Moen Hosts It’s Second Annual INSPIRE Seminar

They say that "Everything's Bigger in Texas" and that proved to be true at Moen's second annual INSPIRE design seminar. The company welcomed 250 Showroom Consultants and Builder Design Studio Consultants to San Antonio September 12-14 for a sold-out conference covering everything from the latest design trends to marketing to women.

"We were thrilled at the response we received for this year's INSPIRE seminar - the event sold out within a few days," said Margie Rowe, Moen's Target Market Manager. "Our goal at INSPIRE is to provide an open atmosphere of learning, discovering and sharing, and this event has grown to be a recognized - and even sought out - conference within the industry."

Guests were welcomed on Monday afternoon with a cocktail reception and "Hats Off to San Antonio" ice breaker in which teams of 10-15 individuals were sent on a scavenger hunt throughout the city to discover items at historic San Antonio landmarks. During their journey, the designers gathered whimsical decorations at locations ranging from the Alamo to the River Walk and then returned to decorate a Texas-style hat with their findings. The winning hats were displayed proudly by the teams during an evening fashion show.

On Tuesday, guests had the opportunity to attend a number of breakout sessions. These informative seminars featured nationally renowned speakers and included topics such as: "Becoming a Customer Service Star," "Kitchen and Bath Trends," "Selling and Marketing to Women," and a "Moen 2005 Product Showcase."

The highlight of Tuesday's activities was the keynote luncheon speaker, Joan Kohn. This celebrity designer, writer and associate producer of Home & Garden Television's Kitchen Design and Bed & Bath Design series, spoke to the capacity crowd about her favorite kitchen and bath designs - and what inspires her. Many of the projects she discussed were featured in her popular book, It's Your Kitchen, Over 1,000 Inspirational Kitchens.

INSPIRE wrapped-up on Wednesday with specific seminars geared to each professional group in attendance. Showroom consultants attended a breakout entitled, "Turning Today's Showroom Challenges Into Tomorrow's Opportunities," while Builder Design Studio Consultants met with industry experts at the "How to Create the Ultimate Design Studio Experience" seminar.

Ending the event was Joel Zeff, a comedian and motivational speaker who put a humorous twist on how to make the workplace a more positive environment. He invited attendees onstage to participate in interactive games and activities that showed how letting your guard down and being open to change allows true teamwork to be achieved.

"The feedback we have received from our attendees has been phenomenal," added Rowe. "We are thankful for the opportunity to meet with so many prominent industry professionals at one time, and we value their thoughts and opinions. We are already looking ahead to INSPIRE 2006, and how we can continue inspiring these outstanding designers and consultants."