The Cabinet Makers Association brought back its regional meetings in 2015 with success, so this year there will be more.

“We hosted two events last fall in northern New Jersey and Chicago and those were very successful so our board of directors decided we should continue offering them,” executive director Jim McDermott says.

The events, which were once a part of the CMA’s annual agenda, were re-introduced last year with the goal of enhancing members’ business endeavors through educational and networking opportunities.

McDermott, a founding board member of the CMA and a past president, began his second term as executive director last spring. In order to improve member services, he proposed having regional networking meetings and educational sessions for members and potential members to share information and attend shop tours.

“These plans go back to why we started the association in 1998, which was because cabinetmakers like to get together and discuss business and how they’re going to make their shops better. The reason they’re successful is that everyone leaves with more information about how to be better at what they do,” he says.

Despite the events being labeled as regional, McDermott observes that geographical closeness is not necessarily a concern for those who just want to attend.

“For the New Jersey event, we had people from Chicago, California and Vancouver. People fly in to see these events.”

This year, regional events are tentatively scheduled near Dallas, Boston and LaCrosse, Wis. For dates and updates, visit www.cabinetmakers.org.

This article originally appeared in the February 2016 issue.