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The winners of the Home Furnishings Association’s annual Retailer of the Year award were announced at the Summer Las Vegas Market on Sunday. During the highly anticipated event, W.S. Badcock Corporation was named the Retailer of the Year in the over $10 million in sales category.
The title is a first for the 114-year-old furniture, appliance, and home décor retailer, which has over 340 stores in eight southeastern states. The family-owned and -operated company came under the leadership and direction of CEO Rob Burnette in January of 2017, and has been experiencing an explosion of growth and success over the last few years.
Since his appointment, Burnette has rolled out a number of strategic initiatives that center on growing the Badcock Home Furniture &more brand through an increased focus on its store owners, retail customers, and corporate employees. This year, the company’s emphasized goals lined up perfectly with the qualities the HFA looks for in candidates for its Retailer of the Year award.
According to the HFA’s website, the recipients of the award are “retailers who take pride in their business, are committed to their community and philanthropy, invest in technology, and are passionate about customer experience, mentoring, sustainability, and merchandising.” Nominees must submit documentation illustrating the ways their company meets each criterion before the HFA selects its two winners in the under and over $10 million categories.
The win could not have come at a better time to serve as a beacon for Badcock’s renewed focus on providing the ultimate customer experience. Burnette’s reaction to the award was nothing short of elation. “Our focus has always been on treating people and our communities right, and it is incredible to be recognized for the work we have put in to take that mantra to the next level,” he said. “Our core purpose is to build lasting relationships by providing everyone the opportunity to fulfill their dream of making their house a home. This goes with our guiding principle, which says that customer service is the foundation of our business and ensures that all aspects of the organization put our customers’ needs and satisfaction first. To be recognized by an association of industry manufacturers and importers from across the United States for doing those things tells us we are still headed in the right direction.”
Burnette will be presented with the award at the Retailer of the Year awards dinner during the HFA’s Insights Experience in Minneapolis on Saturday, September 15, 2018.
