Centiva's Departing Trissl Thanks Customers

Florence, AL, April 1, 2013 -- Thomas Trissl is leaving Centiva.

Trissl, the firm's president, and owner until he sold to Tarkett in 2010, outlined the history of the company and its accomplishments in a letter to customers. He also thanked customers for their ongoing support.

"I have always felt that our purpose in the end was beyond floor tile," Trissl said.

Trissl recalled that he incorporated International Floors of America, Inc. on May 10, 1996 in Atlanta.

"At that time, I was a fresh immigrant, literally just jumping off the boat from Germany. I had the dream of every immigrant, to make things happen in America. I drove to Florence, Alabama to visit a company that I knew my father used to buy flooring from years ago. With a bit of luck, I got my hands on this company. So the journey of Centiva began."

He said that for many years, Centiva was a very small player in an industry dominated by much larger organizations.

"Our smaller size helped us though to develop the intimacy with our clients that separated us from other companies. We felt pride in our custom capabilities, our agility in tough situations, and our knowledge of the changing needs of our customers.

Trissl noted that Centiva may be one of the few companies that over its life produced increasing amounts of its product in the U.S. rather than overseas. He also said he was proud of the company's sustainability efforts, partly through improved production technology.

Trissl said he's not retiring and has other projects planning inside and outside the flooring industry.