National Home Furnishings Association’s New England Chapter announced that it held its Holiday Bash on December 3, in Framington, Mass. Over one hundred retailers, sales representatives, and others from the industry met at Big Papi’s Grille (Red Sox’s David Ortiz’s new restaurant) to renew friendships, to celebrate the holidays, to share ideas and to address problems unique to the New England marketplace.
Most importantly it was a time to honor Hershel Alpert, this year’s recipient of the Arthur J. Adelizzi Distinguished Service Award.
This award is presented annually by the New England Chapter of the National Home Furnishings Association (NHFA) to an individual who exemplifies leadership in the industry and in their community, and who demonstrates ethical standards and integrity in working with others. The Award is named for the late Arthur J. Adelizzi, past president and chairman emeritus of the Home Furnishings Association of New England (HFANE) and a past president of the International Home Furnishings Representatives Association (IHFRA).
In announcing this year’s recipient, Joe Quintal of Rotmans Furniture, President of the New England Chapter said of Hershel, “We are pleased to choose Hershel since he is a person who has contributed much to our industry and who conducts his life and business with professionalism, integrity and dedication to the ideals of Arthur J. Adelizzi. I cannot think of anyone who better represents those qualities than our good friend Hershel Alpert.” Alpert is former co-owner of Alperts, Seekonk, Mass., President of NHFA in 1999 and Retailer of the Year in 2005. He is presently the principal in Alpert Consulting. Since Hershel was at the Furniture/Today Leadership Conference, the Award was presented by Ray Allegrezza, Editor in Chief of Furniture/Today.
By all accounts the Holiday Bash was a great success. It was a time to meet new folks in the industry, to make plans for other meetings and to look forward to a promise of better times in 2010. Joe Quintal thanked the many industry sponsors who made the evening possible by providing refreshments and door prizes.
Membership in the New England Chapter is open to retailers, interior designers, architects and manufacturer sales representatives in Maine, New Hampshire, Vermont, Connecticut, Massachusetts and Rhode Island. Its meetings provide opportunities for education, networking and recognition of industry achievements.