Great networking happens when the owners associate with other closet industry business owners. This is accomplished by either attending a closet industry conference and expo, participating in a closet industry related B2B Facebook page, or by joining a dedicated private closet woodworking network website.
The Closet Institute of America, aka the CIA, offers all three opportunities for Independent (non-franchise) closet business owners, closet designers, and key closet operations managers to learn from each other by exchanging woodworking industry best practices and resources.
National Closet Summit
The first opportunity is our closet woodworking network national event, the annual nationwide Closet & Storage Conference and Expo, held every October in a different city throughout the USA.
This October 19-21, 2022, the Sheraton Salt Lake City, will be the location for the next closet conference and expo. There is always a host closet company at these locations which invites the conference attendees of closet and storage professionals to tour their state-of-the-art manufacturing facilities and outstanding showrooms. In Salt Lake City, our host will be The Closet Butler. Prior Closet Summit and Expo conferences were held in Savannah, GA, Washington DC, Austin, TX, Greenville, SC, Atlanta, GA, Charlotte, NC, and Orlando, FL.
The Summit is a two-day closet industry event that includes networking, round table brain storming sessions, panel discussions concerning pertinent closet industry resources and events, 5 networking meals, 2 Happy Hour Meet, Greet and Eat parties, the tour of the host company and our Vendorama Closet Industry Expo, where embedded industry vendors and suppliers show the closet business owners the latest and greatest in products and services.
Private Facebook Group
The second on-going way to network is the HOT on-line CIA Facebook B2B site, now with over 630 members:
This is the closet industry’s 24/7/365 version of the annual face-to-face Closet & Storage Summit and Expo which includes closet professionals such as business owners, closet designers, closet installers, key managers and closet and storage industry vendors and suppliers.
Members-Only Website
The third closet industry connection is the Independent’s-Only private CIAMO website:
Closet Institute of America Members-Only:
This exclusive website for independent closet and storage professionals (no closet franchises permitted) has thorough closet industry resources. Current benefits include: Closet Business Forms Exchange, Closet Industry Consultants, Closet Company Locator Map, Outsource Closet Components Manufacturing Resource, Vendor Guide Index, Legal Aid and Conflict Resolution Panels, and more. Coming in 2022: Barter Bulletin Boards, Help Wanted, Closet Industry Statistics and the CIA Basic Training Course in Closet Sales & Design.
The Independent closet and woodworking network comprises 80% of the entire North American closet & storage industry. Prior to 2000, there was no primary association of closet and storage professionals to trade ideas and best practices. In 2014, the first Closet & Storage Summit and Expo provided a comprehensive venue for networking, which has evolved into vital business building resources for information sharing, education and training.
“Attending the Closet Summit is like going to a Family Reunion . . . where you love all your relatives.”
Paul – Brushy Creek Custom Doors – CIAMO Vendor Member
Submitted by: Jeff Klein – Director of the CIA
Jeff@ClosetSummit.com - https://www.closetinstitute.org/ - 912-313-9943