Furniture First Buying Group Appoints Board Members

Furniture World Magazine

The Furniture First General Membership Meeting held at the High Point Market on Monday, April 27, 2009, was an overwhelming success for the members in attendance. The meeting room on the 11th floor was provided by the International Home Furnishings Center (IHFC). Bill Hartman, President of Furniture First, discussed the new tiered pricing program from Broyhill; Ron Page, Sr. Director of Merchandising and Bob Muenkel, Director of Mattresses and Membership, presented the Money Saving Market Deals that were coordinated with Furniture First Supplier-Partners, and new Board Members were approved by acclamation, while the outgoing members were recognized for their service. The newly elected appointees include: Nick Cardi, Cardi’s Furniture, Swansea, MA; LarrySchneiderman, Schneiderman’s, Lakeville, MN; and Art Scholet, Scholet Furniture, Oneonta, NY. The retiring Board members include: Sam Fishbein, outgoing Treasurer, Kacey Fine Furniture, Englewood, CO; Larry Kurpiewski, Commercial Home Furnishings, Boise, ID; and Steve Rotman, outgoing Chairman, Rotmans, Worcester, MA. Furniture First would also like to recognize Jeff Winter of Discovery Furniture, located in Topeka, KS, as the new Furniture First Chairman; Larry Smith of Smith Home Furnishings, located in Ponca City, OK, as the new Vice-Chairman; Beth Barnes of FurnitureLand located in Delmar, DE, as the new Treasurer; and Russell Blocker of Blocker’s Furniture located in Ocala, FL, as the new Secretary. Bryan Edwards from Aspenhome and Bill Hale from DSI Systems, Inc. were guest speakers at the meeting. Bryan’s presentation explained the City of Hope charity, the City of Hope Comprehensive Cancer Hospital in California, and the new Aspenhome promotional furniture line in which a 6% discount is given to the retailer who can then choose to pass along either a 3% or 6% contribution to City of Hope charity. Bill Hale spoke about the nationwide flat screen TV program between Furniture First and DSI Systems, Inc. and its ability to create a one-stop shopping experience for consumers. Members were encouraged to visit the showroom or to contact Ron Page, Sr. Director of Merchandising, directly for more information on the program. Two forty-five minute networking sessions were also held during the meeting. Members hadassigned seating for each session and were given a choice of topics to discuss. For those that attended and participated, the event was invaluable. Furniture First is a home furnishings & mattresses only buying cooperative representing independent home furnishings retailers from medium-low to medium-high end quality products across the United States. If you would like more information about the organization, please contact Bill Hartman, President, at 1-800-411-3477 ext. 123 or via email at BHartman@FurnitureFirst.com or Bob Muenkel for new membership information, at ext. 136 or via email at BMuenkel@FurnitureFirst.com.www.FurnitureFirst.com www.FurnitureFirst.coop