Camille and I are back from our wonderful Hunter Douglas trip. We are definitely not rested, certainly fatter by a few pounds and still a bit jet lagged. The trip was great, we had beautiful weather and it is always fun to network with other industry friends from around the country. If you have not been to Barcelona, it is our new favorite place. The Gaudi architecture was unbelievable. I anticipated "weird". What we found was totally out-of-the-box and strangely gorgeous. Totally loved it. After 30 years in the business, we are hard to impress, but this blew us away.
Again, our deepest thanks to all of you who helped make this possible by ordering through CDT, and to our staff for holding the fort for us.
We are sad to announce that Eve Senti, our dear friend and merchandising goddess has decided to retire. We will miss her and her many talents. In her place, you will find Wendy Khalil, our former receptionist. Wendy's husband has been transferred back to the Chicago area, so we are happy to have Wendy and her huge product knowledge and sales skills back at CDT.
FYI: IMPORTANT
CDT will no longer ship to Ridol. They will not handle freight claims like all the other receivers do. In addition, they are not helpful when we have to handle the claim for them. Neither you nor CDT can afford to deal with a company that does not work with us as a team. Their prices may be low, but this is not the place to save money. You do get what you pay for.
LEXINGTON PRICE INCREASE
There will be a small price increase from Lexington effective August 8.
Have a great weekend!
"TWIGGY" from Houles
Although Houles is known for gorgeous high end trimmings, many items their line are comparable to their competitor's pricing. While they are a venerable traditional trim line, Houles has introduced some innovative new collections that are really priced well. A perfect example is the new "Twiggy" group.
This contemporary, group is really hip looking with a great color selection. The big tieback shown is expensive, but a smaller one from this group is under $100 retail. The coordinating welt cord is only $22 retail. And of course, nothing beats getting a package with a Paris postmark!
LEED Green Associate Class
In response the feeler we put out several weeks ago, we have tentatively scheduled the LEED Green Associate training class for Monday June 28 and Tuesday June 29.
The class will be held in the Arlington Design Center Building 3 (Campus Drive) from 9:00am until 1:00pm.
Cost of the class will be $259 per person which includes a course manual. The two study guides for the LEED GA exam are an additional $100. The cost of the actual exam through LEED is an additional $200. The exam will not be included in the class. You will be able to schedule the exam at a later date.
More details to follow - inluding the exact location of the class. It will NOT be in the CDT Showroom.
If you have already expressed an interest in attending, please call and confirm that this date will work for you. As I said, the date is tentative. If there is a change due to attendee's schedule demands, we will try to find a date that will work for more people.
To register or get more information, contact Kathleen Haerr:
LEED@localgreenconnect.com
Hunter Douglas Tax Credits and Rebates
If you are selling or have sold Architella shades this year, your client may be eligible for a Federal Tax Credit up to $1,500! We have the forms at CDT. There are some restrictions, so make sure to check on the form. This is retroactive to January 1, 2009 and runs through December 31, 2010. What a fantastic selling tool!
From May 4 - August 15 you can get a free ultraglide lifting system upgrade on Tierred Vignette shades. You should also be aware that Tierred Vignettes will now also be available with Easyrise lifting system.
Hunter Douglas has announced that effective June 1, Hunter Douglas Brand Products will no longer be available for purchase via the internet. This reaffirms the company's belief that the best service, the best knowledge and the best match of product to application comes from a design professional done face to face with personal knowledge of the customer's home. We are thrilled with this announcement and applaud Hunter Douglas for this step, which will certainly cost them sales but will surely be made up for in reputation, exclusivity and customer satisfaction.
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