Flooring America’s “Neighborhood Networks” See Gai
Manchester, NH, June 6, 2006--The strength in numbers philosophy that brought more than 500 like-minded retailers together as Flooring America is paying fresh dividends on a smaller scale.
Flooring America members coast-to-coast are continuing to merge into regional “Neighborhood Networks” to gain the benefits from sharing business ideas, and pooled resources within compact local markets.
“We already have the nationwide buying power from Flooring America, and Neighborhood Networks compounds that advantage on a local scale,” said Ed Cross, who leads the Neighborhood Network chapter for New England. “Within our group there are six of us pretty close together in New Hampshire, and we recently went in on a truckload of hardwood that we never would have purchased independently. But together, it was affordable and we all benefited.”
Sharing shipping costs is one way that that Networks have leveraged the power of their group to improve their profitability. Another is through group advertising. A number of Networks are experiencing the benefits of advertising together, using economies of scale to save money while at the same time building the Flooring America brand in their local markets.
“We do save money, and we’re always on the lookout to save more, but one of the biggest positives for me, is just getting together and talking about business--sharing ideas, information and stories about what’s working and what’s not.”
Begun three years ago, there are now more than 30 Neighborhood Networks across the country. Most groups meet quarterly to discuss topics of mutual interest such as “How to compete with the home centers,” “Brand Identity,” “Installer Issues,” and “Training.” Some groups have meetings more frequently, via conference calls on a line that Flooring America provides.
“The networks are steadily gaining members, and becoming more ambitious,” said Vinnie Virga, president of Flooring America. “Some groups are even starting to run TV spots together. Our job is just to make it easier for them to communicate with each other by providing space on our internal Web site, e-mail assistance, and conference call capability. But the Neighborhood Networks are member-driven and autonomous. They’re of, by, and for the members and that’s how we want it to remain.”
