WHFA Wraps Up Annual Conference in Tucson

May 21, 2008  by in UnCategorized   

By Home Furnishings Business in Furniture Retailing on May 2008 During the three-day Western Home Furnishings Association conference in Tucson this week, hundreds of attendees built bicycles for children in need and took part in education events that put a sharp focus on better understanding consumers.

The event kicked off Sunday with a team-oriented Build-A-Bike event that had more than 100 retailers and other participants bolting together bicycles in a relationship-building exercise. The 30 newly assembled bikes were then presented to the Boys & Girls Clubs of Tucson, which will distribute them to local children in need.

With a focus on consumers, conference presentations included a Town Hall event featuring four typical female consumers discussing what they like—and dislike—about shopping for furniture, and recent experiences at local home furnishings stores. Other shopper-focused sessions included “Putting the Fun Back in Furniture” and “A Guide to Surviving the Expectations of Today’s Consumer.”

On the conference’s closing night, Tuesday, Jerome’s Furniture of San Diego was honored as Western Retailer of the Year, the organization’s top award. The annual conference had more than 230 registrants, a number that was down slightly from past events due to the difficult economy, organizers said.