Presentation is everything. The way a product is showcased, the salesroom layout, and the customer experience are all deciding factors in closing a deal. In an effort to show retailers how to increase sales, this year’s Keynote Address, “Hot Profit: Optimizing Retail Space to Spark Growth in Your Sales,” will be delivered by Wayne Visbeen of Visbeen Architects. As the interior designer and architect behind an iconic list of ground-breaking and effective retail environments, Visbeen will share his unique insight backed by examples of previous successes.

As comfortable on a construction site as he is designing a store layout, Visbeen has a deep understanding of custom residential design and the current trends shaping the indoor-outdoor living industry. His architectural practice, Visbeen Architects , continues to utilize products found at HPBExpo and reimagines spaces with breathtaking beauty and functionality.

Bonus Topic: How to Win Hearth & Outdoor Architectural Specs

By popular demand, Wayne will also be sharing his tips on what dealers need to do to win fireplace specs; Q&A to follow!

Generously sponsored by Napoleon Products, the HPBExpo 2020 Keynote Address aims to provide unique retail insights and highlight the key concepts you will be able to use for better sales and better customer experiences.

The Keynote Address is free to all registered HPBExpo 2020 participants.  

Returning Staffer

We are very pleased to announce that Robert Washington has rejoined the HPBA staff as the Director – Finance & Operations. After spending that past year and a half out of the area, he and his family decided to return to the Washington, DC area. Welcome back, Robert!

The sharp increase in local cities banning – or considering a ban of – natural gas in new homes has sparked tremendous interest in the 2020 Tom Pugh Government Affairs Academy (GAA), to be held in Washington, DC, on July 20–23, 2020. This program is designed to empower local members to be better advocates at the local, state, and federal government levels. The GAA curriculum includes intensive media training as well as a focus on issues such as licensing, codes, and the legislative process. Over more than a decade, GAA has helped create a cadre of leaders in our industry. Since the first academy in 2006, dozens of industry members have gone through the program, increasing their engagement in the industry and their effectiveness in their day-to-day jobs. There are still a few seats open. Contact your local HPBA Affiliate Executive Director, John Crouch, or Rachel Feinstein to learn more about participating.

HPBExpo 2020

Exhibition: March 12-14

Education: March 11-13

Ernest N. Morial Convention Center

Register now and join thousands of hearth, patio, and barbecue professionals and experience new products in the spotlight of the industry's premiere event. Hotel rooms are available at a discounted rate on a first-come, first-served basis, so book now to reserve one of your top choice hotels in New Orleans.

is the official housing partner for HPBExpo. Please be aware that there have been cases in the past where attendees booked with a third-party company and their reservations were not valid and honored by the hotel upon arrival.

Hear from this year’s attendees on why you need to be there! 

New this year , HPBExpo Exhibitors have an additional platform to boost their brand awareness and name recognition by advertising on the HPBExpo.com homepage. You’ll have the opportunity to make thousands of impressions between now and the start of Expo in March. For additional exposure, all banners will link to the Exhibitor Profile you’ve created on our site. Advertisers will be provided with impression counts and click-through counts monthly to confirm that your message is being received loud and clear. Hurry — only three ad placements per unit/per month are available! Click below for more details.

Have you received the New Orleans Passport mailer? If not, check out all the exciting experiences awaiting you in New Orleans. Also, be on the lookout for the Registration Brochure that will be included with Hearth & Home Magazine after the holidays.

The HPBExpo Education Program will equip you with the knowledge (and the continuing education credits) you need to stay ahead of your competition. This year there are four exclusive education sessions available only at EXPO. They are : Showroom Design , Win More with a Marketing Strategy, Sales Leadership, and the HPBA Hearth & BBQ Consumer Research Survey Results . Be sure to check out the full program schedule .

New in 2020, online exams will be available onsite. Attendees can conveniently take exams throughout the duration of HPBExpo 2020 by registering for an allotted time of their choosing. With ten computers available, space will be limited, so registering early will be critical in getting the date and time that works best for you. Additionally, the exams will be graded upon submission, providing almost instantaneous results. For complete details, contact the NFI Office at 703-524-8030. 

At a recent meeting of the Solid Fuel Hearth Appliance Section, manufacturers voted to establish a formal Solid Fuel Technical Subcommittee. This vote was important due to the number of technical discussions that the section anticipates next year. The ASTM Technical Committee (TC), which is an open consensus process, has already begun to meet to review both ASTM E2515 (the Dilution Tunnel Test Method) and ASTM E3053 (the Cordwood Test Method). The TC will be staffed by Bob Ferguson. HPBA and HPBA Canada also anticipate a review of CSA B415.1 (the Performance Testing Method).  

In addition, the EPA has solicited informal comments on issues that need to be addressed in order to create a formal Federal Reference Method for testing woodstoves, which is anticipated to be finished by the next NSPS review. For more information, contact John Crouch.

This likely is not a question you ask yourself too often. However, if left unanswered, it could cost you thousands of dollars. Although the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) was signed into law in 1990 and likely did not consider website accessibility, it is now being interpreted to include websites as “places of public accommodation.” A cottage industry of lawyers and individuals is now going through companies’ websites, and if a website is not ADA compliant, you could get sued. This is an easy exercise for these groups and individuals to conduct since it doesn’t require anyone to physically go to your store or facility.

What can you do? Make sure your website is ADA compliant. This article, “ The ADA Checklist: Website Compliance Guidelines for 2019 in Plain English,” published in 2018 based on guidelines from the US Department of Justice, lays out an excellent overview of the issue and what steps you need to take to get your website in order. As the article says, spending 15 minutes of reading could save you thousands of dollars. 

Members and consultants for Northwest HPBA (NWHPBA) have been hard at work on two issues that could dramatically affect the market in Washington State. After several months of consideration, the Washington State Building Code Council (WSBCC) adopted new requirements for vented gas fireplaces last month. The initial proposal included minimum efficiencies of 65 percent Fireplace Efficiency (FE) using CSA P.4.1-15 for all gas fireplaces (decorative and heater-rated). After several hearings and considerable input from industry, the WSBCC ultimately decided to more closely align with other regulations already in place in Canada. As a result, the requirements are for 50 percent FE for heater-rated (ANSI Z21.88) products, no minimum efficiencies for decorative (ANSI Z21.50) products, and a ban for continuous pilots on any of the products.

Members also worked on an issue in the Seattle City Council to ban natural gas in all new residential construction. By attending hearings and inviting the ban’s sponsor to visit retail locations, industry highlighted the impact that the measure would have on a robust industry in the Seattle area. Ultimately, the city council determined that the proposal needed further study and may be taken up again in 2020.

We appreciate all the time and effort that Northwest HPBA members put into addressing these pressing issues just as the selling season was getting into full swing. If you have questions about either effort, please contact Ryan Carroll.

Do you have major company news to share with the HPBA membership? Mergers, acquisitions, new executives? We’d love to include it in Hot News. Please email Emily McGee with any news to share and we’ll consider its inclusion in the next issue. 

Each month, we will highlight one of our education sessions scheduled for HPBExpo 2020 to give you a taste of what you can learn if you attend.

Until Help Arrives: You Are The Help!

You are the Help! Until Help Arrives. Are you confident that you will be able to keep someone with life threatening injuries alive until professional first responders arrive? Trauma is the leading cause of death in Americans under age 46. Life threatening (traumatic) injuries require immediate action to prevent someone from dying. 

This course is designed to educate the public about the important role it plays in providing these potentially life-saving interventions prior to the arrival of emergency services. Until Help Arrives was developed by, and is based on research conducted by the foremost experts in the field:

 

Additionally, published guidelines from the American College of Emergency Physicians (ACEP), the American Heart Association (AHA), the American Red Cross (ARC), the Committee for Tactical Emergency Casualty Care (C-TECC), and others help form the basis of this course.

Instructor - Steve Gagnon

Steve Gagnon came to the hearth industry after a 20+ year career in banking and finance. He is an NFI Master Hearth Professional and NFI Instructor and is the lead service technician for The Fireplace Showcase in Seekonk, MA. Steve is a Search Team Leader for Providence, RI Emergency Management Agency, a K9 Handler with Rhode Island Canine Search and Rescue with his German Shepherd K9 Diesel and is an instructor for FEMA’s CERT Program (Community Emergency Response Team), as well as Until Help Arrives. 

This class will give you the confidence to act in an emergency in both your workplace and your personal life to save a life!

To attend Steve's class on Thursday March 12th in New Orleans, be sure to get your Education Passport . Pre-registration and an additional $19 fee are required.

This Class is EXPO Exclusive!

Reminder!

HPBA has a new banking relationship with Bank of America, and our SunTrust accounts are now closed. For wiring information, please contact Robert Washington .

NEW PAYMENT ADDRESS:

Hearth, Patio & Barbecue Association

P.O. Box 412397

Boston, MA 02241-2397

Nominations are now open for the Donna H. Myers Award, a BBQ industry recognition honoring the commitment and achievement of a highly accomplished industry peer. Jointly sponsored by HPBA and Casual Living Magazine, the award recognizes innovative leaders who have contributed to the growth of the industry. The award will be presented during HPBExpo 2020. Nominations are due by January 3, 2020.  

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