Real Wood Furniture Finished Your Way®
North to South, East to West, Nationwide…
Certified Members & The Unfinished Industry Can Reap The Benefits of The Brand Awareness Program
- Creates a positive image of the unfinished furniture industry
- 3rd party support of value and quality of unfinished furniture
- Comprehensive marketing program to better utilize the millions of dollars already being spent nationwide
- Clearly defines the features and benefits of our products and services
- Distinguishes certified members from other furniture options
- Point of sale materials, training manual and media kit
- Consistent and informative message to consumers nationwide
- Establishes a solid foundation to grow
Retailer Start-Up Kits Include:
- Posters
- Tent cards
- Window decal
- Buttons
- Roll of labels
- Stir sticks
- Ad slicks
- Framed certificate
- Press release
- Program manual
How To Get Certified
For an application or additional information, please contact the UFA office:
ufa@ahint.com
800-487-8321
How the Brand Awareness Program Works
Criteria defining certification requirements were established by retailers, manufacturers and sales representatives within the unfinished furniture industry. As the criteria were determined, the goal was to reflect the diversity of our industry yet clearly identify the value of unfinished furniture products and services.
Retailers, manufacturers and sales representatives which meet the criteria are authorized to promote their stores or companies as one which focuses its business on Real Wood Furniture Finished Your Way®. The logo and value statement are used as a tool to highlight the product quality characteristics and distinguish unfinished furniture from other furniture options. Start-up POS material and other marketing tools are available exclusively to certified members.
Only certified members are able to utilize the logo and value statement to solidify their story as the industry unites in a cohesive brand identity. Nationwide consumers will begin to associate with retailers throughout the country. This program is meant to establish a foundation from which we can increase consumer awareness.
In short, criteria* is based on:
80% of all furniture available for sale must be available unfinished
80% of all furniture items (excluding upholstery) must be real wood furniture (not particle board)
*Please refer to application for complete certification requirements and information.
Successful Marketing & Advertising Certified retailers, manufacturers and sales representatives are to strategically place logo on all:
- Signs
- Hangtags
- Handouts
- Bags
- Business cards
- Invoices
- Catalogs
- Letterhead/envelopes
- Banners
- Ads
- Yellow Page Ad
- Trucks
- Billboards
- Cartons
A Nationwide Impact
Read on for more details...
Through this comprehensive marketing program, our logo and quality statement will be seen by millions of consumers nationwide each day. With support of certified members, this program will elevate the overall image of the unfinished furniture industry.
UFA's Brand Awareness Program Is Full Speed Ahead
UFA recently launched its Brand Awareness Program, Real Wood Furniture Finished Your Way®, at the 2002 National Convention & Trade Show in Denver. It's been a long time in the making and everyone involved is excited about the introduction within the industry.
Where It All Began
The idea to unite the industry in order to communicate the benefits of unfinished furniture originated in a manufacturers' roundtable discussion at the 2000 UFA National Convention & Trade Show in Las Vegas. How could the industry do this? Unlike larger industries, the unfinished industry wasn't big enough to generate the dollars needed to fund a national advertising campaign. It would take a special program with everyone working together to be successful in educating the public.
An outline for a certification program was proposed at a meeting of the manufacturers advisory committee that took place in the fall of 2000 in Denver. Certification programs had been very successful as brand awareness and marketing tools in other industries. This was the beginning of the certification program we are now so familiar with.
A task force of retailers, manufacturers, and sales representatives began to work on the project with regular reports to the board of directors. One of the most important tasks was gathering feedback from the membership. The biggest push came at the 2001 UFA National Convention & Trade Show in Nashville, Tenn., where surveys were circulated, presentations given, and discussions held. The responses and feedback are what shaped the components of the certification program, notably the criteria and logo/value statement. The research continued and preparations were underway for the grand launch at the 2002 UFA National Convention & Trade Show in Denver. The task force, staff, and board worked on issues involving licensing, legality, trade marking, funding and cost analysis, budgeting, logo design and more.
What It Means To You
The key benefits of unfinished furniture are solid wood (no particleboard), extensive product selection, and unlimited finishing options. These are the things conveyed in our logo and value statement, Real Wood Furniture Finished Your Way®. The purpose of certification is to highlight these benefits and differentiate unfinished furniture from the other furniture options available. An unfinished retailer may ask how certification helps them if a competitor in the same city is also certified. This is the beauty of the program. Your competitor is not your enemy. You and your neighbor are working together through certification to show consumers how unfinished furniture distinguishes itself from the other furniture options out there.
How the Program Works
Retailers, manufacturers, and sales representatives who meet the criteria are authorized to promote their stores or companies as one that focuses its business on Real Wood Furniture Finished Your Way®. The logo and value statement are used as a tool to highlight the product quality characteristics and distinguish unfinished furniture from other furniture options. Start-up point-of-sale material and other marketing tools are available exclusively to certified members. For retailers, the start-up kit includes posters, tent cards, window decal, buttons, labels, artwork, framed certificate, manual and more.
Only certified members are able to use the logo and value statement to solidify their story as the industry unites in a cohesive brand identity. Nationwide consumers will begin to associate with retailers throughout the country. This program is meant to establish a foundation from which we can increase consumer awareness.
Criteria
The brand awareness program is based on certification, so that means certain standards must be set for retailers, manufacturers, and sales reps. The program was developed to unite the industry, not fragment it. So, the goal in determining the criteria was to reflect the diversity of the industry yet clearly define the value of unfinished furniture products and services.
Retailers' Criteria
80% of all furniture items (excluding upholstery) available for sale at your store must be "real wood furniture." "Real wood furniture" is defined as furniture made of all natural wood or plywood, except that unexposed backs and drawer bottoms may contain fiberboard. "Real wood furniture" contains absolutely no particleboard.
80% of all furniture items (excluding upholstery) available for sale at your store must be available for purchase as unfinished.
Your store must offer a means of custom finishing for unfinished furniture-referred to as a custom-finishing program. Qualifying custom-finished programs include:
- in-store and/or store-owned custom finishing service
- subcontracted custom finishing service
- referral(s) to outside company/source
- extensive educational do-it-yourself information available in-store (i.e. pamphlets, brochures)
Manufacturers' Criteria
Unfinished Furniture Manufacturers
80% of all furniture items (excluding upholstery) sold to unfinished furniture stores must be available unfinished.
80% of all furniture items (excluding upholstery) sold to unfinished furniture stores must be "real wood furniture" as defined above.
Finishing & Stain Product Manufacturers
Must manufacture finishing and/or staining products sold to the unfinished furniture industry.
All sales employees representing finishing products to unfinished furniture industry must be educated concerning the UFA Certification Program.
Sales Representatives' Criteria
Must represent at least one unfinished furniture manufacturer that is a certified member of the UFA Certification Program.
All sales representative employees representing unfinished furniture must be educated concerning the UFA Certification Program.
Funding & Fees
Since the retailers are on the front lines with the consumers, the task force determined their fees should be minimal-$15 initiation fee (one-time) and $35 annual certification fee per store. This fee includes the point-of-sale start-up kit, which is approximately a $60 value. The majority of the funding comes through the certification fees of manufacturers and sales reps. For year-one these fees (one-time initiation fee and annual certification fee), which are based on annual sales, range from $400 to $3,200 for manufacturers and $200 to $700 for sales reps. All funds made payable to this program stay within this program. As a surplus develops, more tools will be provided to certified members, such as cooperative funding for advertisements.
The Message
The most important component of the program is getting a consistent message about the benefits of unfinished furniture out to consumers. Millions of dollars are already spent by the unfinished furniture industry nationwide. Why not utilize those existing efforts to bring a consistent message to the consumer while, of course, maintaining the promotion of that individual store or company? All certified members (retailers, manufacturers, and representatives) must strategically place the logo or value statement on all advertisements (especially yellow pages), signs, hangtags, business cards, cartons, trucks, catalogs, etc.
Important note: The logo and/or value statement cannot be placed on any product not meeting the criteria. For example, a retailer has certification logo printed on a hangtag. The hangtag cannot be placed on a product that does not meet the criteria (i.e. it contains particleboard). The same goes for manufacturers.
Reaching out to the consumer is done primarily by the retailer, since they are on the front lines with consumers every day. The key to the program is not just placing logos on ads and putting up posters and point-of-sale materials. In order for the program to succeed, the story of unfinished furniture must be told to the consumer. The consumer needs to hear about the benefits - solid wood, extensive product selection, and unlimited finishing options. The logo/value statement and point-of-sale materials are the employees' tools in communicating the story of unfinished furniture.
The program will provide the image, message, and tools needed. Each individual retailer, manufacturer, and sales representative must do your part in order for this program to be successful. It won't work unless we all work together as an industry.
Get Certified!
In order to apply for certification you need to do three things:
1. Complete application
2. Review and sign license agreement
3. Submit payment
The certification period is September through August with an annual renewal. The approval process takes approximately four to six weeks. Your application is reviewed by the certification committee, which determines whether your store/company meets the criteria. Please refer to Attachment B within the license agreement for details on the approval and renewal process.
For more information and/or application and license agreement contact:
Application - Manufacturer
Application - Retailer
Application - Sales Representative
Please fill out application and send to address below.
UFA
15000 Commerce Parkway, Suite C
Mt. Laurel, NJ 08054
Phone: 800-487-8321
Fax: 856-439-0525
E-mail: ufa@ahint.com
or contact your local sales coordinator:
John Adams S.CA/NV
Jonathon and Associates
Greg Barger NC/SC
Woodcraft Industries Inc.
Greg Brown W.PA/WV/OH/IN
Sales Direct Inc.
Randy Buck MN/ND/SD
Buck's Unpainted Furniture
Marilyn Cavanaugh MA/ME
Country Woods Unfinished Furn.
Ed Firestone CT/RI
Pinewood Furniture Shop Inc.
Norm Gauldoni MO/KS/IA/NE
Dawn Marketing
Roger Kerr VA/MD/DE
R & S Sales Inc.
Bobby Korneder MI/IL/WI
Kimball and Co. Inc.
Garry Maddox GA/AL/MS/KY/TN
Garden Sales
Richard Martinez LA/AR
Sales Team Inc.
Jim McCrea E.PA/NJ
Woodcraft Industries Inc.
Kathy Miller CO/WY/NM
Westfield Sales Company LLC
John Regina TX/OK
Regina Inc.
Tim Roberts AZ/ID/UT/MT
Woodcraft Industries Inc.
Anthony Sabatino NY
Arthur W. Brown Mfg. Co. Inc.
Jim Severs WA/OR
Severs Sales
Mark Smith FL
Khoury
Dave Sommer VT/NH
Sommer Sales and Marketing Inc.
Bob Watson C.& N.CA
Hoot Judkins Furniture Inc.
Please Note:
Only approved certified members are authorized to use the logo and value statement of Real Wood Furniture Finished Your Way®. The logo and value statement has been filed for trademark. You can only use the logo and value statement once you have been contacted by the UFA staff with notice of your approval. Unauthorized users will be pursued through appropriate legal channels.
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