What We Do

About AHFA

As the only trade association serving the U.S. residential furniture industry, the American Home Furnishings Alliance is the premier authority on all health, safety, environmental, fashion and business information related to home furnishings.

Headquartered in the Furniture Capital of the World, High Point, North Carolina, AHFA represents more than 200 of the industry’s leading manufacturers and importers. Our members manage a sophisticated global supply chain that includes operations in 31 states and dozens of foreign countries, providing nearly $20 billion in wholesale shipments of home furnishings products every year for U.S. households.

These companies produce both indoor and outdoor home furnishings, along with a variety of home accents. Although some of our member companies also produce products for business, commercial and institutional settings, their primary focus is on the residential market.

The mission of AHFA is to promote the growth and global leadership of its member companies by:
- Providing exceptional advocacy;
- Promoting effective product and safety standards;
- Presenting relevant education; and
- Serving as the preeminent media resource on industry news and trends.

We’re here to serve you!

AHFA exists only to be of service to the members. Please don’t hesitate to call on any of our staff members any time you have a question or a thought about how we might serve you better.

Andy Counts

Andy Counts is Chief Executive Officer of the American Home Furnishings Alliance. He oversees the High Point, N.C.-based staff and the daily operations of the Alliance. In addition, he serves as the industry’s representative on Capitol Hill and elsewhere throughout the United States on legislative and regulatory matters that impact the manufacturing, import and marketing of residential furniture. Prior to joining AHFA as vice president of environmental and technical affairs, Counts served as a project engineer with Malcolm Pirnie Inc. in Charlotte, N.C., a plant engineer with Merillat Industries, and a senior environmental engineer with the Virginia Department of Environmental Quality. He has a degree in industrial engineering from the Georgia Institute of Technology.

336-884-5000 ext. 0115
acounts@ahfa.us

Patricia Bowling

Patricia Bowling is AHFA’s Vice President of Communications. Since 2000, she has overseen all print and web-based communications for AHFA, including the Furniture Executive monthly membership newsletter, all emailed bulletins and alerts, and all press releases pertaining to AHFA educational events and programs, legislative activities and regulatory updates. She writes AHFA’s annual Year in Review, orchestrates Furniture Safety Week in October and responds to all business and consumer press inquiries throughout the year, providing journalists with valuable background, data and insights to help strengthen their reporting on the industry. She graduated from Indiana University with degrees in journalism and religious studies.

336-881-1006
pbowling@ahfa.us

Gene Clark

Gene Clark is AHFA’s Vice President of Membership and Associate Member Relations. In addition to expanding AHFA membership and supporting the membership base, he heads up AHFA’s Solution Partners division. Clark brings more than 35 years of experience in the home furnishings industry to his role. In addition to early sales and management positions at Vaughan-Bassett and Bassett Furniture, he was President of U.S. Operations for Ligna Furniture from 2006 to 2013. Since 2013, he has been a managing partner of My Home Furnishings, a youth bedroom source.

336-881-1002
gene@ahfa.us

Jackie Hirschhaut

As Executive Director of the International Casual Furnishings Association (ICFA), the AHFA subsidiary dedicated to the outdoor furniture industry, Jackie Hirschhaut oversees all operations for this powerful coalition of manufacturers, importers, retailers, designers, sales representatives and suppliers. She serves as the industry’s primary liaison with trade show management to ensure a successful Casual Market Atlanta each summer and fall. She further produces ICFA’s Annual Educational Conference and orchestrates an extensive roster of programs and activities for the diverse membership, including annual industry awards recognizing excellence in product design, retailing, manufacturing and customer service among others. She is also AHFA’s Vice President of Public Relations and Marketing and produces AHFA’s Annual Meeting and CEO Conference each November. She graduated from the University of Rhode Island with degrees in journalism and marketing.

336-881-1016
hirschhaut@aol.com

Bill Perdue

Bill Perdue is AHFA’s Vice President of Regulatory Affairs. He serves as the industry’s primary liaison with ASTM, the U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency and all other state and federal agencies that address environmental, health and safety issues, as well as all technical standards and regulations impacting furniture manufacturers and importers. A graduate of the University of South Carolina with a degree in political science, Perdue has more than 30 years of experience dealing with regulatory issues in the furniture industry.

336-881-1017
bperdue@ahfa.us

Siri Scott

Siri Scott is the Director of Programs and Engagement for the International Casual Furnishings Association (ICFA), AHFA’s subsidiary dedicated to the outdoor furnishings industry. In her role, she works across all categories of ICFA membership – manufacturers/importers, retailers, sale representatives, designers and suppliers – to enhance the value of membership, while also endeavoring to expand ICFA’s influence globally. She holds a degree in psychology from the University of North Carolina Greensboro and has extensive experience in strategic marketing and communications management.

336-881-1036
sscott@icfanet.org

Nicholas Spino

Nicholas Spino is AHFA’s Website & Digital Communications Manager. He oversees AHFA’s website and internal database system while also managing AHFA’s various social media accounts. He is tasked with enhancing AHFA’s website content and refining AHFA’s social media presence to improve overall member engagement. He previously worked as Coordinator of Electronic Communications at High Point University, where he developed email campaigns and managed website content and social media for Offices of Family Engagement, Annual Giving and Alumni Engagement. He graduated from High Point University with a Bachelor of Arts degree in communications.

336-881-1003
nspino@ahfa.us

Alex Williams

Alex Williams is AHFA’s Sustainability & Regulatory Compliance Programs Manager. His primary responsibilities include refining existing sustainability and regulatory compliance programs as well as identifying opportunities for expansion. He also spearheads the planning of AHFA’s annual Regulatory Summit and assists with various AHFA technical task groups. Williams comes to AHFA from the Rome Floyd Chamber of Commerce in Rome, Georgia, where he served as the Director of Workforce & Government Affairs. Before his time at the Chamber, Williams worked for Herschel Walker’s U.S. Senate Campaign as a top aide and the political director during the 2022 primary election. Prior to that, he worked at the Mississippi Development Authority and served in the administration of Mississippi Governor Phil Bryant. He has a Bachelor of Arts degree in public policy leadership from the University of Mississippi and has voluminous experience in economic and workforce development, legislative affairs and political campaigns at the local, state, and federal levels.

336-881-1010
awilliams@ahfa.us

Donna Garcia

Executive Assistant for Human Resources, Membership, Communications, Solution Partners and Specialized Furniture Carriers

336-881-1035
dgarcia@ahfa.us

Michele Morris

Executive Assistant for Public Relations and Marketing Director of Operations for International Casual Furnishings Association

336-881-1001
mmorris@ahfa.us, mmorris@icfanet.org