Retail Observer

RETAILOBSERVER.COM FEBRUARY 2025 30 W ow, what an event! The United Appliance Servicers Association (UASA) hosted the 2025 Annual Service Training Institute (ASTI) in Orlando, FL. The theme of this year's event was "SUN-SAND-SUCCESS", encouraging fun and learning all in one place to help make attendees' businesses better. When utilizing all of the opportunities ASTI provided for networking, learning and growing, attendees left ASTI with the tools to help them grow a more efficient and profitable business. This year we launched a new initiative at our Trade Show called TechConnect. With 23 OEMs present, TechConnect was a place to deepen the connection between service companies, technicians, and the manufacturers they rely on daily. This was a space to engage directly with top brands, explore the latest in product advancements, and get hands-on experience with new tools and technologies. This offered a unique platform for open discussions, impromptu edu- cational moments and quick training sessions tailored to meet individual needs. This was truly a rare opportunity to join like-minded professionals and engage in valuable connections to enhance independent service companies and keep them at the cutting edge of industry trends. In addition to the 23 OEMs in the TechConnect area, there were over 80 vendor booths, making this our biggest Trade Show ever, with a handful of brand-new vendors! With over 200 classes, both technical and business, we also launched a track system to help attendees better determine what classes would be the best fit for them and their business as well as what they would like to take. All business classes were assigned to one of three tracks: Advanced, Intermediate and Beginner. Feedback on this new system from attendees was positive and we will continue to perfect it for future ASTIs. This year we gathered some of the greatest minds in business, service, marketing, and sales to share insights and ideas on how to grow professionally and personally. Highlights of this year's event are many, but here are a few worth mentioning. We started with our Keynote Speaker, Adrianne Haslet, a survivor of the Boston Marathon Bombing as well as classes by prominent speakers such as Jordan George, an award-winning culture transformation leader and sought after international speaker, on a mission to change the world for the better. Classes continued throughout the week, offering both innovative business classes and technical sessions. With over 10 scheduled Networking Opportunities, Attendees interacted with vendors from many different sectors, opening new accounts, exploring new vendors and reacquainting with those whom they've done business with for years! Saturday evening the awards banquet featured many giveaways, the Most Professional Servicer Contest winners as well as the 2025 Lifetime Achievement recipient, Lance Kimball. Lance is a former UASA board member and past president. Also highlighted were scholarship winners, board members, sponsors and partners that have helped UASA grow over the years into what it is today. We are committed to helping you become more knowledgeable, more efficient with your time, more analytical with your processes, thus becoming more profitable. At UASA, we do this through ASTI and our training events, as well as through relationships we are committed to helping you cultivate. We want to ensure that when you leave ASTI at the end of the week, you have reconnected with your peers, challenged yourself with all of the new knowledge and moved forward with your new goals for not only your business but yourself. We invite you to visit www.ASTI.us to see the pictures of all that ASTI has to offer. We are also excited to announce that ASTI2026 will be held at Sheraton Kansas City at Crown Center, in Kansas City, MO, January 21-25, 2026. We hope to see you there! You can register today at www.ASTI.us or send any suggestions on classes you would like to see or new vendors you'd like to connect with to administration@unitedservicers.com. Not familiar with UASA or ASTI? UASA is a nonprofit trade association established in 1993 by servicers, for servicers. It is North America's largest appliance repair association created to provide members access to the resources, support and strategies that they need to run a more efficient and profitable business. The mission of UASA is to promote growth and trade development in the appliance service profession by mentoring and supporting businesses through management and technical training, industry relationships and networking, while strengthening standards for all servicers to be professional, ethical, and profitable. Sarah Brown Executive Director United Appliance Servicers Association S E R V I C E D E P A R T M E N T RO ASTI2025: SUN-SAND-SUCCESS

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