SFC Celebrates 2 Years with High Point Events

October 16, 2008  by in UnCategorized   

By Home Furnishings Business in High Point on October 2008 The Sustainable Furnishings Council returns to High Point Market next week to celebrate its second year and to continue growing its membership base. This fall SFC announces a new member benefit, updates to their standard for recognizing Exemplary Members, and several educational and celebratory events.

“Seeing Green/Selling Green” is a new training program offered by SFC to train the staff of its members and their dealers. The goal of the program is to empower sales staff to sell based on members’ commitment, emphasizing facts and discouraging “greenwashing.” In turn, sales staff can educate their customers, helping the purchaser understand that they are getting not only a great product, but also contributing to the greater good.

The SFC has again partnered with SFC members Merchandise Mart Properties and Home Furnishings Business magazine to present a series of educational luncheon seminars during High Point Market. The “Lunch N’ Learn” series, generously sponsored by SFC members Vaughn-Bassett, Harden Furniture, GreenGuard, Fairmont Designs, American Leather, BioH Cargill, Antigua Furniture, and Naturescast, is an extension of the well-received program put on at the same venue for April market. Lunches are free and open to everyone, noon-1 p.m. in the seminar room of the EcoStyle Pavilion on the top floor of the Suites at Market Square, 1-848. The agenda includes:

• “Seeing Green,” Monday, Oct. 20: a summary of topical consumer research and a roundtable of manufacturers and retailers who have held SFC educational events in their showrooms. Participating companies include Williams & Sherrill of Richmond, Va., with South Cone; Gallery Furniture of Houston, with Four Hands; Stanley Furniture; Nowell’s Contemporary and Scandinavian Furniture of Cary N.C.; and La Difference of Richmond Va.

• “Green Upholstery,” Wednesday, Oct. 22: a guide to frames, foams and fabrics, presented by Chris Putnam of Putnam-Prichard EcoDesign and Patty Grossman of O Ecotextiles, featuring examples of excellent choices available on the market today.

• “Green Design,” Thursday, Oct. 23: a CEU credit green Interior Design course, presented by Victoria Shomer of Green Built Environments. This course will give a quick summary of the history of the green design and building profession, and what it means to practice green design today. The course will focus on indoor air quality issues, how to be sure to select the most sustainable and healthy materials and products, and how to run a green design business. The newest resources for materials and products, guidelines, protocols and testing methodologies will be included.

“I am pleased to be offering another series of strong educational programs and especially excited that we are now offering such good training for sales staff,” said SFC Executive Director Susan Inglis. “Our goal is to continue to provide the best educational programming in the industry free to all who attend Market.”

A general meeting and SFC second anniversary celebration will take place Sunday, Oct. 19 at 6 p.m. will kick off the start of this fall’s High Point Market at the South Cone showroom, on the fourth floor of Union Square. The event is free and open to all.

Other SFC co-hosted social events include: the MMPI Ecostyle Party, Thursday, Oct. 23, 6 p.m., Century Courtyard at Market Square, sponsored by MMPI; and Friday, Oct. 24 6 p.m., a special High Point edition of Green Drinks at Mill Village, sponsored by CABoom.