On a recent Sunday morning, HFA member Jordan’s Furniture turned its Avon, Mass., store into a winter wonderland for adopted children and their families.
In celebration of National Adoption Month, local families and their recently adopted children showed up at Jordan’s on Nov. 24 for an invitation-only chance to explore the store’s annual Enchanted Village. The village included a Polar Express movie ride, an ice-skating rink and a special laser show. The 8,000-square-foot Enchanted Village attraction includes dozens of mechanized figurines and animals in a traditional New England holiday scene.
“The place looks spectacular and everybody is having a great time,” Eliot Tatelman, president and CEO of Jordan’s, said. “It even snows inside.”
All the children who attended are recent adoptees, according to Tatelman. “We opened up the village for them. It’s a special morning, and we’ve been doing this every year and it’s the best.”
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‘It’s the thing I’m most proud of’
For years, Jordan’s has partnered with organizations like the Massachusetts Adoption Resource Exchange and the Department of Children and Families. The Adoptive Family Morning is one of many events the store puts on throughout the year to help children in foster care find homes.
Tatelman estimated the chain’s initiative has helped more than 500 children find families.
“Out of everything we do in furniture, in Jordan’s, and our people, it’s the thing I’m most proud of.” Tatelman said.
Not every furniture retailer needs to go all out with an enchanted village full of lasers and indoor snow for the holidays. There’s still time to plug into your community for the holidays. A few tips:
Find a passion. If you believe in what a group or organization does, you’re going to be more invested yourself.
Open your doors. Like, Jordan’s consider offering up your store to a nonprofit function or school event. The agency gets some much-needed space for entertaining and your store gets exposure.
Just say no. Not every opportunity is the right fit. Retailers need to be smart with their time and allocations. Sometimes sponsoring an event isn’t the best return for your store. Don’t be afraid to say “no.”
