Several companies grew during the pandemic, finding ways to expand amid stiff headwinds and once-in-a-generation challenges. Old Brick Furniture & Mattress Company, the HFA 2023 Retailer of the Year (stores with more than 50 employees), takes pandemic growth and expansion to another level. I have to give you the back
You Can’t Do Business Like That In my travels as HFA’s CEO, I have been blessed to see many different ways to sell home furnishings. I have always said you could give separate store owners the same store footprint and the same product lines and you would end up with
Matt Pridemore’s Life-Changing “Call” Last week I found myself traveling to Valdosta, GA to present one of the Home Furnishings Association’s Retailer of the Year awards. Matt Pridemore is HFA’s 2023 Emerging Star Award recipient. He owns many Badcock Home Furniture and More franchise stores (his first was the store
When I started at HFA, the first picture I saw of David Gunn he was wearing a western shirt and a cowboy hat. This bigger-than-life Texan had an intimidating appearance. When I met him, however, I realized his heart was bigger than life—the heart he has for the home furnishings
It feels so good to be back on the road again! Zoom calls are great, and they fill a purpose; however, there is no better way to get to know our members than to visit their stores. Honoring our HFA retailers of the year winners, meeting their teams, and seeing
I am not big on gold watches or plaques. While they are historical ways to thank people for their dedication and service, I find that too often, a watch ends up in a drawer and forgotten, and the plaque languishes dustily on a shelf. To me, there is power in
I always remind myself and other people that I am not a furniture retailer. I do have retail in my background, but I don’t own a furniture store. As CEO of the Home Furnishings Association, my job is to serve members and always advocate for them and their businesses. My
I have been to Washington, D.C. twice to discuss furniture industry issues on behalf of HFA and our members. It’s a trip HFA makes annually to meet face-to-face with our lawmakers and various government agencies to make sure our voices are heard as people who make a living in the
As I write this, people throughout the country are dealing with crippling winter storms and need a helping hand. My area in Texas has been hit especially hard. In the six days my stores were closed, most of my employees were without power. City water facilities experienced power failures, generator
We use facial recognition traffic counters on our front doors to get as accurate of a count as possible of the people entering our furniture stores. It also captures a small image of each individual. A couple of years ago, we discovered that on more than 30 occasions, a particular
Most people outside of the home furnishing industry have a distorted view of the fantastic and vast career options that
Changing patterns of consumer behavior means furniture retailers now, more than ever, need to focus on engaging more deeply with
The home furnishings market is changing. What was once an in-person-only experience of feeling and touching fabrics is now done
If your website is like your digital showroom, your Careers Page is like the digital version of your lobby and
Everybody needs furniture, right? It’s what can make targeting for your digital ad campaigns so challenging! The great thing about
Are you looking for ways to train your sales team and fill their pipeline? We have brought together a group of experts to share their
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