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Nationwide Sets Attendance Records At 40th Anniversary Show

GRAPEVINE, TEXAS –

The Nationwide Marketing
Group (NMG) held its best-attended PrimeTime! buying
show and member conference here last month at the Gaylord
Texan outside Dallas.

Highlights of the 40th anniversary event included the
introduction of a Nationwide-exclusive A/V brand, Allegra,
and the addition of D&H Distributing to its roster of fulfillment
partners (see story, page 18). D&H will expand
the group’s current PC and tablet assortment of Acer and
Asus SKUs to also include Lenovo, Toshiba and Hewlett-
Packard products, and has also developed bundled tablet
programs to help boost category margins.

Nationwide also presented the results of a consumer
study by Britt Beemer of America’s Research Group.
According to NMG appliance merchandising senior VP
Richard Weinberg, the “deep dive” into the buying habits
of more than 1,000 appliance, furniture and bedding
customers revealed how consumers shop, why they make
their purchases and what they care about.

Beemer used the data to develop 30 top promotions for
member dealers to help drive traffic and sales, and attendees
also received a booklet at registration filled with “40
Great Ideas” to help boost business while commemorating
the buying group’s anniversary.

The show, which generated the largest turnout in NMG
history, with 900 members and 3,500 attendees in total,
also marked the PrimeTime! debut of the group’s enhanced
merchandising and marketing team. The lineup
is now lead by GE Appliance veteran Dave Bilas and includes
former Electrolux sales director Jeff Knock, who
was recently appointed appliance marketing senior VP.

Also making its PrimeTime! debut was the group’s new
Nationwide Florida chapter, which voted to join NMG earlier
this year.

Opening-night festivities included a performance by
“American Idol” finalist Celena Rae, and introductory remarks
by NMG CEO Robert Weisner.

“It’s hard to believe we went from seven dealers to over
3,000 in seven years,” Weisner told a packed ballroom.
“We started by talking to vendors about a new tomorrow …
and you [the members] have made us what we are today.”

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