by In this segment, Home News Now Editor-at-Large Ray Allegrezza interviews the president and chief executive officer of the High Point Market Authority, who also will be recognized as a Pillar of the Industry at the International Home Furnishings Representatives Association Furniture Industry Awards Gala during the October High Point Market.
Acknowledging that she has “sawdust in her veins,” she talks about her origins in the industry, growing up watching her father, a 36-year veteran of Bassett Furniture, come to High Point twice a year. Having attended Longwood College in Farmville, Virginia, she has a masters degree in counseling and worked for about eight years across several youth-serving organizations. Following that experience, she was recruited to the market authority nearly 23 years ago by High Point mayor and market authority exec Judy Mendenhall to help run the operations side of the organization.
Here, she discusses the role of the market authority and some of the initiatives that it has undertaken over the past 20-plus years to improve the overall market experience starting with improving the logistics of the show to recruiting national talent to perform during the twice-a-year events. By listening to its customer base, Nagem and the team began to chip away at the pain points for buyers in order to make it not only an easier event to work, but also an overall enjoyable experience that makes people feel not only that they need to come back, but that they also want to come back. Today that mission continues as she leads a team devoted to making High Point the go-to home furnishings event for buyers and designers around the U.S. and the world.
Click the link below to view the full interview.
Another Fantastic article by Ray Allegrezza!!