WithIt Rising Leaders Program Educates and Supports Industry Students

July 23, 2019  by Laurie Northington in Business Strategy, Designer Weekly, Industry   

The theme “Igniting Leadership” was conveyed throughout the conference’s program which was produced by WithIt, conference co-chairs Alexis Koscielny of The Dufresne Group and Cathy Valent of CeCe Designs and numerous conference committee chairs & members.

The programming lineup was designed to educate and inspire attendees from all levels and facets in our industry. The WithIt Rising Leaders Program is designed for students preparing to enter the industry. 

This year’s program was sponsored by Sunbrella and a generous grant from the American Home Furnishings Association (AHFA) Furniture Foundation to bring 13 students in the home industries including interior design, furniture design and textile design. The Rising Leaders were welcomed with an opening night mentoring dinner which included WithIt members within all levels of their career and allowed for networking and informal mentorship. The Rising Leaders program is spearheaded by Victoria Valentinas, Bernhardt Interiors sales and marketing manager and WithIt board member.

“The Rising Leaders program is an important component of WithIt and our industry to ensure we are supporting the next generation. We are grateful for the financial support of the AHFA Furniture Foundation to support these future leaders,” said Amy Van Dorp, executive director of WithIt.

Conference also marked the launch of WithIt’s Mighty Network, a digital networking platform that enables members to meet, communicate, discover, mentor and network with each other.  This platform is a new benefit for WithIt members. “The Mighty Network helps keep our members connected in between events and throughout the year so we can stay inspired and tap into the powerful network that WithIt represents,” stated Abby Lane, principal of Redhead Furniture Design and WithIt board member who championed the launch.

WithIt’s mission is based on leadership development, mentoring, educational and networking opportunities, which comes to life at the Annual Professional Conference. General session topics included leadership development & steps, employee motivation, financial wellness, consumer purchase behavior, women’s wellness and professional relationship development. These general sessions were complemented by nine breakout session offerings and three pre-conference workshops. 

Sponsors of the 2019 Annual Professional Conference include The AHFA Furniture Foundation, The Heritage Home Group Foundation, Ekornes, Malouf, MicroD, The Tombras Group, Sunbrella, AmericasMart Atlanta, Universal Furniture, A.R.T. Furniture, J.B.Hunt/Cory, Myriad Software, Furnitureland South, Storis, Crypton Home Fabric, ecUtopia, La-Z-Boy, Fairfield, Michael Amini, American Leather, Havertys and MOSO Retail Environments.

The 2020 Professional Conference is planned for June 24 – 26, 2020 at The Westin in Alexandria, Virginia.