Marketgoers can expand their expertise in everything from the growing design business to managing bottom lines during three days of free seminars in the customized seminar room at the Alden Parkes showroom located in the South Court of 200 N. Hamilton in Suite #110. Alden Parkes and the International Market Centers are co-sponsoring the six seminars, all of which are eligible for continuing education units (CEUs). Alden Parkes worked in conjunction with Replacements Ltd. to garner the esteemed lineup of speakers.
Seminars will include:
Saturday, October 19
10:00-11:00 am: From Setbacks to Success: How to Manage and Grow your Interior Design Firm when Faced with Adversity
Discover how to manage and grow your interior design firm when life throws you a curve ball. Based on her personal story and success, Traci Connell will share her unexpected challenges throughout her career and the definitive key steps she took to balance hardship as a single parent while increasing her revenue by tenfold.
3:00-4:00 pm: What Price Fame? Defining Your Brand, Securing Your Niche and Saving Your Sanity in the Era of Self-Promotion and Cult of Celebrity
As an interior designer, how do you define your brand? Join ‘Showhouse in a Showroom’ designers (Shannon Ggem, Philip Gulotta, Andre Hilton, Patti Johnson, Hannah Toney, Keita Turner) as they discuss their own experiences and how to keep yourself sane in this new era of self-promotion moderated by Kimberley Wray, Sr. Contributing Editor of Furniture, Lighting and Decor.
Sunday, October 20
10:00-11:00 am: Starring You: How to Expand Your Brand as a Lifestyle Expert
You’ve seen her on Rachael Ray, The Today Show and The Talk, among other national television shows. Learn firsthand how Evette Rios made the transition from designer to lifestyle expert and get inside tips on how you can leverage your expertise to build your own brand.
2:00-3:00 pm: Out of the Box: Nonconventional Ways to Grow your Design Business
Struggling with attracting new clients and growing your business? Join creative strategist Beth Dempsey and designers Denise McGaha, Tish Mills and Joni Vanderslice for insightful tips on how these designers successfully grow their businesses by bucking traditional thinking and venturing “outside the box.”
Monday, October 21
10:00-11:00 am: The Senses of Luxury
Luxury was once defined by labels. Now it’s defined by living. The focus of luxury has shifted from glamorous acquisitions to intangibles that oftentimes aim for emotion instead of status. Join Traditional Home Senior Style Editor Krissa Rossbund as she embarks in a thoughtful discussion of luxury and its applications to all of the senses with design luminaries Jeanne Chung, Erinn Valencich and Traci Zeller. They will discuss the expectations for luxury to embrace lifestyle from all angles with design that offers more than an aesthetic victory.
4:00-5:00 pm: Let’s Dish: Looking Back is Fashion Forward
High Victorian, Art Deco, Midcentury Modern, Eighties Glam — vintage chic is one of the hippest trends. Join moderator Lisa Mende and design partners Lindsay Coral Harper Interior Designs, Jacob-Lukas Ltd. and Parker Kennedy Living to find out who’s collecting what and how they’re mixing and matching in and beyond the dining room to create dynamic experiences for clients, showhouses and events.
