CCA Global Partners Retail Group hit the road for the group’s second-annual Summer Regional Meetings, which are taking place from May to October 2024 across the United States and Canada. These gatherings bring together members from Carpet One Floor & Home, Flooring America, Flooring Canada, and the International Design Guild with a focus on networking, vendor interactions, and sharing best practices, particularly regarding the new Retail 2.0 showroom retrofits.
"This year, we will continue to prioritize fostering hands-on engagement and direct interaction with our members,” said Keith Spano, president of Flooring America, Flooring Canada, International Design Guild, and The Floor Trader.
Carpet One Floor & Home kicked off its first meeting in Austin, Texas, on May 1. Additional locations include Newport Beach, California; Nashville, Tennessee; Coeur D'Alene, Idaho; Boston, Massachusetts; Indianapolis, Indiana; Vancouver, British Columbia; and Ottawa, Ontario. With six meetings in the U.S. and two in Canada, Carpet One anticipates building upon the previous year's achievements.
Similarly, Flooring America and Flooring Canada began their series of meetings in June in Newport Beach, California, with further meetings to follow in Nashville, Tennessee; Boston, Massachusetts; and Ottawa, Ontario. Likewise, the International Design Guild will meet in Indianapolis, Indiana, in August.
With five successful meetings already held, CCA Global leadership reports that participation and engagement have been high. Each regional meeting follows a similar pattern, with an emphasis on networking and interaction. Some prepared presentations are present, but these are kept to a minimum to facilitate dialog. Each regional meeting is unique as well, with a focus on enjoying the benefits of the locale.
CCA reports that members have enjoyed hearing from other members about the success of the Retail 2.0 installations. There is a lot of excitement surrounding the updated showrooms as members share what they've done with each other. Members also share best practices and solutions for everyday challenges. The members are excited about the momentum within the groups about unique coop solutions to installation challenges.
The Summer Regional Meetings aims to stay ahead of the ever-changing business landscape, and it continues to be difficult to accurately predict the next week's sales, let alone the next six months. Members are expressing optimism about the future. Members who have stepped up investments in advertising and customer outreach are reporting solid results.
"As we look ahead, our focus remains on deepening member connections and empowering them with innovative strategies to elevate their business in a challenging business climate,” Spano said. “These gatherings are more than just events; they are drivers for inspiration, collaboration, and partnership. We are eager to come together once again, to learn, to grow, and to shape the future of our dynamic membership."
CCA reports also reported that the installation training collaboration with Rockwell, Texas-based Advanced Flooring Technology is going exceptionally well. So far, more than 250 installers have been trained, and there is still some availability for additional custom training.
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"In 2023 alone, I personally trained in 21 cities, 14 states, two countries and trained 320 installers with CCA, said Robert Varden, founder and owner of Advanced Flooring Technology (AFT). "This year has also been very busy as we’ve added more programs and opened up more training centers. I haven’t yet added the numbers for CCA this year, but I think we are probably going to be close to the same.”
“I learned so, so much,” said Parker Kelley, administrator at Carpet Baggers Carpet One in Charleston, South Carolina, which hosted an installation training with AFT. “I work inside sales, and I do get to see jobs being installed and getting started, but to really get a closer look at how it's done and all the technical things that I’m still learning, it is such a blessing. I learned so much.”
“It's the best thing we've done for our installation crew, said Dean Kelley, owner of Carpet Baggers. “We have guys who have been doing this for 25 years and some who have been doing it for five years. “There’s new techniques, there's new equipment, and [Robert Varden] showed us all those things.”
CCA Global Partners Retail Group Summer Regional Photo Gallery
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