Nationwide Marketing Group, one of the largest buying and marketing organizations for independent retailers in the US, announced the promotion of Bill Bazemore to Vice President of Furniture.
“To provide the level of service that we do today, we must understand how a retailer operates. The kind of experience Bill brings to our organization can’t be taught, either you have it or you don’t,” said Weisner. “That’s why he is such a valuable member of our executive management team and has been charged with supporting our current members and introducing services to new furniture dealers across the US.”
Bazemore attributes his ability to support the independent from his array of experiences working on the retail and manufacturing side of furniture. His family owned independent furniture stores in Florida and after graduating from Florida State University, Bazemore continued to work in the family business.
“I have worked in this industry for the past 34 years. As a kid, I started as a porter and worked in the warehouse during summers and holidays while in college. I later worked as a credit manager then store manager and buyer,” said Bazemore. “Furniture is in my blood, I don’t see myself doing anything else.”
Bazemore continued his career, working as vice president of RSS, a service buying group out of Baltimore, Maryland. He also worked as the general manager of retail operations for a company with retail stores throughout the Midwest and at the time, the largest furniture distributor in the country, before moving into sales and national distribution and then on to Nationwide.
“When I first started with Nationwide in 1999, the industry had already undergone significant changes with the onslaught of imports and the independent needed a way to level the playing field with the majors,” said Bazemore “By harnessing the power of Nationwide, furniture dealers now had the opportunity to become a force in their marketplace.”
Over the past 5 years, Nationwide’s furniture division has doubled its sales through an increase in membership by 609 companies. Under current market conditions, the organization foresees continued growth in their membership and sales in home furnishings and accessories.
“We are seeing more furniture dealers seeking out the support of a buying group. But we are also experiencing growth through our existing appliance and electronics dealers who are diversifying their product mix and entering the furniture category through bedding,” said Weisner.
The group recently partnered with Serta to develop two private label bedding lines - Smart Choice and Bellagio – sold exclusively at Nationwide dealer stores.
In addition to special group product offerings and pricing programs with major manufacturers, Nationwide also provides furniture dealers with complete print, TV and web advertising packages.
“Because we own our own state of the art production studio facility in Atlanta, our marketing resources are second to none in the furniture industry,” said Bazemore. “In 2012, we will be introducing a host of furniture email templates so dealers can reach their customers through product specific online marketing campaigns.”
At the upcoming High Point Market in High Point, NC, Nationwide will be exhibiting in the Retail Resource Center in Booth# 15 under their Furniture Smart insignia.
To learn more about the many benefits of joining Nationwide Marketing Group, go to www.nationwidemarketinggroup.org or contact Bill Bazemore at furniture@nationwidegroup.org or (770) 442‐9726.