given us the courage to change things based on other members experiences and recommendations.”

WHFA_Organize.indd 1 11/19/2008 9:24:52 AM

feature article


David LivelyownerThe Lively Merchant

The vague uneasiness, forehead-creasing confusion and general malaise I had been feeling were finally explained. It was

February, 2004. My diagnosis was presented in 538 pages of small type, and I read every word to find out why the advertising that had worked so well in the past for my 50-year-old furniture store was no longer working at all.

It was a book called Generations: The History of America’s Future, 1584-2069. Authors William Strauss and Neil Howe divided history into seasonal cycles that mold the generations of that era. Understanding the current cycle helps us understand the people around us, even to the point of forecasting cultural and societal trends for the next 60 years.

If history is any teacher (and I believe she is), every 40 years we reach a tipping point when leadership, influence and power transfer from the elder generation to the younger generation. The last tipping point occurred in 2003, when the Baby Boomers loosened their power ties and ceased striving for their “greed is good” mentality. Baby Boomers were idealists who worshipped heroes, perfect icons of beauty and success, like Clark Kent and James Bond.

Today’s youngest generation has the moniker of Millennials, or Generation Y, and they have a different view of what makes a hero. They see the icons of yesteryear as hyperbolic posed phonies. They reject all forms of pretense. Words like “amazing,” “astounding” and “spectacular” are translated “yada, yada, yada.” Their heroes are Gregory House and Jason Bourne, flawed characters unafraid to wear their broken hearts on their dirty sleeves.

It takes a while to tip. The transfer of power from Baby Boomers to Millennials was just completed in December 2008.

What does this mean in the furniture industry — and every other area of culture, for that matter? It means that the tried and true selling methods that worked only a year ago are working far less well today. There are new rules on what to say, how to say it and where to say it that will make or break your media’s effectiveness.

As history repeats itself, a new media phenomena called social media is transforming the marketing universe just like television and radio did in the 20th century. Now, as then, many retailers will take a “wait and see” attitude. Others will jump into the marketplace and become market leaders. The same fate awaits those who ignore social media as befell those who never embraced new electronic technologies that are old hats to us today.

So, what is it? Besides newfangled delivery methods like

email and text messaging, the primary difference between social media and traditional broadcast and print media is direction. If traditional media is a one-way street from the advertiser to the consumer, then social media is like the superhighway George Jetson rode to work. Information in a social media network moves back and forth, up and down and from side to side like space age cars of the future, unlimited by old-fashioned restrictions like print runs and postage costs.

Trevor Edwards, vice president at Nike, sums up social media perfectly. He says, “We’re not in the business of keeping media companies alive. We’re in the business of connecting with consumers!”

Social media uses a lot of funny sounding words and phrases like blogs, micro-blogs, online chat, RSS feeds, widgets, bookmarks, message boards, podcasts, video podcasts and wikis. The Daily Planet has been replaced with portals like MySpace, Facebook and Twitter. Don’t worry; these terms will soon become as familiar to you as “first class mail” and “30-second spots.”

The impact of social media is dependent upon the starting mindset. Begin fresh, because your success depends upon it. Because change is often painful and frustrating, you will be tempted to look for shortcuts and try to take the principles of traditional media and apply them to social media thinking. It will not work.

Just ask the first pioneers of web-based marketing, who developed static sites that were centrally managed with little or no content change. These sites were “tech heavy” and unidirectional, telling customers what to believe and offering little to no opportunity for them to respond back.

Web 2.0 is completely different. Social media

. . . the primary difference between social media and traditional broadcast and print media is direction. If traditional media is a one-way street from the advertiser to the consumer, then social media is like the superhighway George Jetson rode to work.

“

“


explore our unique interests. Widgets deliver specialized content, avatars can be made to look exactly like you or whoever you would like to look like while the RSS feed delivers exactly the content you’re interested in, while personalized home pages allow you to become your own web designer.

Conversation is the most easily understood aspect of the social media world. It’s easy to have a conversation with your customer today. Any website worth its salt will provide a place for customer feedback. Let your customer say whatever she wants, and be prepared to respond quickly. Remember that authenticity is the key to successful communication these days. Blogging, online journaling that combines the words “web log,” allows you to talk to your customer regularly (for free, I might add) and develop relationships that go deeper than price, product and promotion. If my 12 year old can manage her own blog, it should be attainable for your organization. Meme-trackers will tell you if your blog is being read by counting the number of times it’s referenced on other websites.

Community is created when you use all of the above to reach your customer base. It is fostered by the common interest and built by allowing and pursuing conversation.

Social media is revolutionizing marketing and leading to real systemic change. These tools build awareness and spread the word. They provide support, motivation and coordination for a unified approach to your customer. Social media changes the game by involving those affected by the problem in the solution. It gives your customer a platform for action. It also goes a long way to humanizing the situation by allowing your business as well your customer to express your feelings to one another.

You’re still selling furniture, just using different digital delivery channels and a fresh new language that sounds like, well… it sounds like people talking.

David Lively has over 20 year’s hands-on experience in the home furnishings industry. Twice named to Furniture Today’s “Beyond the Top 100” list of independent retailers and 1997 “Ohio Retailer of the Year,” David’s wisdom was won on the front lines and his battle scars have given him compassion for counseling today’s retail warrior. David is on the forefront of a new phenomenon that will soon rock the home furnishings industry: the transfer of authority, responsibility and wealth from one generation to the next. Four out of five family-owned furniture stores are still led by their founder, and 40 percent of them will change hands in the next five years. David has developed a proprietary and unparalleled system for helping identify goals, strengths and opportunities during this crucial time. You can reach David at (740) 415-3192 or visit www.thelivelymerchant.com.

invites the customer to join the movement. These empowered customers

communicate, connect, co-create, collect, categorize, customize and

become communities. Each of these “C’s” leads

to the ultimate “C”: Change. The American people seem to

want it, if recent elections are any indication, then furniture industry had

better hop to it if we want to improve our own approval ratings.

Here is how it works: Communication is always two-way and takes

many forms such as blogs, podcasts, video blogs, photo sharing and video sharing. These require very little technical savvy or financial investment, yet they are far reaching with big impact. The challenge remains the same: developing worthy content. Lack of content has been the industry’s key weakness. The technology is surprisingly simple; knowing what to say is far more complicated. Industry experts love to tell you how to use social media technology to communicate while neglecting content development.

Connection allows the reader or viewer to comment, respond, rate or share your message. YouTube’s commentary, Amazon’s customer reviews and MySpace’s friend network show how social media reaches millions of members.

Co–created wikis are web pages that allow anyone to create or modify the content, and open source software allows users to use, change, modify and redistribute free applications. Consumers generate viral advertising to voluntarily pass along your marketing message.

Categorizing consists of tagging, social bookmarking and search engine marketing. Because of the nature of Web 2.0, we now have the ability to grade and communicate the outcomes of nearly every transaction that takes place online and offline.

Collective Wisdom is made up using rating sites, wikis like Wikipedia and social news services. Today you can subscribe to an RSS feed (Real Simple Syndication) to receive email notification when new content is posted for every subject under the sun. For example, I receive a daily feed from Google for the word “furniture.” Any post from around the world about furniture is delivered directly to my inbox.

Customization continues to make life online more personal. Widgets, avatars and RSS feeds all allow us to

Websites to Check Out

BeboBloggerDiggFacebookFlickrLinkedInMeetUpMixxMySpacePlaxoSecond LifeTwitterWikiPediaWordPressYelpYouTube

If you would like to increase mattress sales, average ticket, close rate, traffic patterns and margin, contact:

Chris Sanders at Restonic Idaho (800) 521 3985 ext. 105

Come see us at the Las Vegas Market

Building B Space 926

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Restonic offers its dealers a value rich program

• Comprehensivesupport,includingadvertising,merchandisingdisplays,salestraining,inventorymanagement

• ConsultativeSelling• SelectiveDistribution

The Brand PromiseRestonicMattressCorporationisthe“goto”brandforretailerswhoarelookingforabeddingpartnerwhoismoreresponsiveandprovidesgreatervaluetothem,becauseourretailers’successisourtoppriority.

“Restonic Mattress Idaho, gives our store a better value, they provide functional point of purchase programs, great quality product, better sales training and marketing ideas that help drive traffic into our store. They seem to care about my busi-ness and helping me succeed.”

Bob Hanni-Abbey’s Furniture Showcase, Butte, Montana


DefinitionsBefore you know where you’re going, you

have to know where you’ve been. How many times have we heard this tired cliché?

What is happening in our industry is that many people know where they’ve been, and they used to understand the language in which the question “where are you going” was couched, but, today, the vocabulary — the literal language — being used to explain the world of technology is foreign to many of our industry’s business leaders.

In addition, our business is a legacy business. As a result, the people with the financial capital to invest in new ideas — the parents — don’t understand the vocabulary and are uncomfortable releasing scarce financial resources

into an unknown realm and the people with the intellectual capital regarding technology and the Internet — the next generation — do not have the experience of their parents so they can’t put the benefits of technology into a context their parents can understand.

The result of this lack of communication: A void. No movement.

The generations cannot bridge the “language and context” gap and therefore strategies that could easily help retailers make money — even in these tough times — are not being executed because very few people with the financial wherewithal to make them happen even know they exist.

To be fair, many furniture retailers in the West do understand the web, and are driving revenue, engaging with their consumer and perfecting multi-channel marketing. To those of you who fit this description, congratulations — you are the leaders and the eventual winners — and you can stop reading now! For anyone else, my column over these next four months will help create a context for you and give you the language to use so you can ask intelligent questions and feel comfortable making the resource investments necessary to stay competitive in 2009 and beyond.

Backstory firstIn 2002, I started my company, The

Kaleidoscope Partnership. We are a social networking consulting firm and teach all industry segments how to use web-based new media strategies to drive sales. We provide online reputation management consulting, e-conversion sales training, e-content writing and website analytics consulting, too.

Over these past six years, I have also done a lot of writing and speaking on behalf of our industry with the intent of educating my readers and listeners to best practices. Earlier this year, WHFA asked me if I would speak in Maui next year to help their members understand the web and how to use it to drive sales and foster

Leslie CarothersprincipalThe Kaleidoscope Partnership

http://www @Web Simple


engagement with their consumers. We decided to call the seminar “Web Simple.”

So, for the next four months, I will write a column here to help all of you understand the steps involved in making money off of the Internet. There is a logical sequence. When you attend the seminar in Maui, I will present case studies, detailed visual presentations of the concepts I will write about in this column and a very interactive discussion will take place so your questions can get answered specifically vs. generally and you can leave the conference knowing that you can make money from the ideas gleaned from having attended my seminar.

To start: VocabularyIn order to make the web simple, it’s important

to make sure that everyone understands the definitions of the Internet language. You can do this on your own by going to Google and looking up: www.netlingo.com. This is a dictionary. You will need to go letter by letter to see what things mean, but if you already have heard of a word like “meta tags” but aren’t quite sure of what they are, what they do or why they’re important in getting your site indexed and found by consumers, then this site will explain it to you clearly.

Here is the biggest single mistake I see retailers making when looking at a web page: Understanding the layout of a search engine page. Let’s say you type, “furniture store San Diego” into Google. Those words, by the way, are called “keywords” which are simply the words your potential customers are typing into Google to search for what they are interested in finding. Don’t forget — the same consumer can type in many different keywords over a period of time depending on where they are in their buying process.

So, now Google “returns” to your computer a page of results.

Here’s how it worksOn the left hand side of the page are the organic

or natural search results. You cannot buy these.Many times, there will be, still on the left, two

or three search results that are on top of the organic/natural results. They will be in a light colored box. These are called sponsored links and are labeled as such. You can buy these.

Down the right hand side of the page is another column of sponsored links. You can buy these, too.

Here’s why knowing this matters: Consumers, about 80 percent of the time, only look at the organic links. It is imperative to be near the top of the first page of Google for your main “keywords” in organic search results. If you’re not, the chances of consumers even knowing you exist are very close to zero unless they find you through an offline resource.

How do you get near or at the top of organic search rankings? It’s very hard to do. The process

of trying to make this happen is called search engine optimization or SEO for short. There are no guarantees, but some people are very skilled at it and are worth their weight in gold if they can get your website to those top spots.

You have to be where your customers are and they are on the web doing their research. For instance, let’s say your best product category is contemporary sofas. If I’m your customer, and I type in “contemporary sofa Sacramento” can I find your company’s website in organic search results?

If the answer is yes, excellent. If the answer is no, you have a problem. You are invisible to your consumers on the information superhighway. SEO is your answer.

In my next column, I will expand upon the most important element of making money with your website: getting found by your potential consumers when they’re searching for your company’s products.

The Kaleidoscope Partnership is a new media consulting firm specializing in providing retailers, manufacturers and suppliers in the home industries with the tools they need to execute social networking, online reputation management, e-conversion and analytics sales and marketing strategies. Principal Leslie Carothers has been in the home furnishings business for 26 years and has a deep knowledge of all stakeholders-especially the furniture consumer. Her goal is to show home industries executives how to grow top line revenue and cut, permanently, bottom line operating expenses through effectively engaging the online consumer. For more information, please see her profile on www.linkedin/in/lesliecarothers, visit her company page on Facebook at The Kaleidoscope Partnership, follow her on twitter at tkpleslie, visit her website at www.tkpartnership.com or call her at (713) 705-2482.

Web Simple

Hear Leslie speak during WHFA’s 2009 Conference and Expo in Maui, HI,

May 17 – 19, 2009. Visit www.WHFAconference.com

for more details.

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AFH115_LVMW09_WESTREPORT.indd 1 9/11/08 4:58:19 PM

Retailer Resource CenterWo r l d M a r k e t C e n t e r, L a s Ve g a sBuilding B, 16th Floor | Building C, 4th Floor

ACCESS

EDUCATE

CONNECTLas Vegas Market February 9-13, 2009

At the Retailer Resource Center you’ll find business solutions, seminars and industry information

to help grow your business as well as your bottom line.

National Home Furnishings Association | www.NHFA.org | 800.888.9590Western Home Furnishings Association | www.WHFA.org | 800.422.3778 or 916.784.7677

World Market Center | www.LasVegasMarket.com | 866.229.3574

RRCRETAILERRESOURCE CENTERWestern Home Furnishings AssociationNational Home Furnishings Association

COMPLIMENTARYHOT SPOT CAFE: Computers, coffee & cookies (available all day)

BREAKFAST FOR BUYERS: (Mon.-Thurs. 7:30-9:30am) POWER HOUR: Beer, wine & lite bites (Mon.-Thurs. 4:00-5:00pm)

RRC Las Vegas Ad 12-08.indd 1 12/5/2008 1:38:01 PM

Now you have ACCESS to over 50 business providers at the two RRC locations:


Visit over 50 industry service providers dedicated to bettering your performance and your bottom line. Check out www.WHFA.org and click on the RRC logo to view a complete listing of service providers showing at the two RRC locations.

Las Vegas MarketBuilding B, 16th FloorBuilding C, 4th FloorFebruary 9 – 13, 2009

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list as of 12/9/08

ACCE SSACA/ Advertising Concepts of America American General FinanceArgonaut RetailAYR1.comB&B/CMK - Banker & Brisebois AdvertisingBA Merchant ServicesBryant-Forney AssociatesCalifornia Air Resources BoardCiti Retail ServicesCosec International, Inc.Custom Design SoftwareEscalate RetailFurniture Training CompanyFurniture Transportation GroupFurniture WizardFurnitureDealer.netFurnServeGenesis Software SystemsGlobal Link LogisticsGuardian Protection ProductsGuardsman, a business Unit of ValsparGutSELL & AssociatesHEP Direct HomeDirect USAHorich Parks Lebow AdvertisingHunterDouglasIAS Training International Storage Systems, Inc.JRM Sales & Management, Inc.Kizer & Bender Speaking!Mail AmericaMDG Group, Inc.MicroD IncMorry Dickter AssociatesMyriad Software & ConsultingNational Home Furnishings AssociationO.T.B. Retail SystemsProfitability Consulting GroupPROFITconsultingPROFITsystems, Inc.Retail RadioSale-in-a-BoxState Compensation Ins. FundStoris Management SystemsThe Furniture Training CompanyThe Lively MerchantThe Marketing AcademyThe Retail InstituteTruckSkin, LLCViewIt TechnologiesWestern Home Furnishings AssociationWestern Retail Services CorporationWorldwide Logistics Specialists, Inc.


Find the Hot Spot

at the Las Vegas Market

Building B, 16th Floor

Internet Stations & Coffee

brought to you by

Free Buyers Breakfast

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Free Beer, Wine & Small Bites

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Destination Las Vegas MarketFebruary 9-13, 2009

An awe-inspiring showcase of home furnishings awaits attendees to World Market Center for the Winter Las Vegas Market.

With convenient access to manufacturers and resources, you’ll have time to discover new trends and do business in the heart of one of the most exciting cities in the world. Also in store: exciting entertainment and robust educational programming.

The hub of activity/where it all happens• Hours:8a.m.to6p.m.Monday–Thursdayand8a.m.to4

p.m. Friday. • LasVegasDesignCenter,openyear-round,locatedonthe

lower floors of Buildings A and C.• Permanentshowroomsandtemporaryexhibitscovering5

million square feet in three interconnected buildings.

Building A: Vegas Kids, a 20,000-square-foot showcase of juvenile products

Building B: Design & LivingSM, ConTextSM and Living Green PavilionSM, as well as Western Home Furnishings Association’s Retailer Resource Center (RRC)

Building C: Suites on C4, Vegas Accessory & Gift, Lodge Living, Futon Association International and Specialty Sleep Association

Register Early & Hit the Ground Running• Registernowatwww.LasVegasMarket.comandselect

“Registration”; previous Las Vegas Market attendees can utilize the fast-track “Quick Reg” option.

• Badgesaremailedtodomesticandinternationalbuyerswho register before January 16. Register after that date? No problem. Pick up badges at the pre-registration area or register onsite.

• Callcustomerserviceat(866)229-3574forotherregistration questions.

Tip: Bring your pre-stuffed badge holder which includes your badge and Expo card (electronic business card).

The Road to Market• Fly: McCarran International Airport is one mile from the

Strip and less than 15 minutes from WMCLV, making hotel and Market access convenient.

• Drive: WMCLV is located at 495 S. Grand Central Parkway, Las Vegas, NV 89106, past the Grand Central and Bonneville intersection.

• Ride: Save time by taking the free M-Line shuttles to and from World Market Center Las Vegas. Beginning at 6:30 a.m., shuttle pick-up and drop-off from host hotels is every 15 minutes during peak hours and every 30 minutes midday.

• Park: Complimentary parking available in each World Market Center Las Vegas lot, including the seven-story parking garage Use Click and Park online via www.LasVegasMarket. ClickAndPark.com to print a parking pass. Valet parking available at World Market Center Las Vegas for $10 and located in Pavilion 1, just off Grand Central Parkway at Discovery Drive

When the Day is Done• Hotelroomblocksarebeingheld

exclusively for Market attendees. • Bookearlyforbestavailability.• Visitwww.LasVegasMarket.comforhotel

list and map.

Take it all in• Diverserosterofeducationalseminars,

ranging from business survival to trends to sustainability.

• Networkingopportunitiesgalore.

Play & Indulge• VisittheMarketConcierge,poweredby

Experient in Building A’s atrium, to book show tickets, make reservations or find a spa or golf course.

• NavigatetheStripwithLasVegas’monorail system. Visit www.lvmonorail.com for schedules and ticket purchase.

Tip: Learn about Las Vegas’ celebrity chef restaurants and world-famous productions, headliners and concerts!


Goldaspenhome Furniture, King Koil, Storis Management Systems

SilverCoaster Company, Delivery Solutions, Inc., Furniture Transport Group,

Guardsman Furniture Protection Programs, Guildcraft of California

BronzeAita & Associates Ins. Marketing, Argo Select, BA Merchant Services,

Best Home Furnishings, Broyhill Furniture Industries, Inc., California Furniture Manufacturing Association, Century Lighting,

Clearwater Trading Company, Elite Leather, Escalate Retail, Flexsteel Industries, G&G Graphics & Promotions, Great American Group, Guardian Products, Inc.,

Home Delivery Link, Inc., Horich Parks Lebow Advertising, Innovative Delivery Systems, Inc., International Storage Systems, Inc., JRM Sales & Management, Klaussner of California,

Lane Home Furnishings, Mail America, Parker Southern, State Compensation Insurance Fund, The Uttermost Company, TruckSkin, LLC, Twin-Star International, Universal,

Vanguard Furniture Company, Wahlquist Managementas of 11/17/08

A Special Thank You to Our 2008 Sponsors

Titanium

Platinum

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member profile

Going above and beyond the customer’s expectations is one of the many things that has made Forma Furniture a

bright star in Fort Collins, CO. Surrounded by traditional home furnishings stores, this high-end Scandinavian contemporary retailer will do anything to keep the customer happy, including returning a sofa the customer didn’t like after six months.

Owners Travis and DeeAnn Garrish often go above and beyond their customer’s expectations and receive customers for life. In 2004, Travis and DeeAnn were presented the opportunity to open a contemporary store in Fort Collins by a family friend who was a rep for Ekorness, and they jumped in headfirst. “We literally rented the building, put as much of the Ekorness Stressless product that we could afford on the floor and started picking up more products here and there from other vendors,” Travis said.

Travis and DeeAnn both had previous experience in retail. DeeAnn’s father has owned a Scandinavian design store since she was born and DeeAnn worked in the family business until she married Travis. Travis has a background in

sales and worked part-time for his father-in-law. This husband and wife team have taken their combined experiences and created an inviting store that is constantly evolving. Each customer is welcomed into the store as if they were a friend of the family. For many of the customers, who have an average age of about 60, it is the first time or it has been a long time since they have seen Scandinavian or contemporary home furnishings.

Growing PainsForma Furniture saw instant success, and in

the first two years the business grew an average of 40 percent each year. Travis and DeeAnn decided to open a second location in Loveland, CO where the downtown area was going through a revitalization. “We did a one-year lease option to test the waters in Loveland, and that proved to be too much for us,” Travis said. “We are too small of a company to handle a second location. We thought we couldn’t do anything wrong at the time because our sales were so strong, but we ended up having new issues that we never had with our first location. Employee turnover was the worst problem, and we had five different

Forma Furniutre, owners Travis and DeeAnn Garrish with their two children, Jayden and Kaitlyn

Forma FurnitureFort Collins, CO

Melissa DresslerWestern Reporter managing editor


employees at that store in the course of a year.”In April 2008, Travis and DeeAnn decided

to close down the Loveland location and focus their energy on one store. Even though the store closed, Travis sees the Loveland store as a positive learning experience that he can use in the future.

New and Improved WebsiteOne area of Forma Furniture that is currently

being overhauled is the company website. The new website will feature an expanded assortment of products that are unable to be shown on the 5,000 square foot showroom floor. It will also give customers the opportunity to purchase directly from the Internet. “We are creating an extensive back-end to the website, which has delayed us a few months, but it will allow us to have a shopping cart feature and sell products over the Internet,” said Travis. “The biggest dilemma we are facing with online sales is shipping. We have received freight quotes and are now trying to decide how to allow someone to buy a dining table without chairs, since in delivery; you almost need the chairs to help protect the table. We are still trying to work out some of the details.”

By allowing customers to purchase directly from the website, Forma Furniture will also expand its reach to other markets. “We sell higher-end merchandise, so we aren’t the cheapest around. We are more service-oriented, so if someone from out of state wants to work with us, we are willing to ship an item to them. Through our old site, we would send something out of state a few times a month, which gave us a little bit of experience with shipping. Now we want to capitalize on online sales with a brand new website,” Travis said.

Norway DaysEvery year Forma Furniture throws a large event

for their customers called Norway Days, sponsored by Ekorness. The event is catered by a Denver caterer who dresses up in traditional Norwegian costume and serves Norwegian smoked salmon and cheeses to the 100 to 200 guests in attendance. While this memorable event doesn’t create many store sales, it “has become more of a goodwill event for our customers. We only send out invites to our customer base, and we open the doors for the event after the store has closed. We tell them to come in, have fun and talk to your friends and neighbors,” Travis said.

Often times neighbors will run into each other, not realizing that they were customers. The entire evening is a fun celebration and people remember it for a long time.

Future GoalsIn the future, Travis and DeeAnn would like to take

their experiences from the Loveland store and open up another location. “I would like to expand in the future. It is in our initial business plan to have multiple stores. The Loveland experience was part of that, and it was a good learning experience,” Travis said. Travis has a passion for the business and can often be found working on his days off, and he hopes to maintain this passion as the business grows in the future.

By going above and beyond customer expectations, building a new website and planning for growth in the future, it is sure that Forma Furniture will be supplying the Northern Colorado area with high-end Scandinavian contemporary furniture for years to come.

At a GlanceStore Location: Fort Collins, COType of Store: Full-lineYear Founded: 2004Number of Employees: 7Number of Store Locations: 1Annual Sales Volume: $800,000 – $1 millionWebsite: www.formafurniture.comTop Manufacturers: Ekornes, Jesper, Skovby, Lazar, CopelandWHFA Member Since: 2006


Brad HuiskenpresidentIAS Training

It’s time to step it up or you may find yourself stepping aside! I say this with the highest degree of respect for the industry and the

people within it. The industry has been very good to me, and my only hope is to be able to give back and help furniture retailers prosper and grow their businesses. Further, the only reason I am writing this article is because I believe in the independent retailer and the small business people of this country and want to pass along any knowledge to help them not only survive but to thrive.

I have to tell you that I am amazed, if not shocked, at how few retailers attend the free education sessions offered by their various industry associations. With the economy as it is and sales being tougher and tougher to make, I would think that every furniture retailer would want to take a few hours out of their busy market day to learn something new. If you learn one thing, it might be the difference between a great year, an average year, and one that leaves you wondering if you will survive. Here is a known fact:

If you keep doing what you have always been doing, you will achieve the same result!

I have a challenge for furniture retailers — If you can answer the following three questions correctly then you don’t need to attend any of the educational seminars during the Las Vegas Market. If you can’t answer one or all the questions, you need to do yourself a favor and show up for the educational seminars at the NHFA/WHFA

Retailer Resource Center. The answers will be at the end of the article and no cheating!

1. There are three ways a salesperson can increase sales in a retail furniture store, what are they?

2. Most businesses fail because they are managed based on something other than _____!

3. If sales are down, there is one of three things or a combination of three things that could be causing the decrease in sales. What are the three things?

Last June I had the pleasure of spending three solid weeks in a retail store as the sales manager. Running the sales floor took me back to my roots of the good old days when I was a sales manager working everyday on a retail sales floor. Not much has changed. Customers still say, “I’m just looking,” “I’ll be back,” “and “This is the first place I’ve shopped.” Salespeople still say, “Will that be all,” “Here’s my card, when you are ready come on back,” etc. Customers have habits they have fallen into just as salespeople use bad selling habits on occasion. I am not blaming anyone; I am just saying that is the way it is. During this three-week period, we did about $35,000 (an average week) in sales the first week, the second week we did over $70,000 (double an average week) in sales and the third week we did over $120,000 (a bit more than three times an average week) in sales. I am not telling you this to brag, just giving you the facts. The reason I am mentioning this is to point out

Snap out oF It!Market is not just for buying anymore.


— there is no second place to being on the floor coaching and training. You cannot learn to ride a bike, ski, drive, or fly an airplane by watching a DVD, reading a book, or seeing somebody else do it. This is true in the field of sales. It is the practical, continuous, application of proper sales techniques as well as using role-playing and live situations. This is where the real training, retention and application of the knowledge is accomplished.

The store owner, sales manager, store manager, sales trainer, floor manager — whatever title you give to the position — can have a dramatic effect on sales and profits. This position is the single most important position in the store when it comes to proactively creating sales and profits. Without a strong leader, people tend to revert to their safe zone or level of competency or incompetence depending upon how you look at it. In sports, it is proven every day that the coaching makes all the difference between a championship season and an average season. The exact same thing is true in a retail furniture store — coaching on the floor will make the difference between a store growing and flourishing and one that is just getting by. With the uncertainties of the economy and the stock market, mortgage foreclosures, layoffs, a new President, businesses going out and the price of everything skyrocketing, it is no wonder that many furniture retailers are scared. It

is a serious situation, no doubt. However, I do know that most retail furniture

stores are still closing about 20 percent of the people that come in. Most retail stores are still averaging about 5 percent in add-on sales; most retail stores do about half of the business that they could be doing without making any changes other than improving the skills of the sales staff. Most retail salespeople sit back and wait for customers to come in, when they could be doing some things to create traffic in the store. Most retail stores have no turnover program, or one that is weak at best. Most retail salespeople don’t know what to do when a customer says, “I’ll be back.” Most retail salespeople don’t know the easiest way to add-on to a sale or to bump it up and

Western Home Furnishings Association800-422-3778 • www.whfa.org

What a Deal!WHFA is extending this limited-time membership offer* only for non-members attending the 2009 Winter Las Vegas Market!

In order to qualify, you must: Visit the Retailer Resource Center, Building B, 16th Floor or Building C, 4th Floor, and speak to one of the WHFA Membership Team.

* not applicable to renewing members

Western Home Furnishings Association is a non-profit trade association dedicated to pro-viding furniture retailers essential resources needed to simplify their business life and be successful.

est.1944

15 months of Membership for the price of 12!

Come see us!

Building B 16th Floor

Building C 4th Floor

Come up and visit Adam, Mike, Kaprice and Margie.


don’t ask their customers for referrals. In other words — There are opportunities for huge sales increases available in most retail stores.

As a business, if you keep doing the same things that you did previously — why would you expect different results? I have heard some retail organizations that say 30 percent of all the independent retail stores will be out of business in the next five years. Many of the chain stores aren’t doing much better. If this doesn’t scare the heck out of you, I don’t know what will. There is no doubt in my mind that the answer lies in the people that we have serving our customers. We, as an industry, have to put more and more emphasis on training, knowledge, positive reinforcement, on the floor coaching, incentives, and giving our people the help that they need in order to maximize every potential selling opportunity. Further, we need our salespeople to create selling opportunities and look at their positions more as business owners running their own business within the business. I will go to the grave knowing that the store owner and/or sales manager is the one person that will make the biggest difference. When he/she is active on the sales floor, interacting with the sales staff and customers, we are on our way to positive results. I have seen a struggling store bring in

a new manager, and the store explodes in sales. If the manager is a person that only makes the schedule, answers discounting questions, is responsible for making the daily deposit, helping only their customers, answering special order questions, then the store is in trouble.

The sales managers’ job is to: Provide the leadership, knowledge, training, incentives, consequences, positive reinforcement, critique, and feedback in order to recruit, hire, develop and maintain a successful sales staff. Anything short of this is unacceptable if the organization is going to grow and flourish in the future.

About WHFA Membership Education & Events Community Store Resources Advocacy Get Involved

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Calendar

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WesternHomeFurnishingsAssociation HOME MEMbER LOGIn DEALER LOCATOR SITE SEARCH

Western Home Furnishings Association • www.WHFA.org • (800) 422-3778

Tour the WHFA website at www.WHFA.org > This month’s stop . . . Retailer Resource Center

simplify your business life

Access Las Vegas Market Retailer Resource Center Information OnlineYou now have access to information on WHFA’s online Retailer Resource Center (RRC) any time of day. Visit the WHFA website to learn about the RRC education line-up, locate a tradeshow vendor, discover what is in the HotSpot or learn about the numerous networking opportunities in the RRC.

To visit the Online Retailer Resource Center,

visit www.WHFA.org and select

Education & Events > Retailer Resource Center.


I recently heard an advertising guru say that retailers need to cut back on their staffs because traffic may drop as much as 25 percent in the coming year. I say — Don’t cut your staff — cut the unproductive staff and increase your staff with productive sales driven individuals that will produce results — give them the leadership that they need to be successful. An effective sales manager/trainer will make all the difference in the world. Nobody ever accepts a job wanting to fail. Something is causing them to not be successful. Usually it is the lack of training and coaching they are getting on the sales floor. The sales floor proves to be where all the action is, and your training needs to address this critical area. If you are not one as the owner, or do not have a proactive sales manager/trainer you need to hire or develop one from within.

Here are the answers to the questions posed in the beginning of this article:

Three ways a salesperson can increase sales: Get more people to come in — six ways will be discussed at the Retailer Resource Center in February, sell more of the people that are coming in through increasing your closing ratio – numerous ways to increase closing ratio will be discussed at the Retailer Resource Center in February. Third, to sell more to the people that you are already selling through add-ons and bumping up the sale – numerous ways to add-on and bump-up a sale will be discussed at the Retailer Resource Center in February.

Most businesses fail because they are managed based on opinions rather than facts and statistics. Statistics that need to be tracked to grow a retail furniture business will be discussed at the Retailer Resource Center in February.

If sales are down, there is one of three things, or a combination of three things that could be causing the decrease in sales. What are they?

Decreased traffic, decrease in closing ratio, and/or a decrease in average sale. Various ways to offset these issues will be discussed at the Retailer Resource Center in February.

I look forward to meeting you in February – 16th Floor, Building B at the NHFA/WHFA Retailer Resource Center!

Author, trainer, consultant, and speaker Brad Huisken is president of IAS Training. Mr. Huisken authored the books “I’m a

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Hear Brad speak Tuesday, Feb. 10 at the RRC during Las Vegas Market and at WHFA’s 2009 Conference and Expo in Maui, HI, May 17 – 19, 2009. Visit www.WHFA.org for more details.


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freight & logistics

advertising & sales

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WHFA offers over 50 programs and services to help run your business. Call a WHFA member services rep today to learn more about how our outstanding retail business products and services might be of interest to you.

Start saving today!(800) 422-3778

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simplify your business lifewith WHFA Programs & Services

Detailed descriptions available online at www.WHFA.org

OPENWE AREYES

Detailed descriptions available online at www.WHFA.orgContact WHFA at www.WHFA.org or (800) 422-3778. JAnuAry 2009 31westernreporter

What if we told you there’s a way to offer a customer-driven, in-store financing application process without paying several thousand dollars for a dedicated stand-alone kiosk?

Lower operating cost and customer convenience are just two of the benefits of AGF Direct, the PC-based financing management program provided by WHFA business partner, American General Financial Services.

AGF Direct uses an inexpensive desktop or laptop PC with Internet access and a basic printer. No additional equipment is required, and you can offer multiple access points throughout your showroom floor. It’s the most user-friendly application processing system ever.

Unlike some other types of equipment, PC’s feature full screens and full-size keyboards. You can use your choice of any standard or multi-function printer and print on plain 8-1/2 by 11-inch paper. Plus, when you own the equipment you eliminate monthly service fees. There is no setup or ongoing fee to use AGF Direct.

AGF Direct adheres to the standard American General Financial Services underwriting criteria and approval rates are consistent with all other forms of application processing. And, if an application is declined, you can print it out for further review.

Three types of access are available:Kiosk – The AGF Direct website is easy to navigate with controlled

login capability and password protection. Once you have logged on to the system, your customers can quickly input sensitive personal information in a safe, secure environment. The approval process takes only minutes and your customers can shop knowing that they are approved for financing.

AGF Direct frees your staff to concentrate on selling to qualified buyers instead of completing paperwork and waiting for responses. Once log on is initiated, the system stays active throughout the day and customers can apply at their convenience without the assistance of a salesperson.

Authorizations Only – This level of authority allows your sales staff to input, submit and print applications, access available credit, process add-on purchase authorizations and print sales slips from any PC in your store with Web access. You have the option of limiting access to specific employees.

Full Close – Self-funded dealers have the ability to process funding transactions in addition to the “Authorizations Only” functions above.

Each AGF Direct access type is offered independently and in any combination. Set-up is simple and can be accomplished within 48 hours. On-going support is available from the local American General Financial Services branch, Retail Account Manager and Merchant Services.

through WHFA’s partner

WHFA finance programs In-Store Financing

Bankcard Processing

Cash Flow Management

Cost Segregation

Check Guarantee Service

Secondary Financing

Kaprice CrawfordWHFAmarketing director

whfa program of the month

Streamline Your Financing program with aGF Direct

Kiosk installed at C.S. Wo, Honolulu, HI

In our previous article in the Western Reporter, we brought up the subject of “Consumer Driven”

health insurance and the need to be creative in today’s health insurance market. But, just what is meant by Consumer Driven health care?

Consumer driven health coverage comes in a variety of forms. All of them shift the focus from low co-pay, low deductible plans to having you and me, the end-consumer, pick up more of the cost when we access medical care. The more you pay when accessing care, the lower the monthly premiums will be and vice versa. With employers picking up the lions-share of premiums, it is no wonder that these new options are gaining acceptance.

The key to winning the employee over is to show the value such a shift brings to the employee. Obviously, “dumping” higher access costs on the employee and their family will not win the “I see the value” award. However, if the employee shares in the cost of the premiums, then the value of lower premiums becomes apparent. The value can also be obvious if the maximum out-of-pocket medical cost to them, is less than with a traditional plan. In reality, it is not the incidental co-pay that worries

707.829.8606 phone 888.829.8606 toll-freelicense# OE22529 www.aitaandassociates.com

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Consumer Driven Health Careus, it is the costs associated with serious medical needs that concerns us.

Some of the newer generation health plans allow the employer to reimburse an employee for costs incurred when accessing services (tax deductible to the employer). Other plan types allow the employer to contribute monies to an IRA-like fund (also tax deductible to the employer) which the employee can use, federal tax-free, when accessing medical care. Both types of plans are supported by Congress, hence the favorable tax situations. As a result the carriers have developed whole portfolios of these types of plans.

The carriers have gone so far as to “incentivize” us to consider these plans by surcharging the premiums of the traditionally low co-pay / low deductible plans. Higher premiums for these plans motivates the purchaser to consider unfamiliar options. The key to this strategy’s success is to show value to the end-consumer, the insured employee.

It is imperative to share some of the premium savings with the employees that such a shift provides, when feasible. That is where creativity in plan design comes in. Careful evaluation of a group’s medical needs will allow a broker to properly assess what plan designs will meet those needs while keeping premiums as low as possible.

After all, how many times have you said or heard, “we hardly use our benefits, yet, the premiums continue to rise?” I hear it all the time. So, if you have said the same, isn’t it time you got creative with your health benefits?

For further information contact Bob Aita, of Aita and Associates is the Consultant and Broker for the WHFA Health Insurance Program, (888) 829-8606 or email [email protected].

Bob AitaConsultant & BrokerAita and Associates

Employee Benefits Specialist

Medical Benefits Advertorial


New Members Who Joined WHFA in October 2008

To join WHFA call (800) 422-3778 or visit www.WHFA.org for more information.est.1944

meet the new members

9 Months LaterTwin Falls, IDFounding Year 2008Courtesy Home FurnishingsWalla Walla, WAFounding Year 1984Furniture & Mattress SuperstoreSan Francisco, CAFounding Year 2001

Furniture DepotLemon Grove, CAFounding Year 1991Karel Exposition ManagementAventura, FLFounding Year 1952SavvyLux Furniture & DesignLas Vegas, NVFounding Year 2008

The New J & L FurnitureOlivehurst, CAFounding Year 1997Theater XtremeRoseville, CAFounding Year 2008Urban MattressBoulder, COFounding Year 2008

Please see us as the Retailer Resource Center, Building B #1630, space # 17

February 9 - 13, 2009

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friendly, they also make it easier for you to work more

efficiently. And that’s good for everybody.

To find out more, call 800-964-3876 or visit us at

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The best furniture business technology.


James DionfounderDionco Inc.

What if the real measure of success in the next 10 to 20 years is operating your business not the way that your

parents would have, but the way that your great grandparents would have? Imagine how it was operating a store at the turn of the last century. The year is 1909, you own a small specialty store (every store then was a small specialty store!). Two questions: “Would you have known every customer who came into your store?” and “Would you have had just about whatever your customer wanted?”

The answer to the first question is “of course!” The reason you would have known every customer is because we lived in small communities and did not have automobiles so just about everyone who came into your store was a neighbor of yours. You saw them at church on Sundays and in and around “town” the rest of the week. In all likelihood you probably had fewer than 300 customers and those 300 supported your business very well. As to the

second question, again, the answer is “of course!” You would have had almost everything that your customer wanted because of the very simple fact that there was not that much to want! Remember, it was 1909, pots and pans came in one color, shoes in three or four styles, most clothing was custom made, so you only carried fabric and even fabric was limited to woolens, cottons and maybe silk. Life was very simple and not very difficult to carry most of the inventory that was available from suppliers.

So, in 1909 it was easy for me to know my customer and have almost everything that they wanted. And the word markdown was not invented yet, nor was the 50 percent off sale.

Why is this vision of the past so important for the future, and what does it mean to retailers today? There is no doubt that the big mass merchandise retailers are getting larger and capturing more sales every day. Customers seem to flock to their offers of low prices and massive assortments. I refer to these huge retailers as vending machines. They are really no different


from a mechanical vending machine as far as the customer is concerned. In a vending machine retailer you put your money in and out comes product; there is no real human interaction. Some of these vending machine retailers are even experimenting with self scanning technology which would completely remove the last human contact in their stores, the cashier. The only value that these massive retailers offer is price and assortment, and often their prices are only lower on the highly visible items and even then they are sometimes out of stock. It is also not unusual that their assortments only contain the bottom and middle of a classification and not the better and best goods as the price of these better goods are often assumed to be out of reach of the customer. Many independent retailers ask themselves how they can possibly compete in the face of this kind of competition. The answer is, go back to the future.

The challenge is to be able to replicate what made our great grandparents successful 100 years ago. To be able to know my customer and to have what they want. What was easy with less than 300 customers becomes not so easy with the thousands of customers that visit our stores today. I can no longer rely on just my memory to keep the wishes, hopes, likes, dislikes, needs and dreams of each of my customers uppermost in my mind. And it will be in fulfilling these wishes, hopes, likes, dislikes, needs and dreams that will make for success.

Not all purchases by customers are commodity purchases. The definition of a commodity is a good or service that the customer

finds indistinguishable from another. For many customers items like gasoline, laundry detergent, sugar, milk, etc. are commodities because one brand is viewed to be as good or the same as another. Once a customer has identified something that they use as a commodity, then the two main purchasing influences are price and convenience. Sometimes convenience will overrule price, as in the case of a person who needs toilet paper at 2 a.m., they are not likely to drive around to find the best price. Not all purchases that customers make are commodity purchases, and indeed, the great marketers have proven that you can take a “commodity” and make it completely unique. All you have to do to understand this is to try to tell your 4 year old that having a Joe’s burger is just as good as going to McDonald’s. Or, even better, all you have to do is think of what the Starbucks powerful marketing machine was able to do when it turned a $1 cup of “commodity” coffee into a cup of premium coffee customers wouldn’t bat an eyelash to splurge on to the tune of $4 a cup!

The value that we add to the transaction is how we differentiate our stores from the vending machines. This value is often vaguely referred to as service, but it must be much more specific and defined. Let me tell you a true story. Over a year ago, I was working out West with a building supply company. The store manager told me this story:

About eight weeks ago a contractor roared into our parking lot, jammed the pickup truck into park, and ran into the store. “Do you have 50 sheets of quarter inch plywood?” he asked. “Sure do” I replied, “Just bring your truck around back, and we will have you loaded in five minutes.” The contractor then asked, “How much is it a sheet?”

The contractor and I responded, “$10.88.” To which the contractor said, “But (name of large vending machine store) has it for $8.88 a sheet!” To which I responded, “Why didn’t you buy it there?” To which the contractor responded, “They were out of stock.” To which I replied, “When we’re out of stock, ours are $6.88.” I then immediately said to the contractor, “Look, I don’t mean to be funny, what I am trying to point out to you is that right now I have over 700 sheets of the plywood that you need out back. There is a cost to carry that much inventory. Other stores often advertise low prices and do not have the inventory investment to back up the prices. Right now I would guess that you have two or three carpenters on your job site with no plywood to put nails into. I don’t know what that down time is costing you, but I would guess that it is more than the difference between $10.88 and $8.88. When you come here first, we always have what you need, whether it would be plywood, two by fours, nails or anything else that you need to do your job.

Never sell yourself cheap. Seventy-five percent of the customers will pay more if you can provide a real reason for them doing so.

“

“


Sometimes we are a little higher than (name of large vending machine store), and sometimes we are at the same price, and occasionally we are a little less in price, but we always have the inventory. And we want you to know that there is a cost of carrying that inventory to have it when you need it.” At that point the contractor’s eyes told the story; he was educated as to why a price is a fair price and has been back five times in the past two weeks.

Now, some customers will not respond to this logic. I would guess that about 25 percent of the shopping public today is what I would call “bottom feeders”(AKA Carp). Bottom feeders are only interested in price and could care less what value you add. The trick is to recognize that not all customers are created equal, and that if you listen to the bottom feeders and adjust your prices or policies to satisfy them, you are making one of the biggest mistakes you can make in retail today. Bottom feeders are not loyal. They will go up the street for a dime difference in price. You cannot build a business with bottom feeders unless you are prepared to match the price of a competitor who buys hundreds times the quantities you do, offers no product knowledge or staff, offers rigid return policies and does not provide the personal service that you do. Do not let your customers compare apples to oranges. When your customer buys from you they are buying not just a product but your entire store and concept. Never sell yourself cheap. Seventy-five percent of the customers will pay more if you can provide a real reason for them doing so. While no customer likes to feel that they have been taken advantage of, most customers (75 percent) will pay for added value.

The two key values that great retailers add are having what their customer wants and providing custom solutions to their problems and needs. Both of these added values are only possible today through the use of technology.

Technology touches us in retail in these two areas by providing inventory management software that helps us to tailor our inventory to what our customer has “voted” for in the past. I

contend that customers vote with their wallets. Every time they make a purchase in our store they are giving us a vote of confidence on that item, at that time, in that quantity and at that price. We need to count those votes and respond to what the customer is telling us. A good computer driven inventory system will track and report what our best selling items are, at what prices our customer likes to spend and in what sizes, colors and qualities they like. This information then feeds

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replenishment software that helps us to quickly get back in stock on what our customer has voted for. This even works in fashion stores. The old days of a retailer behaving like the snake that

ate the pig and taking six months to digest the meal are quickly ending. We can no longer bring in six months supply of anything and expect to guess right about what our customer wants four months into the season. The Japanese taught us the ancient proverb “be like the water beetle, carry small amounts and make many trips.” This is only possible with a computer driven inventory and point of sale program.

The second way that technology helps us go back to the future is in database marketing, micro marketing and relationship marketing. Technology allows us to talk one-to-one with our

customers just as our great grandparents did.What is a customer worth to your store?

You have to answer that question to really buy into the concept of relationship marketing. It is not just the $10 or $100 they spend today that matters. In fact, if a store looks at the customer only in terms of their purchase today, this approach is what is called “transaction driven” retail. Transaction driven retail assesses the customer only in terms of today’s sale and not as a part of a life long relationship.

Take, for example, a grocery store. Everyone shops for groceries, the average family is spending about $200 a week on food and household consumables. Most people have been shopping at the same grocery store for five years, and will likely continue to shop at that store for another 15. The reasons people choose a certain store are obvious: location (close to home or work) and convenience.

Yet, despite this long-term relationship with a grocery store, few of us can claim that our grocers know our name. Very few of us indeed could say that if we stopped shopping at our local store for a month, our grocer would send us a letter inquiring about our absence.

Yet, a grocery customer is worth thousands of dollars over a lifetime. If a customer spends $200 a week in a grocery store, over a year, their spending will total about $10,400 (52 weeks x $200). If they have shopped there for the past five years, and continue for the next 15, their spending will total $208,000 over this 20-year period.

These figures do not include the “influence factor.” Have you ever gone to a store because a friend recommended it? Have you ever avoided a restaurant because a friend told you it was bad? We listen to advice from family and friends all the time about where to get great products and where not to go.

This is the influence factor: if you really like a store, you tell others to shop there too. If you happen to tell five friends, that $208,000 can become $1,248,000. On the other hand, if you really dislike a store and tell five friends, you would deprive that store of more than $1,248,000 in sales over 20 years, since bad news travels much faster and wider than good news.

In short, the value of a customer must be measured over time. Just think what could happen if a grocery store spent the time and effort in treating each customer as if they were a million dollar sale! Just think of your customers so impressed with your care that they become “apostles” and preach the gospel of your store!

continued on page 40

. . . the value of a customer must be measured over time.

““

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For additional information, please contact: Jerry Landers 866.428.0730 n [email protected] n 800.422.3778 n [email protected]

www.grocersinsurance.com

The Western Home Furnishings Association is pleased to endorse Argo Select as the preferred provider of insurance and loss control services to its member stores. As a specialist in retail insurance, Argo Select offers unique coverages such as our Retail Furniture Advantage endorsement, and safety resources customized for the furniture store industry. Call to learn how Argo Select can help protect your store against common industry exposures.

WHFA and Argo SelectSpecialized insurance services for the furniture store industry

Property

Liability

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whfa Members: To obtain a free copy of the retail software systems survey, contact your whfa membership representative at

(800) 422-3778.

One of the reasons that a customer database is so important is that it provides a method of tracking your Million Dollar customers. It is a way to identify who they are, what they buy, when they buy and how they buy. If you can track this information then you can add value to your relationship with your customer. A customer database can also track bottom feeders and track the names of customers who you never make any profit from. These customers may help you “clean the tank” at season end, but they are rarely good for anything else. Wouldn’t it be great if you could track the customer who only rents products from you (without even paying the rent) and nicely inform them that you can no longer accommodate them after the second or third questionable return?

Proactively using your database means using it to anticipate your customer’s needs. Take, for instance, the customers who like to have the newest items first. Whenever anything new

Retail Software Systems Survey

2008 - 2009

CDS Solutions Group • Custom Design Software, Inc. • Ez Process Pro Software •

FROG, Inc. • Furniture Wizard • FurnServ, LLC • Genesis Software Systems •

Myriad Software • PROFITsystems, Inc. • STORIS Management Systems

Western Home Furnishings Association

www.WHFA.org800.422.3778

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Retail Software Systems Survey

Available for free to WHFA members only!

The retail software systems survey reflects a direct comparison of various computer systems available in the market today for use in retail furniture stores.

This survey is for information only, meant as a quick reference tool when evaluating

a number of computer systems for use in a retail store. WHFA further recommends that you do your own research on the companies listed before you purchase a particular system.

continued from page 38

comes in the store that you think they might like, create a query for your database and find the phone numbers of customers who you have identified as liking new items and pick up the phone and let them know that something has come in that they would love. When an end of season sale is coming up, phone the customers who love a bargain.

And for those customers who need to stretch their dollars, call when you get something in that adds value to a product the customer has purchased in the past. For example, if you know that Mr. Smith bought a pair of navy pants and a white shirt from your store last month, call him when you receive a new shipment of light blue shirts that will go well with the pants. Explain that it is a good idea to have two or three shirts to go with a pair of pants, and that this adds value to his original purchase.

Imagine your great grandparents unpacking a new shipment of goods.

Wouldn’t they have had a picture in mind of each of their customers as they took the items out of the shipping container? “Oh, just look at this! Mrs. Green will just love it. I can’t wait to tell her about it!”

A customer database will help you keep track of all of the needs of all of your customers, and today the only way to accomplish this is with a computerized system that will help us do it efficiently.

Here is a list of easy-to-do things to help build better relationships with your customers and keep them coming back.

• Inconversingwithyourcustomers,use their name every chance you get, especially on the phone (tie your database into caller ID to help you remember names).

• Developanin-storedatabaseandadd customers’ likes and dislikes to it regularly.

• Keepyourregularcustomersinformedof new merchandise, additional items that they would love, sales, etc. through phone calls, post cards, newsletters, letters, faxes and email. Contact a minimum of 10 customers per day. (But don’t overdue it, never more than eight contacts per customer per year.)

• Alwaysphoneacustomerafewdaysor a week after they have made a major purchase and inquire about their satisfaction. (Never try to sell them anything else during this call!).


“Bottom feeders are not loyal. They will go up the street for a dime difference in price.

“• Alwaystellcustomerswhythey’vemadea good purchase. This reinforces their decision.

• Alwaystellyourcustomersthatyouguarantee everything you do for them.

• Alwayskeepyourpromises.The truly amazing fact is that technology

today levels the playing field. The smallest retailer can have the same sophisticated technology that the large stores have for a fraction of the cost of five years ago. Today, technology that takes us back to the future can be leased for less than $300 per month.

A small investment to make to ensure that your great grandchildren will be minding the store in 2109.

Jim Dion, founder and president of Chicago-based Dionco Inc., is an internationally known consultant, keynote speaker, trainer, and author of the best-sellers “Retail Selling Ain’t Brain Surgery,” “It’s Twice As Hard, Start and Run a Retail Business” and “The Complete Idiot’s Guide to Starting and Running a Retail Store.” For more information, visit www.dionco.com or email [email protected].

Western Home Furnishings Association Call Jef Spencer, WHFA warehouse manager, today to place an order.

(916) 960-0386 • (800) 422-3778

Las Vegas Market — Building B, 16th Floor

Come see what’s new at the WHFA Products Store in the Retailer Resource Center at the World Market Center and receive your FREE touch-up kit.* We have added new warehouse, delivery, touch-up and lighting items to the WHFA Products Catalog at the same truckload pricing that you have come to expect. Many of these products are on display for you to see, handle and try before you buy.

Visit us during the Las Vegas Market at the Retailer Resource Center, Building B, 16th floor. Pick up a catalog and receive a free touch-up kit.*

*While supplies last, colors subject to availability.

est.1944


FREE ToUCH-UP KIT*

Las Vegas Market Special

For more industry dates, visit www.WHFA.org and click on EVENTS & EDUCATION.

industry dates

JanuaryJanuary 10 – 13Portland Gift & Accessories Show®

Oregon Convention Center, Portland, OR(800) 272-7469www.portlandgift.com

January 13 – 19January Gift & Home Furnishings Market™

L.A. MartLos Angeles, CA(800) LAMART-4www.lamart.com

January 16 – 19California Gift Show®

Los Angeles Convention Center(213) 362-5640www.californiagiftshow.com

January 24 – 27The Seattle Gift Show

Washington State Convention & Trade Center(800) 272-7469www.seattlegift.com

January 24 – 28Tupelo Furniture Market

Tupelo, MS(662) 842-4442www.tupelomarket.com

2009

RRCRETAILERRESOURCE CENTERWestern Home Furnishings Association

AprilApril 27 – May 3High Point Market

High Point, NCwww.HighPointMarket.org(336) 869-1000Future dates: October 17 – 22, 2009April 17 – 22, 2010

April 27 – May 3nHFa Educational EventHigh Point Market —Free Business Seminars

Retailer Resource CenterPlaza Suites, 1st Floor210 S. Main StreetHigh Point, NCwww.NHFA.org(800) 888-9590

MayMay 17 – 19WHFa Educational Event

2009 WHFA Conference & ExpoWestin Mauiwww.WHFAconference.com(800) 422-3778

AugustAugust 22 – 25The Seattle Gift Show

Washington State Convention & Trade CenterSeattle, WAwww.seattlegift.com(213) 362-5640

WHFAWHFACONFERENCE & EXPO

2009

maui

FebruaryFebruary 9 – 13Las Vegas Market — World Market Center

Las Vegas, NVwww.LasVegasMarket.com(866) 229-3574Future dates: September 14 – 17, 2009February 1 – 4, 2010

February 9 – 13WHFa Educational EventLas Vegas Market — Free Business Seminars

Retailer Resource CenterWMC Building B, 16th Floorwww.WHFA.org(800) 422-3778

MarchMarch 14 – 17Spring Gift & Home Furnishings Market

L.A. MartLas Angeles, CAwww.lamart.com(800) LAMart-4

March 29 – 30Long Beach Furniture & Accessory Market

Long Beach, CAwww.kemexpo.com(305) 792-9990

March 29 – April 1nHFa Educational EventNHFA Retail Manager’s Workshop

Renaissance Denver Hotelwww.nhfa.org/nhfa-manager(800) 888-9590 x6151

RRCRETAILERRESOURCE CENTERWestern Home Furnishings Association

A

866.453.5003

Call or Click now for a

Total Retail Success System CDFREE

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ELIMINATING THE

of the inventory items.As you know, inventory is what makes you money. It starts with recognizing your best sellers, not just by volume or turns, but by individual GMROI and keeping those best sellers in stock. This is a great way to start controlling your inventory. Now pair that with identifying your dogs and move them out as quickly as possible at the highest gross margin attainable. Together, these are key tools that help you manage your inventory and improve your bottom-line.

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Overstockification

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“You cannot control what happens to you, but you can control your attitude toward what happens to you, and in that, you will be mastering change rather than allowing it to master you.” Brian Tracy

ten Steps to a

Maintaining a positive mental attitude at work is essential to your overall well-being. If you are unhappy with your job and harbor a negative attitude, it can affect you both emotionally and physically.

Here are 10 tips to help you maintain a positive mental attitude, even when you must work in a negative environment.

1. Keep your life balanced. Having a well-balanced life will help you maintain a positive mental attitude. If your life revolves solely around your work and things at work take a negative turn, you will feel like your whole life is falling apart. However, if you have a happy home life, when things at work began to go bad, you can concentrate your efforts on the positive things at home.

2. Don’t give up. We all have setbacks. Don’t think of them as an end but as a beginning.

3. Make the most of the situation. If things are less than ideal at your job, look for ways to make them more pleasant.

4. Engage in positive self-talk. Telling yourself you can do something will help you succeed. Banish negative thoughts from your mind and concentrate on the positives.

5. Visualize success. Practice succeeding at a task in your mind. This will help to make you more self-assured and comfortable in the situation when it occurs.

6. Attack problems head-on. Don’t ignore problems. Doing so allows them to fester and get worse. When a negative situation occurs, find a way to turn it around.

7. Look for the bright side. Make it a habit to look for the good in life rather than the bad.

8. Maintain a sense of humor. Don’t take yourself too seriously. Look for the humor in daily annoyances.

9. Make work fun. If you find your job dull and boring, look for ways to make it more interesting.

10. Accentuate the positives. Concentrate on ways to use your strengths and abilities and look for ways to improve your weaknesses.

Don’t let the negatives in your life drag you down. Take hold of them and turn them into positive.

A positive mental attitude can’t change a negative work situation into a positive one, but it can help you enjoy the time you spend at work. If you maintain a positive mental attitude you will be rewarded in all aspects of your life... including success on the job. “Attitude is a little

thing that makes a

big difference.”

Winston Churchill

Tips & Trickspositive

attitude!


Aita and Associates ....................................................32 ............................. (800) 422-3778

American General Finance .........................................7 .............................. (800) 422-3778

Argo Select ..................................................................39 ............................. (800) 422-3778

B&B Banker & Brisebois Advertising ........................37 ............................. (800) 456-0210

DiscountFurnitureNet.com ........................................29 ............................. (303) 957-6800

Emerald Home Furnishings ........................................2 .............................. (800) 685-6646

Furniture Transport Group .........................................47 ............................. (800) 438-8244

Furniture Wizard .........................................................42 ............................. (619) 869-7200

Las Vegas Market ........................................................18 ............................. (800) 962-7469

MicoD Inc. ...................................................................34 ............................. (800) 964-3876

PROFITsystems, Inc. ...............................................11 & 44 ........................ (866) 453-5010

Restonic Mattress .......................................................15 .....................(800) 521-3985 x105

Retail Manager’s Workshop .......................................33 ...................(800) 888-9590 x6151

ServerLogic..................................................................38 ............................. (866) 835-6932

Simmons Company ............................................ Back Cover...................... (510) 357-2230

TruckSKIN .....................................................................4 .............................. (877) 866-7546

WHFA 2009 Conference & Expo ................................9 .............................. (800) 422-3778

WHFA Membership ....................................................27 ............................. (800) 422-3778

WHFA Warehouse Products ......................................41 ............................. (800) 422-3778

WHFA Website ...........................................................28 ............................. (800) 422-3778

advertisers index

Please support the advertisers that support your magazine.Advertiser Page Phone

& figuresfun facts

advertising inquiries & ratesContact: Cindi Williams, WHFA Events Manager, 500 Giuseppe

Court, Ste. 6, Roseville, CA 95678. (916) 960-0277 E-mail: [email protected]. Subscriptions: $35.00/year, USA.

Published by Western Home Furnishings Association, a National Home Furnishings Association affiliate, in the interests of retail home furnishings dealers, manufacturers, distributors and sales people.

Distributed to retail merchants handling furniture, accessories, bed-ding, floor coverings, and specialty home furnishings in Alaska, Arizona, California, Colorado, Hawaii, Idaho, Montana, Nevada, Oregon, Utah, Washington and Wyoming. Mailing list compiled by WHFA.

Official publication of Western Home Furnishings Association, which is responsible for editorial content and advertising policy. The views expressed in articles appearing in Western Reporter are not necessarily those of Western Home Furnishings Association. Western Reporter magazine is copyrighted by Western Home Furnishings As-sociation. January 2009, all rights reserved.

Western Reporter: Read by Retailers in the West

distribution:Western Reporter is read by more than 10,000 home furnish-

ing retail store personnel handling furniture, accessories, bedding, floorcovering and specialty home furnishings in Alaska, Arizona, California, Colorado, Hawaii, Idaho, Montana, Nevada, Oregon, Utah, Washington and Wyoming.

marketing philosophy: Western Reporter focuses on western market trends in the

furniture, bedding, flooring and accessories industry. It highlights industry finance, state legislation, retail store layout and design, transportation, retail advertising trends, retail store computerization, insurance, succession planning and industry social events.

Are you getting bored of having the same old tired sales each month? Below are just some of the many “observances” that are celebrated

monthly. Get creative and create some fun in-store sales, charity or community events centered around a not so standard holiday.

JanuaryMarch of Dimes Birth Defects Prevention MonthFamily Fit Lifestyle MonthNational Volunteer Blood Donor MonthNational Hot Tea Month National Get Organized Month

FebruaryNational Hot Breakfast MonthBake for Family Fun Month

MarchAmerican Red Cross MonthNational Nutrition MonthNational Sleep Awareness WeekNational Caffeine Awareness Month

AprilChild Abuse Prevention MonthStress Awareness MonthNational Peanut Butter & Jelly DayNational Humor MonthNational Garden Month

MayNational Physical Fitness & Sports MonthNational Skin Cancer Awareness MonthNational Stroke Awareness MonthNational BBQ Month

JuneNational Fresh Fruits & Vegetables MonthNational Iced Tea MonthNational Dairy Month

JulyNational Hot Dog Month

Stay tuned next month for August - December observances.

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The Best In Furniture Transportation And Distribution Solutions Start Here

MGMTRANSPORT CORP.

www.mgmtransport.com800-333-6105

CALDWELL FREIGHT LINES, INC.

www.caldwellfreight.com800-438-8244

FOOTHILLSTRUCKING CO., INC.

www.foothillstrucking.com800-562-7428

Furniture Transport Group

• Light Assembly - Allows manufacturers to maximize container capacity by shipping unassembled pieces for a higher piece to cube ratio. Trained, experienced personnel can assemble your imported home furnishings products, resulting in better efficienciesand an improved bottom line.

• Warehousing & Distribution - With three locations, Pico Rivera,California, Eden, North Carolina and Ridgefield, New Jersey, totaling 610,000 cubic feet of warehouse space, FTG can handle tall your warehousing and distribution requirements, large or small. FTG can unpack, inspect, assemble and warehouse for ready distribution or store for distribution on an as needed basis resulting in increased productivity and efficiency.

www.furnituretransportgroup.com

FTG Light Assembly

Come visit us at the World Market Center Las Vegas, WHFARetail Resource Center, Building B, 16th Floor, Booth B-1630.

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One touch and you’ll know — the next generation of memory foam is here. Introducing ComforPedic

® NxG™ Advanced Memory Foam.

ComforPedic® NxG™ Advanced Memory Foam offers the benefi ts of traditional

memory foam, including motion separation and pressure relief without that hard-to-move quicksand feeling,

plus so much more.

Dissipates heat Uniquely formulated memoryfoam dissipates heat to help

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© 2008 Simmons Bedding Company. All rights reserved.

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western reporter—january 2009

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