President's message: 2013 Home Show a huge success!

I'm pleased but not surprised to report that the Rhode Island Builders Association's 2013 Home Show was a huge success! It will be a while before the final numbers are in, but everyone who participated commented on the crowds, the enthusiasm and the positive spirit that permeated the event. Member involvement in the Home Show has made for a tremendous improvement over the last two years. Ron Smith and the Home Show committee (Cheryl Boyd, Elizabeth Carpenter, Karen Corinha, Lou Cotoia. Joe Cracco, Carol O'Donnell and Bob Yoffe) did an outstanding job and came up with some great new ideas. They all point, me included, to the tireless work and encouragement of John Marcantonio, our young and dynamic executive director! And Bob Yoffe did his usual great job as our show producer. We also couldn't have had such success without the help of our member volunteers. They helped staff the model home, control crowds, hand out literature for our Builders Helping Heroes (BHH) charity, and much more. Then there were our member exhibitors, who were at the forefront of their annual marketing by presenting their products and services to the thousands of enthusiastic Home Show visitors. I myself spent many hours at and near the RIBA booth at the show entrance, telling visitors about BHH. There was a huge and steady stream of people, especially over the weekend. If you didn't exhibit this year, plan to do so next year. RIBA makes the process easy, and there are financial incentives. Watch for more information about the 2014 Home Show. Whether you took advantage of the Home Show or not, you will have another chance to showcase your business on May 8th at Rhodes on the Pawtuxet in Cranston, where RIBA's 2nd Annual Table-Top Networking Night will take place. Those who were there last year were so excited that they wanted to have the event more than once a year! With the Home Show behind us, we now turn our full attention to the 2013 General Assembly session and a beneficial outcome for the residential construction industry. All things considered, there's still a long way to go, but things are looking up! This is the time to use your RIBA membership benefits to make your business better and more prosperous, and to prepare for busier days to come. If you're not a member of this, your trade association, or have a colleague who isn't, help them and yourself by doing a little recruiting! Visit www.ribuilders.org. Felix Carlone is the president of the Rhode Island Builders Assn.Felix Carlone, F.A. Carlone & Sons