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Retail Education

Home furnishings and lighting retailers face many challenges in this ever-changing economy. From new consumer expectations to online competition, today's retailers work hard to ensure their customers have access to on-trend products and great customer service. In this section, you'll find all things retailing — news, features, analysis and tools — needed to make your retail business a success.

Finalists Announced for 29th ARTS Awards

Dallas Market Center, producer of the ARTS Awards, and ART, the creative home furnishings network, today announced the finalists for the 29th annual ARTS Awards. The ARTS Awards, presented each…
Snapchat-for-furniture-lighting-showrooms
Is Snapchat worth it for your furniture or lighting showroom? (Photo: AdamPrzezdziek via Flickr)

Should Furniture and Lighting Showrooms Be on Snapchat?

Snapchat has come a long way from being a flash-in-the-pan social platform. Earlier this year, the disappearing photo/video app opened for public purchase with an average of 158 billion daily users,…
Casual-Market-Chicago-Merchandise-Mart-JANUS-et-Cie
Manufacturers like JANUS et Cie (pictured here) will showcase their finest casual and outdoor furnishings at Casual Market Chicago.

The Ultimate Guide to Casual Market Chicago

Next week, buyers from all over the country will head to Chicago's Merchandise Mart for Casual Market Chicago. The massive trade show, which runs from Tuesday Sept. 12-15, will showcase new offerings…

Dallas Market Center Launches DMC Cares

Dallas Market Center (DMC) launched a new hurricane relief program — DMC Cares — yesterday to help aid those impacted by Hurricane Harvey. The market center's goal is to create $1 million in support…
Web design notebook from Pexels.com
(Photo: Pexels)

3 Signs Your Showroom Website is Outdated

It's common knowledge that first impressions make the biggest impressions. Before the internet, most consumers made their first impressions of home furnishing and lighting showrooms when they walked…
Screenshot from Palette & Parlor's website
Palette & Parlor owners John and Ivy Simon set their site apart from the pack with strong content.

Breaking Through the Noise

It’s near midnight and John and Ivy Simon are still hard at work. While their Chapel Hill, NC, store closes at 6 p.m., most evenings the husband-and-wife team can be found bent over their laptops,…
Amazon Echo in black on table
(Photo: MEDION Pressestelle via Flickr)

Alexa and Cortana have teamed up. What It Means for Home Automation

It's rare to see tech giants consider or even willingly work together, and yet, here we are. Today The New York Times announced Amazon and Microsoft would be joining forces in the digital assistant…
Vancouver-ALA_conference
There's plenty to see — and even more to eat — in Vancouver. (Photo: tdlucas5000 via Flickr)

4 Vancouver Restaurants You Need to Try at the ALA Conference

The 2017 American Lighting Association Conference is less than two weeks away, and as attendees already know, Monday (September 12) is a free night. That means it'll be time to hit the town and…
Red phone with chord from Pexels.com
(Photo: Pexels)

6 Ways to Go Above and Beyond with Your Contact Page

One of the basic components of any retailer’s website is a contact page. A standard one should feature the store location, hours and an email address and phone number. But if you want your site to…
Angie wall sconce in brass and black from Hudson Valley Lighting's Mitzi Collection
These brass sconces provide both lighting and style.

Little Brass Sconces

Like a little black dress, brass never quite goes out of style. Even when it's not front and center, brass provides a classic look that goes with nearly any design style, so it makes sense that most…
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