FMG members gather for symposium
By Clint Engel -- Furniture Today, February 19, 2007
Scottsdale, Ariz. — About 125 members, supplier partners and guests of the Furniture Marketing Group met for a three-day symposium here at the Westin Kierland Resort & Spa.
The gathering featured educational sessions, networking and the exchanging of best ideas. Attendees also experienced some freakish weather as temperatures dropped to 20-year lows, and a wet snow fell as members soaked up "hot-buy" offers from some 25 suppliers making presentations.
Dealers heard from speakers on everything from what they should do to differentiate themselves from the competition to how to negotiate to their advantage in both their personal and professional lives (see accompanying story).
They also took a tour of Aspenhome's Phoenix headquarters and Legends Furniture's Tolleson, Ariz., plant, where lean manufacturing has enabled Legends to drastically cut inventories and speed up deliveries.
FMG Executive Director Mike Herschel noted that in the past six months several retailers have joined the now 74-member buying and marketing group, including Miskelly Furniture, Jackson, Miss.; Bernie & Phyl's, Norton, Mass.; Conlin's Furniture, Billings, Mont.; and Compass Furniture, Jefferson, La.
Members also heard from Andrew Bernstein, founder and president of FurnitureDealer.net, about a consumer-oriented portal under development for FMG that will direct traffic to FMG-member Web sites and stores.
The portal will have all the features of sites the company has provided to individual retailers, but with a nationwide marketing focus, Bernstein said. He added the portal also will have a vast selection of product images and information, and will differ from pure e-commerce sites with its links to FMG dealers.
The portal plan is the second step in a blooming relationship between FMG and FurnitureDealer.net, which has built successful Web sites for FMG members Becker Furniture World and Furniture Fair, and soon will go live with sites for members Peerless Furniture, Van Drie's Home Furnishings and Value City Furniture of Dayton, N.J.
The dealer Web sites and the new portal don't list prices and aren't designed for e-commerce. Herschel and FMG members praised FurntireDealer.net for its rich text and image content and the ease with which consumers can compare products and narrow searches by various criteria.
"We're going to be able to market this thing nationwide and drive those customers who want to do business with local stores," Bernstein said. Most people are shopping online for furniture, but "I believe the vast majority, 80% to 90%," want to buy in stores, he said.
Herschel said that next year, for the first time, FMG plans to hold its symposium in conjunction with Nationwide Marketing Group's PrimeTime conference in February.
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