Strategic Exchange: Will the rate cut spur an acceleration of business in late 2025? – Oct 2025

By Kemp Harr

We were delighted to receive the quarter-point rate cut from the Fed in late September, although a half point would have been preferred. Even better was the hint that two more rate cuts are likely before the end of the year.

We’ve all heard the narrative that we have fewer houses than households demand, and that there is an abundant level of wealth stored up in the equity of America’s homes, but we also recognize that the dollar doesn’t buy what it used to. When you look at the various indexes out there, the builders aren’t happy, the architectural firms aren’t happy and the consumer isn’t happy. Oh, and by the way, people aren’t drinking like they used to. 

I wish I could tell you what is on the horizon. Yes, times are a changing. But the fundamentals still exist for a positive future for those that work hard, stay alert and make modest course corrections. Those of us who surround ourselves with talent and who stay passionate about our “why” will continue to be just fine. But you do have to make course corrections. 

As Sam Allman says on page 85 of this issue, “Purpose gives persistence its fire and direction,” but you must adapt and quit doing the wrong things. If you take a minute to read the News Briefs section of Floor Notes on page 8, you will see first-hand examples of companies that are making course corrections to either jettison the dead weight or align with new partners for a fresh start.

In short, you’re going to be fine as long as you keep reading Floor Focus magazine and adjust your sails accordingly. I don’t mean to be self-promotional or sound tongue-in-cheek here, but we do have your back. It’s why we exist.

A lesson about class

Let’s talk a minute about class. I’m not talking about wealth…but more about doing the right thing. Peggy Noonan made a great point in her September 18th editorial that I’d like to share with you. 

When President Kennedy was shot in November 1963, a man named Abraham Zapruder shot 26 seconds of color film on his home movie camera. Life magazine snatched up the film, and a week after the assassination, they published selected frames of the film in black and white. They were consciously selective about what and how they shared these horrible images with the American public. They weren’t in color, and they didn’t show the head-snapping moment of the fatal bullet. 

The gatekeepers, in this instance, were a few dozen men who ran the big newspapers, magazines and broadcast news divisions. They were people of class who protected the families from the horrible reality of what had just happened. It wasn’t a coverup. It was just doing the right thing.

Noonan goes on to say, “Class is a word old America used in a certain way, not as we use it now, as a socioeconomic designation. In the older meaning it spoke of a quality, a style, a quiet superiority of character. It existed at a distance from wealth or circumstances of birth. It had a moral quality. If you had class you did the right thing, you behaved in a way that was generous, courteous, conveyed inner stature.”

A classy moment at the NFA

A few weeks ago, when roughly 200 people traveled thousands of miles to Alaska for the fall National Floorcovering Alliance (NFA) meeting, two people who have devoted their professional careers to the flooring industry were honored.  

Most of the readers should know that the NFA is a group of 40 retail businesses that have aligned to work collectively as a buying group. They are self-governed, with only one full-time staff member, and in many instances, they are the best of the best in their respective markets. Refreshingly, they don’t compete with each other because they protect themselves geographically.

One could tell from this last meeting that the members appear to be happy with their governing board of directors. Each fall, elections are held, and this year, the three candidates who ran were uncontested. Two members were reelected to serve another two-year term, and Penny Carnino with Grigsby’s took the seat of a member who was ready to step down. Ian Newton is the group’s current president, and most would agree that his leadership style is refreshing, as he manages as a servant leader. 

At the band party event in Alaska, the group recognized Bill Waters and Ann McDermott for their service to the group. Bill recently retired from The Dixie Group, and Ann will retire from Shaw Industries at the end of the year. Both of the honorees spoke briefly about the quality of the relationships they’ve built over the years and how they are much deeper than the normal supplier-client type of relationship. Both received standing ovations at the event. See In Focus on page 90, for photos. 

For comments on this column, email kemp@floorfocus.com.