|
Discounts on Exhibition Space at the International Casual Furniture & Accessories Market
More than 300,000 square feet of exhibits make the International Casual Furniture & Accessories Market in Chicago the premier resource for indoor and outdoor casual furnishings. ICFA is a co-sponsor of the event, and ICFA members are eligible to receive discounts on the cost of exhibition space at the market, held each September at the Merchandise Mart in Chicago. For more information, contact Joe Logan via jlogan@ICFAnet.org or 336-884-5400.
Eligible to Exhibit at the Association-sponsored Casual Preview Show
ICFA members exhibiting at the International Casual Furniture & Accessories Market in September are eligible to participate in the official Casual Preview Show held in July. Only ICFA members may lease temporary space for the Preview Show. For more information, contact Joe Logan via jlogan@ICFAnet.org or 336-884-5400.
Eligible to Participate in the Prestigious Design Excellence Awards
ICFA sponsors the Design Excellence Awards for top designs in the casual industry. Considered to be the highest recognition of innovative design, this prestigious award honors the year’s best in 11 product categories as judged by a distinguished panel of industry experts. The Lillian B. Winchester Best of Show Award is chosen from among the 11 category winners. The Design Excellence Awards are the only industry awards focusing exclusively on casual furniture products. The competition is open only to ICFA members. For more information, contact Joe Logan via jlogan@ICFAnet.org or 336-884-5400.
Consumer Product Testing
ChemServe is certified to perform lead paint testing for the Consumer Product Safety Improvement Act of 2008. It employs state of the art sample preparation techniques and analysis instrumentation. Lead can be a concern in any furniture that has a painted or surface coating, whether it's one color or several colors. AHFA members pay a preferred rate per test that is one-third off ChemServe's list price. Contact Jay Chrystal at 603/673-5440 or jay@chemservelab.com for more information.
Credit Card Program
ICFA member companies have experienced a growing rate of credit card orders, not just from smaller customers but, increasingly, from larger accounts as well. Processing fees can add up to tens of thousands of dollars – so ICFA negotiated a group program to bring the absolute lowest possible processing rates to our members! For a free comparison of processing rates, members should simply forward a current bank statement to Elavon's Liz Harpst at liz.harpst@elavon.com or call 865-933-0872.
|
|
Participation in the Apollo Awards Program Honoring Excellence in Casual Furniture Retailing
ICFA has been recognizing retail excellence in the casual industry more for 50 years with the sponsorship of the Apollo Awards and Banquet, the premier event of the casual furnishings industry. ICFA member companies nominate the finalists, which are judged on sales management, advertising, display, growth, sales training, credit history and overall goals of the retail company. For more information, contact Joe Logan via jlogan@ICFAnet.org or 336-884-5400.
Apollo Finalists Archive
Federal Express
Shipping Program
A small parcel discount program with Federal Express brings ICFA members significant cost savings on both inbound and outbound small package shipments. The program features both domestic and international pricing discounts that apply to FedEx Express services, FedEx Ground services and Multiweight Rate Tables. To participate, members simply complete the Smart Ship Form and mail or fax it back to ICFA.
Go to the Smart Ship Form >
Payroll Services
AHFA/ICFA members receive a group discount on payroll services through Heartland, the fifth largest payment processor in the United States. Services include web-enabled payroll processing, remote check and report printing capabilities, full tax or tax alert service, new hire reporting, benefit accrual tracking and payments, direct deposits, split wrapped payroll, employee pay card programs and more. A three-year, fixed-price agreement also is available to guarantee payroll processing fees. Call Allen Andrews at 336/442-3023 for more information.
Fuel Card Program
AHFA/ICFA’s fuel card program offers members reduced fuel costs at thousands of truck stops nationwide. Typical rates are actual wholesale plus 2 to 3 cents, with no transaction fees. The program is managed by T-Chek Systems, a subsidiary of C.H. Robinson Worldwide. The fuel card is accepted at over 9,000 truck stops in the United States and Canada. Cash can be issued on the card or the card can be used at any ATM PLUS network machine in the United States or Canada. Participating member companies also have access to E-Stop, a fuel price and news information service that provides daily and historical diesel and gasoline prices along with NYMEX energy quotes, petroleum market news and a host of other critical data related to buying, selling, trading or marketing fuel.
To participate in the fuel card program, contact Andy Counts at 336/884-5000 ext. 0115.
Information and Application
|
|
Worldwide Logistics Discounts
A group discount program on less-than-container load (LTL) shipments is available to
ICFA members through Worldwide Logistics, a specialized transportation carrier totally focused on the unique handling aspects of furniture and home furnishings related products. Via their member portal, you can get rate quotes as well as track shipments. For additional information, contact an ICFA customer support specialist.
Curtis Pitchford
Pacific & Mountain Time Zones
(909) 992-0197 or curtis.pitchford@shipitwwl.com
Angie Conner
Eastern & Central Time Zones
(828) 391-6706 or angie.conner@shipitwwl.com
Health Care Program
ICFA members have access to an exclusive health insurance program for their employees from a national insurer. The program covers member company employees and their eligible family members with medical, prescription drug, life/AD&D and dental insurance in one convenient plan that fits a wide range of budgets. Smart, flexible PPO plan choices enable companies to make optimal plan selections to achieve the right balance of cost and benefits. Cost-saving, consumer-directed options, such as health savings accounts (HSAs) are simple to set up and easy to administer. Access to professional services means employees have the freedom to choose hospital and physician care from extensive premier national networks. Outstanding prescription drug benefits provide employees access to more than 61,000 network pharmacies nationwide and include co-pay options, mail order and specialty drug services. Members receive a customized, affordable solution through a source they know and trust – ICFA. Underwritten and administered by Trustmark Life Insurance Company, Lake Forest, Ill. To receive a quote, call 800/334-2234, or email info@trustmarkins.com and for general information, click here.
Public Relations Support
A variety of public relations services are offered free-of-charge to AHFA/ICFA members. These include crisis communication consultations, market event planning consultations, market press kit review and assistance, promotion of new products to the consumer media, and direct-to-consumer promotions through AHFA’s consumer website, www.findyourfurniture.com. To be included in the Furniture Finder database on this website, members must fill out the Find Your Furniture survey form, which may be found here.
For more information on publicity assistance, contact Jackie Hirschhaut or Pat Bowling.
Association-sponsored Education and Training
The association continually strives to provide the education and training needed by members to improve their business. For a complete list of events, click here.
To view a list of webinars available for educational viewing, click here. A username and password are required.
To access the member's only sections of the websites, request a username and password from Brenda Grubb.
|
|
