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Vertisol Internacional Earns ISO Registration Vertilux Ltd., Miami, FL, announces its parent company, Vertisol Internacional S.R.L., Barcelona, Spain, has received a Certificate of Registration to ISO 9001 standards. Vertisol Internacional manufactures woven fabrics under the stringent requirements of the certification. The company earned the ISO registration in less then a year, which normally is a long and complicated process. The ISO program has been developed by the International Organization for Standardization (ISO), based in Geneva, Switzerland. In order to pass the registration audit process, a company must document its quality management system and provide evidence that it is prepared to follow that documented system. After achieving registration, the company is subject to continuing reviews and audits in order to maintain certification. Out of the three levels of ISO 9000 standards, Vertisol Internacional has acheived registration for the most rigorous, the ISO 9001. Virtually all elements of a company's system are audited, including design, production and service. Registration to ISO 9001 quality standards has become an international benchmark of quality management in manufacturing. Safety Contest Underway 3 Day Blinds, an Anaheim, CA-based window coverings retailer, is looking for a name for its Ambassador of Child Safety, a life-size character that will travel across the country to promote child safety in the home. To find a name, the company is holding a contest open to children age 12 and under. The contest runs through May 15. The grand prize winner will receive a free vacation to Universal Studios/ Hollywood with his or her family. "We've used this simple drawing for the past two years to promote all of our child safety activities," said Kelly Reed, vice president of marketing. "This year we're actually having a costumed character created to interact with kids, because we think this will be an even stronger means to get the home safety message across." 3 Day Blinds has expanded its community education program for 1998. It plans cooperative efforts with children's hospitals and other organizations benefiting children and participation in charitable and special child safety events to heighten awareness of child safety matters. Window Coverings Motor Honored The Model 44 window treatment motor from Add-a-Motor, Inc., Fairfax, VA, has been selected as a Top 50 Editors' Pick for 1998 by Popular Home Automation magazine. The selection will be announced officially in the magazine's April 1998 issue. A company spokesman says the notoriety is due to the fact "it appeals to a very large audience because it easily attaches to new or existing draperies, vertical blinds and large shades." Incentive Program Wins Crystal Award An incentive program by Hunter Douglas Window Fashions, Upper Saddle River, NJ, has been named a winner of the 1997 Society of Incentive & Travel Executives (SITE) Crystal Awards Program. Hunter Douglas won in the category "Most Creative Use of Incentive Travel to Achieve a Marketing Objective." The campaign, "Windows to the World," was created by Michael Hurwitz, president of United Incentives, Inc., Philadelphia, PA. For the program, travel awards were selected as the most effective motivator for retailers involved in a reward-for-performance scenario. Windows to the World involved 32 pieces, each customized for the 29 Hunter Douglas fabricators, including videotapes, theme letterhead, a newsletter and four-part destination mailings. The SITE Crystal Awards were established in 1980 as a means of recognizing the unique blending of objectives and imagination that enable motivational programs to be successful in achieving business ojbectives. Shutter Training Program Slated Nanik, Wausau, WI, announces the 1998 schedule for its Shutter Installation Certification program. The course will be held in Wausau April 20 to 22; June 8 to 10; August 17 to 19; and October 18-21. The three-day training program includes a full day of hands-on installation in addition to demonstrations of most shutter openings, both basic and complex. Also included are tours of the Nanik facilities, a features/benefits presentation, measuring exercises, review of order forms and selling ideas. Upon successful completion of the course, registrants are presented with Authorized Nanik Installer certificates and become a part of the company's referral listing. Plant Tour Scheduled Window Fashions, Inc., Cheswick, PA, is opening its facilities for a plant tour to be hosted by Rose Webb. Scheduled for Tuesday, May 5, the tour will provide participants an opportunity to see how hard window treatments are manufactured. Meeting Sets Goals for 1998 Upgrading the image of wallpaper and bringing it into the 21st century was the central theme of the 1997 sales meeting at Imperial Wallcoverings, Inc., Cleveland, OH. More than 100 of the company's sales staff from across the country attended the meeing held in December. The company used the session to annouce its sales, merchandising and marketing communications objectives based on making it the acknowledged industry leader through building brand awareness and brand loyalty. Central to Imperial's plans to update the industry is its desire to make wallpaper easily accessbile in a warm, upscale retail environment. It introduced its Imperial Gallery, a new retailing concept allowing consumers to select products from a store-within-a-store fixture designed to inspire fresh interest in wallpaper. The Gallery presents a comprehensive, yet simplified way to shop for wallpaper¬by lifestyle, by room, by color¬in a display that can be as small as 400 linear feet or as large as 4,000 square feet. Quality Work Force Top Concern Attracting and retaining quality personnel is a key concern for retailers, according to the 1998 Strategic Logistics Survey conducted by Kurt Salmon Associates for the International Mass Retail Association (IMRA). The study, presented at IMRA's 14th Annual Logistics Conference in Phoenix, AZ, found that on average retailers must review seven applicants to find one permanent associate. The study suggests, however, that one important factor in attracting and retaining quality workers is a company's culture. Retail logistics executives, facing stiff competition and a shrinking work force, say competitive compensation is only the starting point in attracting employees; organizational environment is the key to retaining them.