In these tough economic times, everyone’s trying to think of ways to boost their bottom lines. And three furniture store owners were recently rewarded for their innovative ideas that were designed to save money or increase revenue.

Every year, the National Home Furnishings Association asks its members to submit their money-saving or money-generating ideas. This year, ideas were due by May 14, and awards were presented at the ‘Best Idea’ luncheon at the 2008 All-Industry convention at the Atlantis Paradise Island in the Bahamas.

“The Best Idea luncheon gives our members a chance to exchange proven ideas and strategies with their peers,” explains Doug Kays, NHFA president. “It’s a fun, roundtable format that generates great ideas and discussions. Over the years it has become one of the NHFA’s most popular events.”

This year’s winners were David Harkness of Harkness Furniture in Tacoma, WA; Doug Wolf of Wolf Furniture in Bellwood, PA; and Mike Spiller of Spiller Furniture in Tuscaloosa, AL. Harkness won $500 for his idea, and Wolf and Spiller won $250 each.

David Harkness’ idea falls into the “save money” category. His idea was to create health savings accounts for his employees, instead of paying for traditional health care plans for them. The health savings accounts work like 401Ks, where both the employeer and the employee contribute toward the account. The account earns tax-free interest, and the employee can donate to the account pre-tax, too. Harkness set up health savings accounts for his 38 employees in 2006, and the company’s gross cost for medical expenses dropped from $309.38 to $211.96 per employee.

“We’ve found a way of saving money and keeping people insured,” said John Opland, Sales Manager for Harkness Furniture. “I think it’s been a win-win for both the associates and the store.”

Wolf’s idea helped save his furniture stores money, too. Wolf changed the hours that his nine furniture stores were open to 11 a.m. to 8 p.m., which helped cut energy costs by operating the stores during non-peak hours. The furniture stores received positive media coverage for the switch, and the company posted signs on its doors touting how much it was saving in energy costs.

The third place idea from Spiller wasn’t much of a revenue generator, but it has generate some excitement among the staff at the Spiller Furniture stores, which are located in Alabama and Mississippi. Spiller’s idea is broken into two parts, both of which are intended to motivate employees. First, Spiller wanted a way to keep his sales people paying attention when furniture company sales representatives would come to talk about products.

“If the presenter is not very dynamic, we oftentimes drift off and think of other things,” Spiller said.

So Spiller decided to let employees put their name in a jar, and at the end of the meeting, a name is pulled out of the jar and the person has to answer three questions about what was discussed at the meeting. If the employee can answer the questions correctly, they win $100.

They can also ask another employee for help, and if that employee helps answer the question, they have to split the money.

Spiller said that has the added benefit of showing management which employees are really on top of their game.

“The payoff is [we can tell] who believes in who,” Spiller said.

The second idea Spiller had was to get more employees to reach their monthly sales goals and collection goals. So Spiller decided to give $100 to each employee who meets or exceed his or her monthly goals, and each employee has to pay $2.50 each month to be eligible to win the bonus. Spiller said the program has increased motivation among his staff to meet their goals.

“People look forward to it,” he said. “They have a goal, and they like to get the extra bonus.”

In addition to the three winning ideas, here are some more “best ideas” that were submitted from other furniture store retailers:

1. Eliminate the costly practice of having two locations for customer pick-up
From: Joe Quintal, Rotman’s Furniture

2. Partner with manufacturers to create a national “Win a Room Full” Web-based contest for consumers
From: Jerry Wingate, Micro D

3. Put a store logo on an eye-catching, eco-friendly “smart car”
From: John Wells, Wells Home Furnishings

4. Create an incentive plan for warehouse employees and employees of the furniture store’s third-party delivery agent
From: Mike Horrobin, Tepperman’s

5. Developing designer notebooks based on the main styles sold in the store
From: Leslie Carothers, The Kaleidoscope Partnership

6.: Design unique ads that feature a “bobble-head” figure
From: Wil Schock, Schocks Furniture Crafters

7. Target the bridal industry by sponsoring a bridal fair at the store
From: Bob Sherman, Serta Mattress Company

8. Give each piece of furniture sold a birth certificate
From: Phil Mandeville, American West/ZLN

9. Educate and encourage store managers about the power of leading with a positive attitude
From: George Kaftan, Carls Furniture