Retail Observer

RETAILOBSERVER.COM OCTOBER 2016 68 B U Y I N G G R O U P N E W S BRANDSOURCE TAPS ANITRA BRASE AS GLOBAL LEADERSHIP UNIT DIRECTOR On June 1, AVB/BrandSource promoted Anitra Brase to global leadership unit director. Anitra brings an uncommon blend of tireless dedication and valuable experience to a crucial role within the company. In her new position, she will act as BrandSource CEO Jim Ristow's virtual chief of staff in the overseeing of executive team projects and operations. Enthusiastic about her new role and responsibilities, Anitra hopes to have a transformative effect upon the company's future through her administrative post. "I want to create an entirely new member experience, a new culture from A-Z, for AVB staff and employees," she says. Prior to her new position, Anitra was appliance program, channel director at BrandSource for eight years. In this capacity, she worked with members to grow their retail businesses through the use of program advantages, business consulting, and marketing strategies. Anitra demonstrated her mettle by taking on the additional responsibilities of hiring manager, events planner, and developer of the company's weekly newsletter. Before being recruited by BrandSource, Anitra was a residential real estate appraiser and owner of ANC Appraisal in San Diego. Anitra currently works out of BrandSource's office in Tustin, California. She is married with two children. In her spare time, Anitra volunteers as a coach leader for the children's ministry at Saddleback Church in Lake Forest, CA. She is also the committee co-chair for the Vista del Mar PTA where she coordinates fundraising and events planning efforts. GIVING BACK TO ONE'S COMMUNITY: THE BRANDSOURCE WAY In the ever-changing world of the retail appliance industry where a store's fortunes can change dramatically, the act of giving back to the community is often ignored in the face of impressive showrooms and shiny new appliances. For some businesses, the occasional charitable donation or perhaps the yearly appliance giveaway may inspire some fleeting goodwill among the residents of their community. It is our hope at BrandSource that our dealers do more than just provide a token gesture of generosity within the towns and cities that they live in. The opportunity for the employees of BrandSource dealers to interact with their community and perhaps donate free appliances to a local cause is indeed a privilege. In the oftentimes impersonal retail appliance industry, independent dealers distinguish themselves by knowing their customers by their first names and never missing a chance to give back to the very people whose business they depend on. Recently, a number of BrandSource dealers did just that. In June, Midwest TV and Appliance of La Crosse, Wisconsin hosted the 5th Annual Ribberfest for the Boys and Girls Club of Greater La Crosse in order to showcase the rib cooking talents of local chefs as well as the capabilities of the Big Green Egg barbecue grill. The top winner of the cooking contest took home a grand prize of $ 500 while the proceeds for the combination cook-off and taste test all went to the Boys and Girls Club. Elsewhere, in Hampton, Virginia, East Coast Appliance donated the new Frigidaire appliance package to the winner of the WVEC Mother's Day Kitchen Makeover Sweepstakes. Inspiring mom Angela Deberry was awarded a refrigerator, stove, dishwasher, and microwave. Ron Nicholson, owner and president of East Coast Appliance, was on hand when the prizes were delivered to the deserving mom. Not to be outdone, Aaron's Inc. of Atlanta announced its Aaron's "Own Your Summer" Camp Scholarship Program, which provided 100 underserved youths from Georgia, Louisiana, Massachusetts, North Carolina, and Tennessee with scholarships to attend overnight summer camp. The scholarships were made possible through Aaron's Foundation, Inc., which donated $10,000 each to five camps in the five states to make the program possible. Aaron's Foundation, Inc. is committed to strengthening the communities in which Aaron's operates with an emphasis on improving the lives of at-risk youths. It is the hope of the foundation that their time at camp gives them the chance to develop friendships and learn needed life-skills. The actions of these BrandSource dealers are indicative of our membership's desire to be involved with their communities and its willingness to lend time to charitable causes. It is opportunities like this when the BrandSource family of independent retailers can make a real difference among the residents of the town and cities it calls home. RO A N I T R A B R A S E

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