HIGH POINT, N.C. — WithIt, the women’s leadership association for the furnishings and design industry, has announced the full speaker lineup and program details for its upcoming “Forging Strong Leaders” conference, Aug. 12-14 in Kansas City, Missouri.
Mary Messner, a TEDx presenter, author and strategic adviser, will open the conference with “The Leader Who Thinks Differently: Creativity as a Daily Practice for People, Performance and Purpose.” Messner is the creator of the Help Me Think Through This method and The Highline Framework, tools she developed to help leaders cut through noise and move stalled conversations forward. Her keynote frames creativity as a daily leadership practice rather than a one-time exercise, challenging audiences to recognize inherited thinking patterns and build new ones.
Clarence H. Smith, executive chairman of Havertys Furniture Cos. Inc., will deliver “Reflections on a Career With Purpose.” Smith has spent more than 52 years with Havertys, serving as both president and chief executive officer. He led the company’s transformation into a specialty branded retailer and guided its growth to more than 129 stores across 17 states.
Lorri Kelley, CEO and founder of Lorri Kelley Advisors, will present “T.R.A.C.T.I.O.N.: Methods for Business Mastery,” a session on execution, daily discipline and building a thriving company culture. Kelley also leads a pre-conference workshop on the Clifton StrengthsFinder assessment.
Velera Wilson, a global speaker, author and founder of Positive Identity, will close the keynote slate with “Braving Change: Resilient Through Disruption.” Wilson draws on more than 20 years of leadership experience, including roles at AT&T and Fiserv, and is the author of the award-winning book “You’re Absolutely Worth It.”
The conference program also includes two panel discussions, “Prevent the Career Plateau” and “The Other Glass Ceiling,” along with a roundtable on artificial intelligence titled “IRL (In-Real-Life) AI,” addressing leadership, authenticity, boundaries and productivity pressure in the AI era. Breakout sessions include tracks for retailers, marketing professionals and team builders.
Pre-conference options include a Strengths Finders workshop with Lorri Kelley of Lorri Kelley Advisors, a hands-on AI workshop led by Nora Gomez of Next Generation Growth and Bree Cassidy of Howard Elliott, and a retail tour of the Furniture Mall of Kansas and Living Spaces for attendees who arrive early.
“All our programming decisions have been made with our attendees in mind,” said Paris Gholston, Mattress Recycling Council and conference co-chair. “The committee has put deep thought into selecting topics that will educate, inspire and challenge professionals from the entire industry. We hope everyone leaves feeling refreshed, connected and better equipped to make an impact in their roles.”
WithIt continues to offer the Kathi Cunningham Memorial Conference Scholarship, which covers the registration fee for the Annual Professional Conference. The organization is accepting nominations and self-nominations now. Nominees do not need to be WithIt members.
Registration is open at withit.org/event/2026-professional-conference. Member tickets are $595, corporate member tickets are $550, guest tickets are $795 and student tickets are $225. A discounted hotel room block is available at the InterContinental Hotel Kansas City for $179 per night through July 15.
The WithIt conference and the organization’s mission to provide leadership education is supported by major home furnishings brands, including Tempur Sealy, Serta Simmons, Manwah, Jola Interactive, J.B. Hunt Final Mile, Kuka Home, Furnitureland South, Synchrony, American First Finance, Furniture First, Havertys, La-Z-Boy Inc., Furniture Today, Steinreich Communications, Dallas Market Center, Universal Furniture and The Furniture Foundation.
