Buddyโs Newco LLC dba Buddyโs Home Furnishings, held its Annual Leadership Meeting in early August in Orlando, Florida. The multi-day event, held at the Loews Royal Pacific Resort, focused on โEvolving Beyondโ and continuing Buddyโs growth and success.
This yearโs Leadership Meeting hosted about 250 attendees and began with a meeting of Buddyโs Franchise Advisory Board. The next morning, CEO Michael Bennett led the General Session with a โState of the Unionโ address, followed by updates from company leaders Mitchell Lee (Franchising), Nina Shively (Purchasing), Roy Griffaw (Marketing), and Mike Zagar (Operations). APRO CEO Charles Smitherman also spoke to attendees before Bennettโs final remarks. The rest of the day comprised an energetic Vendor Show, an exciting Hot Show, and a, like, totally awesome 80โs-themed party.
โWe owe our vendors a huge thank-you,โ said Bennett. โBy joining us and building strong relationships with our Buddyโs family, we bring the best products to our customers together.โ
The following dayโs Business Meeting began with Buddyโs Peak Performance Awards for top store performers, regional managers, and Store of the Year โ which went to David Allen of Cookeville, Tennessee. Participants enjoyed keynote speaker Joseph Kopser, author of Catalyst: Leadership and Strategy in a Changing World, followed by a presentation from Kyle Euen of franchise business-management services company ProfitKeeper. Finally, Buddyโs Director of Training and Communication Chris Warso and Learning Management System Administrator Sarah Bennett provided a demo of training information and standard operating procedure for the companyโs paperless system, as well as updates on Buddyโs University.
โBuddyโs Annual Leadership Meeting is always a highlight of the year, and this year was no different,โ said Bennett. โWe intentionally set aside this time to celebrate our people, inspire our team, and โEvolve Beyondโ into the future. Itโs all about making Buddyโs better, and weโre better when weโre together!โ
