The Home Furnishings Association is pleased to announce an important new chapter for the Retail Home Furnishings Foundation (RHFF), the industry’s long-time 501(c)(3) foundation dedicated to strengthening the retail home furnishings industry through research and education.
At its September 2026 meeting, the RHFF Board of Directors adopted amended bylaws officially making RHFF a subsidiary of the North American Home Furnishings Association (NAHFA), the trade association known publicly as the Home Furnishings Association. That same month, the NAHFA Board of Directors met and appointed a new RHFF Board of Directors.
RHFF remains its own 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization. The changes are in governance and alignment: as a subsidiary of NAHFA, RHFF’s work will now move forward in step with HFA’s mission to help home furnishings retailers succeed with a continuous focus on education.
A Look Back: More Than Four Decades of Service
RHFF was founded in 1980 in Washington, D.C., as the Home Furnishings Research and Education Foundation and was renamed the Retail Home Furnishings Foundation in 1989. For more than four decades, the foundation has invested in the people and future of retail home furnishings — helping fund programs with the Interior Design Society, supporting training programs and research projects for the retail furniture industry, and, in 2015, allocating $50,000 over three years to NAHFA to sponsor young professionals at industry events and mentoring programs.
RHFF is a nonprofit organization with a clear mission: to provide financial support for research, education, industry promotions, industry cooperation, industry technology, and other like purposes for the benefit of the retail home furnishings industry.
What Comes Next
The long-time RHFF leadership team and the HFA Board have already worked together to appoint a new Board of Directors that includes several long-time RHFF leaders and HFA Board members. The new RHFF Board elected officers this week, and Evan Martin, HFA’s Vice President of Finance, has been appointed as Administrator. The full Board is as follows:
- Bailee Nebeker, American Homestead Furniture — Board Chair
- Howard Haimsohn, Lawrance Contemporary Furniture — Vice Chair
- Jake Freedman, Dovr Media — Treasurer
- Peter Theran, HFA — Secretary (non-voting member)
Serving as directors:
- Jim Fee, Stoney Creek Furniture
- Jerry Baer, Baer’s Furniture
- Jeff Baker
- Mariam Farach, El Dorado Furniture
- Paris Ghoulston, Mattress Recycling Council
- Rebecca Reeder,
What This Means for HFA Members
RHFF’s purpose is to fund research, education, and industry-wide initiatives, aimed squarely at strengthening retail home furnishings. As the Board’s plans take shape, members can expect updates here on the foundation’s priorities and opportunities to engage.
“We’re proud to steward this legacy into its next chapter — and we’re just getting started,” states Peter Theran.
About the Retail Home Furnishings Foundation (RHFF)
Founded in 1980 in Washington, D.C., as the Home Furnishings Research and Education Foundation and renamed the Retail Home Furnishings Foundation in 1989, RHFF is a 501(c)(3) nonprofit whose purpose is to provide financial support for research, education, industry promotion, industry cooperation, industry technology, and other like purposes for the benefit of the retail home furnishings industry. In September 2026, RHFF became a subsidiary of NAHFA.
About the Home Furnishings Association (HFA)
The Home Furnishings Association (HFA), with roots dating back to 1920, is North America’s largest organization devoted specifically to the needs and interests of the home furnishings retailers, with more than 1,600 members representing more than 15,000 storefronts globally. HFA provides members with programs, resources, services, and a unified voice in government relations by collaborating with home furnishings industry suppliers, vendors, affiliates, and other organizations. For more information on the HFA, visit www.myhfa.org
