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By BOB
VEREEN, Director of Communications
NEWS
FLASHES-----
ABOUT
KEY RETAILERS/WHOLESALERS AND EVENTS
BUYERS
FROM AROUND THE WORLD MADE THE TRIP TO COLOGNE, GERMANY, FOR THE INTERNATIONAL HARDWARE FAIR AND SPENT LOTS OF TIME VISITING EXHIBITING MEMBERS AND CHECKING OUT NEW ITEMS
Members of the Worldwide DIY Council who exhibited in Cologne Feb. 28-March 3 were delighted with the reception they received from both industrial and retail buyers from around the world.
Although attendance was down from previous years, it was better than many had expected and buyer interest was strong. With business slowly recovering, buyers were looking for new products and they found them in members’ exhibits.
For the first time, the Council had a group pavilion in Hall 4.2, which supplemented the 25-year-old pavilion of the American Hardware Manufacturers Association, where a number of members have been exhibiting. In addition, of course, many members exhibited on their own in several different halls.
Council members worked hard during
the last months of 2009 in developing new products, improving
existing products and developing marketing programs to help their
customers increase sales in 2010. Tough times call
for innovation in products as well as promotions, and Council
members are responding.
Exhibiting members are listed below, so if you did not attend the Fair or did not have a chance to visit them, you can learn about their products and promotions by clicking
on the names of all Council members listed in blue. You will
be taken to their web pages on this site, giving you information
about who they are, where they are located, what they make and
who the international executives are. Another click will
take you to a catalog page showing the kinds of products they
make. You can also be connected to their individual
company web sites with another click, so it will be easy for you
to review their products. The listing below is organized alphabetically by Council member
names.
NEW INDUSTRY CONFERENCE
PLANNED IN VIENNA BY EDRA AND FEDIYMA
As one of its first official actions as a newly
formed, independent association, EDRA is joining forces with the
Federation of European DIY Manufacturers Association (FEDIYMA)
to conduct the first European Home Improvement Forum in Vienna
June 10-11.
FEDIYMA has conducted several of its own seminars
during the past few years. Joining forces officially
with EDRA will bring together major retailers with major suppliers
and is sure to guarantee a more productive and helpful industry
conference.
EDRA became an independent association recently
and plans to open a lobby office in Brussels to safeguard interests
of the home center industry in Europe. A new board
also was elected, and is pictured below.
EDRA membership currently consists of 5 trade
associations--BHB, the German group; FMB representing French retailers;
ADFB of Spain, plus Italy's Assofermet and Finland's RaSiry.
In addition, EDRA has a number of direct European members, plus
several from Russia, who form the first members of a Global Home
Improvement Network, allowing membership from firms and organizations
outside Europe to become associate members. Currently,
EDRA's members come from 18 countries and are operating in 38
countries.
EARLY LISTING OF EXHIBITORS IN
TWO BIG U. S. SHOWS
The two biggest US shows coming up are the International
Home & Housewares Show in Chicago in March and the National
Hardware Show® in Las Vegas in May. More Council
members will be in Las Vegas, but some will also be exhibiting
in Chicago.
Following is a preliminary list of exhibitors
and their stand numbers. You can find out more about
the companies whose names are listed in blue by clicking on their
names. Many more will be added to this list so keep
checking here.
WORLDWIDE
DIY COUNCIL AND THE NORTH AMERICAN RETAIL HARDWARE ASSOCIATION
DEVELOP INDUSTRY
ALLIANCE PARTNERSHIP
Recognizing that their
goals are similar—helping home improvement retailers and
manufacturers be more profitable and successful—the Worldwide
DIY Council, headquartered in Chandler, AZ, and the North American
Retail Hardware Association, headquartered in Indianapolis, IN,
have agreed to become Industry Alliance Partners, sharing ideas
and services for the benefit of members of each organization.
The two organizations will begin working together immediately
for the success of the 2011 International Hardware Association
congress, which will be hosted by NRHA and will be held July 13-15,
2011 in Washington, D.C. This is the first time this international
conference of hardware retailers, retail associations and other
industry leaders will be held in the United States. NRHA's own
annual convention will take place July 15-17, in conjunction with
the IHA congress.
In
addition, NRHA will attend and appear on the program of the Worldwide
DIY Council's annual meeting, which will be held in conjunction
with the National Hardware Show® in May 2010. NRHA will sponsor
a reception at that event. The
two groups have pledged to continue to explore ways to work together
in the future for the betterment of the world's retailers and
manufacturers.
The North American Retail Hardware Association serves the $288
billion retail hardware/home improvement industry. NRHA publishes
Hardware Retailing, the industry’s leading trade magazine
that is distributed to more than 36,000 independent home improvement
retailers across the United States and Canada. For more information
visit www.nrha.org.
We want to tell you about a clever
web site to visit:
www.allmyfaves.com
gives you access to about 100 web sites with just one click!
The sites are organized by category--travel,
translations, news, etc. Then click on any logo shown
and you will be taken to that site. Check it out;
you'll want to save it and use it regularly. It's a great time-saver.
NEW LISTING OF IMPORTANT
WORLDWIDE SHOWS
Click on the button to the left, WHERE OUR MEMBERS
EXHIBIT, and you'll find a compilation of the most important international
trade shows around the world--a handy compilation for your travel
planning.
Meet our
members in person
In coming
months, members of the Worldwide DIY Council will be participating
in a number of industry trade shows, where you can meet them personally
and have face-to-face discussions of mutually beneficial relationships.
Click here for more information about forthcoming industry events.
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