Three Exceptional Retail Businesses to be Honored

The Connecticut Retail Merchants Association (CRMA), the statewide association for Connecticut’s retail industry, is honoring three of Connecticut’s leading retail businesses for their responsiveness to customers, superior business practices and outstanding community involvement. The 2018 honorees are Tile America, Kloter Farms and CVS Health, which is in the midst of purchasing Hartford-based Aetna.

The awards will be presented on October 17 at the CRMA Annual Awards Luncheon, to be held at The Bushnell Center for the Performing Arts in Hartford.

Prior to awards ceremony, Connecticut gubernatorial candidates Ned Lamont, Bob Sefanowski and Oz Griebel will meet with Connecticut retailers to discuss their views on issues that impact the retail business community. The program featuring the candidates, which will include Q&A with retailers, begins at 10 a.m. The awards luncheon follows directly at Noon.

Tile America, with seven Connecticut locations - in Brookfield, Fairfield, Manchester, New Haven, New London, Stamford and West Hartford - is being recognized as the 2018 CRMA Retailer of the Year. Kloter Farms, located in Ellington, will receive the 2018 CRMA Family Retailer Award. CVS Health, to be presented with the 2018 CRMA National Retailer Award, has nearly 200 Connecticut locations.

“We are thrilled and honored to recognize these outstanding retailers. They embody all that is good about a successful retailer,” said Tim Phelan, president of CRMA. “That quickly becomes obvious to anyone who spends any time in these businesses, and is a constant with their many loyal, longstanding customers. We are proud to recognize their efforts in the retail business and their impact on the Connecticut community.”

Tile America is a 50-year-old Connecticut-based family business, specializing in tile and stone. Owner/President Brian Knies says the company promises to provide customers an “exceptional experience every time.” The business provides “all the benefits of being a large company . . . like buying power, great resources, and efficient distribution . . . but we have all the benefits of a being a small family business . . . like great service, personal relationships with our customers, and the ability to solve problems quickly, he adds. The company website is www.tileamerica.com

Kloter Farms specializes in durable outdoor structures and patio furniture and in heirloom-quality home furniture. The family-owned business, which features all American-made products, has a jingle familiar to Connecticut residents (“Come to Kloter Farms”) and a motto emphasizing that “Quality is the foundation on which we build.” Skilled furniture craftsmen, working in small woodshops across North America, build much of the custom solid wood furniture carried for their customers. The company website is www.kloterfarms.com

CVS Health, based in Woonsocket, Rhode Island, is the largest pharmacy health care provider in the U.S., including a sizable Connecticut presence, with more retail locations than Connecticut has towns. Beyond its substantial retail presence, CVS has been engaged since last December in an effort to purchase Aetna, headquartered in Hartford since 1853. Aetna

had previously announced plans to relocate its corporate offices to New York City, but CVS reversed those plans, indicating that Aetna would remain headquartered in Hartford, if the purchase – now being reviewed by the U.S. Department of Justice – goes forward. CVS announced a 10-year commitment to Hartford this week. Aetna has 5,800 jobs in Connecticut, including 4,000 in Hartford. Links to CVS locations in Connecticut is at https://www.cvs.com/store-locator/cvs-pharmacy-locations/Connecticut?stateName=Connecticut

The Annual Awards Luncheon brings together more than 200 people representing retail businesses throughout the state. Attendees will hear directly from leaders of the award-winning retailers, whose determination and resiliency have created jobs and economic impact in their local communities and the state.

In Connecticut, there are an estimated 472,518 jobs supported by retail businesses. Gross Domestic Product (GDP) impact is $34.2 billion – 14 percent of the state’s total GDP. “One out of every five people is supported by a job in retail,” Phelan said.

The session with gubernatorial candidates will mark the first time that nominees for Governor have directly addressed retailers – and retail business issues – and it comes just weeks prior to Election Day.

“We are extremely excited and proud to recognize these tremendous retailers,” said CRMA Board Chairman Tom Wholley, owner of Connecticut Mattress. “They represent the best in the Connecticut retail industry, and have achieved tremendous success by consistently working at providing their customers with the best shopping experience along with outstanding value and first rate customer service.”

The annual event is held at the Bushnell with catering by the Max Restaurant Group. Reservations can be made on the CRMA website at www.crmaonline.com.

CRMA is a statewide trade association that represents Connecticut retailers at the State Capitol and in the marketplace. The association’s members include more than 2,000 stores throughout the state, including some of the world's largest retailers as well as the state's main street merchants. To learn more about CRMA, visit www.crmaonline.com or call 860-527-1044.