PRESS RELEASES
Ernst and Young Award Winner
HDA Merchandising Announces Technology Upgrade
HDA, Inc. Offers Unique Builders’ Network
In-House Designer for HDA, Inc. Creates Top-Selling Plans
HDA, Inc. Offers Thousands of Pre-Drawn Home Plans
HDA, Inc. and Macy’s Cook Up New Partnership
KANSAS CITY, MO, June 18, 2008 – HDA, Inc., a St. Louis-based publishing, distributing and merchandising company, today announced that Robert Ketterer, CEO and President, received the Ernst & Young Entrepreneur Of The Year® 2008 Award in the Consumer Products category in the Central Midwest regional program. According to Ernst & Young LLP, the award recognizes outstanding entrepreneurs who are building and leading dynamic, growing businesses. Robert Ketterer was selected by an independent panel of judges, and the award was presented at a gala event at the Sheraton Hotel in Overland Park, Kansas on June 18, 2008.
HDA, Inc. has grown from a home plan provider into the nation’s most successful distributor of books and magazines to the home improvement, craft, home décor, kid’s and cooking specialty retail channels. HDA customizes its programs to fit the needs of all its retail partners, using a great mix of books, magazines, cross-merchandisers and promotional displays. The turn-key programs that HDA category and vendor manages for its retail partners such as Lowe’s, Michaels, Dollar General, Bed Bath & Beyond and Macy’s have flourished, demonstrating superb performance in comparable store sales, inventory turn and return on investment.
HDA, Inc. has averaged 41 percent annual growth during the past five years. Sales now top the $200 million mark, and the company just inked a three-year, $100 million deal with Dollar General to distribute titles to its 8,300 locations nationwide.
"We’ve rolled the dice a few times. I’m practical enough to know it could have gone the other way," said Ketterer, president, CEO and co-founder of HDA. "Everybody works very hard, and we’ve been fortunate. But I like to think we’ve made some of our good fortune, too."
"I’m honored that an institution of the stature of Ernst & Young and their team of judges would select me from a field of such inspired and accomplished entrepreneurs," Ketterer stated.
The Ernst & Young Entrepreneur Of The Year awards celebrate their 22nd anniversary this year. The program honors entrepreneurs who have demonstrated exceptionality in such areas as innovation, financial performance and personal commitment to their businesses and communities.
"Ernst & Young is pleased to honor outstanding business leaders such as Robert Ketterer," said Randy Buseman, Ernst & Young Strategic Growth Partner. "Winners of the Entrepreneur Of The Year award build leading businesses and contribute a great deal to the communities around them. Their success helps our area grow stronger."
As a Central Midwest award winner, Robert Ketterer is now eligible for consideration for the Ernst & Young Entrepreneur Of The Year 2008 national program. Award winners in several national categories, as well as the overall national Ernst & Young Entrepreneur Of The Year award winner, will be announced at the annual awards gala in Palm Springs, California on November 15, 2008. The awards are the culminating event of the Ernst & Young Strategic Growth Forum, the nation’s most prestigious gathering of high-growth, market-leading companies.
Sponsors
Founded and produced by Ernst & Young LLP, the Entrepreneur Of The Year awards are pleased to have the Ewing Marion Kauffman Foundation and SAP America as national sponsors.
In the Central Midwest, sponsors include Lockton Companies and the Kansas City Star as regional sponsors, and Faegre & Benson, Kutak Rock, and the St. Louis Business Journal local sponsors.
Company Boilerplate
About the Ernst & Young Entrepreneur Of The Year Awards
Ernst & Young’s Entrepreneur Of The Year is the world’s most prestigious business award for entrepreneurs. The award makes a difference through the unique way it encourages entrepreneurial activity among those with potential and recognizes the contribution of people who inspire others with their vision, leadership and achievement. As the first and only truly global award of its kind, Ernst & Young Entrepreneur Of The Year celebrates those who are building and leading successful, growing and dynamic businesses, recognizing them through regional, national and global awards programs in more than 135 cities in 50 countries.
About Ernst & Young
Ernst & Young is a global leader in assurance, tax, transaction and advisory services. Worldwide, our 130,000 people are united by our shared values and an unwavering commitment to quality. We make a difference by helping our people, our clients and our wider communities achieve potential.
For more information, please visit www.ey.com.
Ernst & Young refers to the global organization of member firms of Ernst & Young Global Limited, each of which is a separate legal entity. Ernst & Young Global Limited, a UK company limited by guarantee, does not provide services to clients.
This news release has been issued by Ernst & Young LLP, a member firm of Ernst & Young Global Limited.
ST. LOUIS – Feb. 26, 2008 – St. Louis-based HDA Merchandising, an affiliate of HDA, Inc. which distributes, publishes and merchandises book and magazine inventory for retailers, today announced a significant technological upgrade designed to further strengthen its customer service. Through a new partnership with South49 Solutions, HDA Merchandising will be using the new web-based NaturalInsight workforce tool to schedule, monitor and report on projects in the field with unmatched speed.
"We have more than 1,100 field representatives using this new system to service more than 2800 retail locations across the country," says Kim Baalman, Director of Store Service at HDA. "With NaturalInsight we will be able to more easily staff, manage and track jobs involving tens of thousands of individual store visits."
HDA Merchandising services a wide variety of specialty retail outlets including Lowe’s, Michaels, Bed Bath & Beyond, and Macy’s. Using the new program, HDA Merchandising employees will be able to view, accept and report work assignments by logging on to a web-based dashboard that provides details and requirements for each store visit. This will increase the ease and efficiency of communication between HDA Merchandising’s field employees, corporate headquarters and its multiple customer headquarters.
"In every aspect of our business, from publishing, distribution, supply management and merchandising we strive to provide our customers with outstanding and immediate support," says Baalman. "We have some of the best service representatives in the industry, and we want to equip them with the best technology available so they can manage their daily workflow with greater speed and efficiency."
NaturalInsight tools rolled out on January 16th. Enhancements in the program are ongoing to meet the needs of our merchandisers and HDA’s customers. For additional information, please visit www.hdamerchandising.com or call (314)770-2222.
ST. LOUIS – Dec. 1, 2007 – HDA, Inc., a premier home plan company, is excited to provide the Builder’s Advantage program for professional homebuilders. This unique network grants benefits to both participating builders and HDA’s general consumers by offering exclusive discounts and a helpful Locate-A-Builder option found on their Web site, www.houseplansandmore.com.
Builder’s Advantage, a cost-free program, was created as a response to HDA’s consumers frequently asking the question, “Do you know a builder in my area.” The idea was to create a network of builders to list on HDA's Web site, categorized by state, so consumers buying house plans could easily find builders in their area. In addition, this allows free publicity for builders looking for consumers who are ready to build a new home.
Adding to the publicity gathered from the Locate-A-Builder network, HDA provides exclusive benefits to participating builders including free ground shipping, 10% off home plan orders, discounted material lists and HDA Estimating software, free home plan publications with quarterly newsletter, and a toll-free builder line for fast and easy customer service access.
“The Builder’s Advantage program is a win-win for homebuilders because it gives them connections to HDA customers free of charge, and on top of that, gives them a variety of discounts and benefits exclusive to members,” said James Bartley, HDA Design Supervisor.
Joining the program is a simple process. Through houseplansandmore.com, users can click on the Builder’s Advantage Program icon and follow the instructions to obtain their username and password.
As one of the leading pre-drawn home plan companies, HDA strives for excellence in the industry. They offer more than 15,000 house plans available for purchase on their Web site, from the nations top designers and architects. From cottage to mansion, traditional to contemporary, HDA has every desirable home plan feature covered. And with user-friendly search features allowing customers to search by house style, size, and estimated-cost-build the task becomes simplified for builders looking to expand their collection of homes.
For more information on the Builder’s Advantage program, and to view the countless pre-drawn home plans they offer, please visit www.houseplansandmore.com, or call 1-877-BILD HDA (245-3432).
St. Louis (Dec. 1, 2007) – The art of designing a top-selling home plan is a balancing act of creative flair, knowledge of construction and knowing peoples’ needs. Lawrence Rigg, Senior Residential Designer for HDA, Inc. has mastered this art. With a career spanning four decades, Rigg incorporates valuable experience with an eye for savvy design into every one of his plans.
Rigg came to HDA, a St. Louis-based book publishing and distribution company, in 1995 after 33 years of designing for a St. Louis homebuilding firm and several architectural firms in St. Louis and on the East Coast. In nearly 13 years with HDA, he has designed more than 250 home and project plans, many of which are consistently on the best-seller list. Rigg possesses the ability to continually produce stunning designs that create trends in the home industry.
“What is enjoyable for me and seems most rewarding in sales, is not to stray too far from the basics and widely accepted plan designs that buyers want most, but to create and incorporate in them, useful and eye-catching features they’re not likely to see in other plans,” Rigg says. “This may be an extra small room used as a second office or hobby room near the kitchen, a master bath with its own private exterior environment, a separate room for a shop or garden storage as part of the garage area or perhaps that much needed fourth bedroom in a small plan that one might not expect. One of these features could be the one thing that most excites the shopper and creates the plan sale,” he says.
Rigg exerts the same focus to the exterior design of a home plan. “If it lacks eye appeal, it will be passed over quickly, so that first impression means everything,” he says. “Proper balance and composition of spaces and fenestration along with placement and use of various materials all help to create that ‘certain sense of rightness’ in design. Small details such as fascia board widths, wood window surrounds, porch post sizing and even the proper size and placement of lighting fixtures can be essential in creating that ‘winning’ design,” Rigg explains.
Rigg also stays on top of industry trends and integrates them into his new home designs. In the near future he plans to create additional homes for the physically challenged and homes that excel in energy-efficiency.
Rigg brings an unparalleled level of expertise and insight to HDA’s vast collection of home plans. His designs are a part of more than 15,000 home plans found on www.houseplansandmore.com and in custom home plan books. HDA’s pre-drawn house plans come from the nation’s top designers and include everything from small cottages to expansive mansions and styles ranging from traditional to contemporary.
For more information on HDA, Inc. and to view the countless pre-drawn home and project plans they offer, please visit www.houseplansandmore.com or call 1-800-373-2646.
ST. LOUIS – Oct. 4, 2007 – A common theme among anyone deciding to build a home is value. Obtaining the American Dream is a huge investment, possibly the biggest of most people’s lifetime. Therefore, when making the decision to build, it is wise to investigate all possible avenues, including the world of pre-drawn home plans or "stock plans." HDA, Inc., a premier home plan company, offers thousands of best-selling home designs available at everyone’s fingertips.
Stock home plans represent a terrific value to those deciding to build their own home. While it can take an architect months to complete a custom design, HDA has plans available that a customer can purchase and obtain a building permit for within a matter of days. In addition to time saved, custom drawings may cost up to 10 times more than a comparable stock home plan. These plans are created to include the most sought after home features, and with thousands to choose from, it is easy to find a home design with all of the amenities desired.
"Planning ahead in anything always pays, so it should be no surprise that purchasing pre-drawn plans have countless advantages," said Larry Rigg, Senior Designer for HDA. "Knowing exactly what your plans are going to cost and what you're going to build before you start eliminates unpleasant and costly surprises."
HDA features more than 15,000 home plans available for purchase on their Web site, www.houseplansandmore.com. With that sheer volume, one might feel a bit overwhelmed to begin their search. But with user-friendly search features, including searching by home style, size and estimated cost-to-build, the task becomes a breeze. The site also offers a Photo Gallery, allowing a virtual tour of many homes built from HDA's pre-drawn plans.
HDA’s site makes the buyer’s final decision even simpler by allowing users to add plans to a "favorites" list and then compare all their favorites at a glance. And, if a customer finds a plan that is almost perfect but needs a few adjustments, the stock plans are able to be modified through HDA's easy "Customize Your Home Plan" service located in the site’s Resource Center.
"I spent many months searching for the 'right house' to build on my property. HDA's design was the ideal plan for my life," said HDA customer Victoria LaPlace.
Deciding to build a home is a huge undertaking that pays off with a lot of research. HDA, Inc. strives to make this as easy and painless a process as possible. Their streamlined Web site offers numerous articles filled with advice from taking the initial steps to choosing interior decorations, and their dedicated Customer Service staff is available for any questions that may arise.
For more information on HDA, Inc. and to view the countless pre-drawn home plans they offer, please visit www.houseplansandmore.com, or call 1-800-373-2646.
ST. LOUIS – Sept. 25, 2007 – As giant retailer Macy’s (NYSE:M) begins its launch of the Martha Stewart Collection, St. Louis-based publication distribution company HDA, Inc. will introduce Martha Stewart books into the Housewares department of Macy’s, among other titles. HDA is one of the largest category managers of books and magazines in the country.
Under the new agreement, HDA will supply Martha Stewart book titles to 671 Macy’s Home stores. The Martha Stewart book program will be fully operational in October.
With consumer interest in gourmet food and food preparation at an all-time high, Macy’s is also beefing up its cookbook departments in 115 stores across the country, with HDA’s assistance. These stores will feature a line of 48 best-selling cookbooks, including titles by well-known celebrity chefs such as Rachel Ray, Bobby Flay and Paula Dean. The expanded departments will also include cookbooks from Macy’s Culinary Council of Chefs, a group of high profile chefs that consults with Macy’s to provide guidance on food and cooking trends. Macy’s Culinary Council Chefs include Tyler Florence, Dave Lieberman, Cat Cora and Nancy Silverton. HDA will select titles, handle negotiations with publishers, track inventory and manage special point-of-sale promotions for these stores.
HDA, which handles book and magazine management for other industry giants such as Lowe’s, Michaels and Bed, Bath & Beyond, plans to leverage its relationships with major publishing houses to enable Macy’s to offer one of the most comprehensive cookbook collections in the department store industry.
“We selected HDA to handle our book programs within our stores because of their ability to deliver a completely turnkey program,” says Chris John, Vice President of Housewares at Macy’s. “Instead of dealing with dozens of publishers and complex contracts, we now have only one vendor. We expect book sales to represent a significant contribution to our home goods revenue within a very short time period. ”
“Creative merchandising has been one of the keys to our success,” says Michael Kirchwehm, Vice-President, Sales and Marketing at HDA. HDA employs a field merchandising team of more than 1,000 employees to ensure promotions are executed smoothly. “For example, as the holiday season nears, our sales people will make sure that Martha Stewart Baking is available in the bakeware merchandise section, in addition to being available in the main book area. These types of placements encourage impulse buying,” says Kirchwehm. “We study the trends and research, utilize the feedback we receive from our in-store teams, and are nimble enough to react quickly on behalf of our customers. Books that aren’t selling are quickly phased out and are replaced with the next best sellers. It’s our business to know the trends, so our customers don’t have to invest their resources tracking the publishing industry and changing consumer tastes.”