Beaulieu's Mission: To Be the Best Carpet Manu

Las Vegas, NV, February 6, 2006-–Years ago, Beaulieu of America set out to become the best carpet manufacturer in the industry. At this year’s Surfaces, the firm took steps in delivering on that mission by hosting exclusive events for the media, its retail partners and its sales force. At a news conference before the official opening of the exhibits, Beaulieu demonstrated its commitment to understanding the mindsets of consumers and retailers. “Our existing collections have helped to greatly differentiate us from the competition on the sales floor, but we knew that in order for Beaulieu to truly be the best, we needed to take advantage of our insights on consumer needs, then infuse that learning into the development of products that are differentiated even more greatly in the marketplace,” said Ralph Boe, president of Beaulieu of America. To that end, earlier this year, Beaulieu commissioned an in-depth survey of both customers and retailers with the specific goal of learning carpet purchasing motivators. The survey was conducted by Frank Lane Ltd. of Atlanta, GA, whose clients also have included brands such as Microsoft, Johnson & Johnson and Pepsi. Beaulieu surveyed 2,245 homeowners across the United States who had purchased carpet during the past several years, using a blend of closed-ended and open-ended questions. Carpet salespeople, sales managers and retail store owners at the largest 1,000 Beaulieu retailers in the country also were randomly selected and surveyed. And "mystery shops" were conducted at an additional 50 retail outlets. Key findings included statistics such as 60% of consumers considered value to be their primary purchasing motivator. Between 45% and 50% of respondents were motivated by color and texture. And wear-resistance was cited to be of primary importance by more than 45% of respondents. Further, an emerging attribute appeared on the rankings: air freshness. Sales professionals indicated that they were frustrated by a “sea of sameness” in the industry, and that they wanted a little “sizzle” to their offer and desired to sell customers products they can feel good about, that would earn repeat businesses during the next buying cycle. Beaulieu's key consumer and retail insights were reflected in a significant product launch and line extensions. The firm unveiled a new collection and presented style additions to several popular lines at the news conference. Beaulieu introduced its new Fashion Essentials collection, which is composed of 20 new styles of carpet at an affordable price, and also features Magic Fresh, Beaulieu’s exclusive, self-renewing, odor-destroying carpet treatment. Additionally, Beaulieu presented five new styles for its Hollytex Ultimate Performance collection, which also features PermaSoft Plus and Magic Fresh, and then introduced dozens of new styles in its most popular collections, including Coronet Berbers, Coronet Classics, Hollytex Stainmaster Luxury Collection, Coronet Styled for Living, and Hollytex Commercial. Reflecting the firm's increased commitment to marketing, the company hired Domus, Inc., a full-service advertising agency based in Philadelphia, PA, with extensive experience in flooring, and whose executive management has handled key industry launches for Stainmaster, Mannington, Mohawk, Formica and StarNet.

Print the Article