Retail Observer

RETAILOBSERVER.COM JULY 2018 60 B U Y I N G G R O U P N E W S MAYTAG UNIVERSITY ANOTHER SOLID SUCCESS FOR BRANDSOURCE MEMBERS Members of BrandSource's Maytag channel recently wrapped up the sixth annual Maytag University event in Tahoe City, California. Attended by approximately 40 BrandSource members, this year's Maytag University was a master class in digging deep and doing better. "We hope that when the members go back home, they work on implementing at least three out of the hundreds of ideas discussed during the sessions," said Maytag Channel Manager Arlene Soto. "They learn so much from their fellow Maytag channel members." This year's speakers included: Mark Hecht of Whirlpool Corp.; a team of speakers from AVB Marketing; Kristina Smallwood of AVB TV; Matt Berry from BrandSource; members of the Maytag Council; representatives from Wells Fargo; and Daniel Abramson of StaffDynamics. Hecht, who has been part of Maytag University since its inception, said the program was originally designed to help strengthen Maytag's independent dealers become more efficient and more profitable. "Much of the curriculum is centered around best practice sharing workshops among the attendees," Hecht said. "The attendees walk away from Maytag University with several hundred ideas on how to improve their businesses. We recommend they pick a few at a time and go after what will move the needle in their business." Taking time away from homes and businesses to attend an event like Maytag University can be a challenge, but participants always have something new to take home with them. "We all understand how difficult it is to take a step back from your business, develop your goals, and find the time to work on them while handling the day to day operation of a business," Hecht said. "Maytag University allows the attendees to get away from the day-to-day challenges of the store and spend quality time developing the short- long- term plans to succeed in their marketplace." Some of the topics covered during the event included: succession planning; strategies for hiring the best people; goal-setting; using KPIs and metrics; and many other subjects. "They learn so much from their fellow Maytag channel members," Soto said. "Whether it's changing their showroom floor, creating internal goals, incentivizing employees, re-analyzing their SWOT analysis, or increasing their digital marketing, just to name a few, there's always a way of staying in business and being more profitable while at the same time managing to spend time with their families and serve their communities." PARTNERSHIP WITH STORIS WILL YIELD BENEFITS FOR BRANDSOURCE MEMBERS Continuing a trend of continuous improvement for the benefit of members, BrandSource is pleased to announce a partnership with STORIS, a provider of software solutions for the appliance, bedding, furniture, and electronics industries. "This partnership can benefit members in many different ways, but perhaps the most important is to be able to provide a fully comprehensive solution to help a dealer manage their business," said Chad Evans, GM of merchandising for BrandSource. "This adds to efficiency, which in turn adds to profitability and success." STORIS, based in New Jersey, provides commerce solutions such as serial tracking, integrated customer services, in-store and mobile POS, inventory management, merchandising tools eCommerce, in-store kiosk, and business intelligence. "STORIS is happy to partner with BrandSource to bring technology solutions to the group," said Doug Culmone, chief operating officer of STORIS. "We know our clients have found value in what BrandSource delivers and we look to leverage our technology platform to give them a competitive edge." The alliance between BrandSource and STORIS grew out of the interest of some BrandSource members who requested assistance with commerce solutions to help their businesses. With the renewed partnership, BrandSource members can expect industry-specific technology and assistance from knowledgeable professionals who can help them run their multi-channel businesses in a unified way. STORIS also offers incentivized cloud packages to BrandSource members, including benefits related to implementation services. STORIS will be present at the BrandSource Convention in Las Vegas in August, where it will present an educational technology seminar to help familiarize BrandSource members with the technology available for retailers and how these solutions can help them grow their business. The STORIS partnership is only the latest of recent BrandSource announcements of new developments for members, which include: • The ground-breaking Alta 360, AVB marketing's new digital platform. • An exclusive partnership between Google and BrandSource that resulted in BrandSource becoming a Google Channel Partner, a distinction reserved for the top 2 percent of ad agencies worldwide. • The grand opening of a new headquarters for AVB Marketing in Sacramento that promises cutting-edge initiatives and collaboration for members. RO

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