Top Takeaways:

  • Nearly 30 sessions are devoted to growing a K&B business;
  • Get expert advice about nurturing, expanding and protecting the business you’ve built;
  • Earn CEUs;
  • One pass grants access to all days of learning on-site and on-demand courses after the show.

 

By Dianne M. Pogoda

 

It’s one thing to be a terrific designer, but mastering the art of the small business — marketing, selling, budgeting, forecasting and more — requires an entirely different skill set.

In the “Grow Your Business” specialty learning track at the Voices From The Industry Conference (VFTI), you’ll get expert advice about how to expand and grow, as well as detailed solutions to daunting business dilemmas.

VFTI, sponsored by Floor & Decor and Angi, takes place during KBIS 2023, Jan. 31 to Feb. 1 in Las Vegas. This perennially popular conference features nearly 80 sessions in six learning tracks, running each day of KBIS on site at the newly renovated Las Vegas Convention Center (LVCC). Many sessions will also be available on-demand starting Jan. 31, and all qualify for CEU credits. 

There are 28 classes, including four hands-on workshops, devoted to thoughtful, sustainable business growth. For instance, you’ll learn about the metaverse and how to use social media to boost business, how to prepare for a downturn, and what lessons the industry has gleaned from the supply-chain crisis. Expert instructors will discuss buying strategies, how to make a succession plan, identifying and capitalizing on your niche, making the leap to video marketing, and key elements of smart-home technology, living-in-place design, building an online business, selling techniques, branding and much more.

Workshops include diversifying your business offerings to create multiple income streams; developing a marketing plan designed for growth; a discussion on the architecture and design job market, and insider tips for forging successful partnerships.

Among the NKBA-certified pros speaking are Patricia Davis Brown, CMKBD; NKBA Board Member Jan Neiges, CMKBD; Maria Stapperfenne, CMKBD; Doug Walter, CMKBD; Toni Sabatino, AKBD, and Ariana Lovato, AKBD.

One VFTI pass grants access to all sessions, live on-site and on-demand, as well as entry to and shuttles among all five Design & Construction Week trade shows running concurrently throughout the city. Besides KBIS and the International Builders Show, the National Hardware Show takes place at LVCC; the Surfaces show is at the Mandalay Bay Convention Center, and the Las Vegas Market happens at the World Market Center.

Early-bird pricing is in effect until Dec. 9: NKBA members pay $550 for access to the DCW shows and all VFTI sessions, on-site and on-demand. Non-members pay $750. From Dec. 10 through Jan. 28, members pay $600 and non-members are $825, and from Jan. 29 through Feb. 2, members are $700 and non-members are $925. Additional rates and discounts apply for press, students, faculty and non-exhibiting manufacturers and suppliers, so visit KBIS.com for more details.

For more general information about VFTI, click here.