Memorial Fund Honors CCA Co-Founder Greenberg

Manchester, NH, September 6, 2007--CCA Global Partners co-founder Alan Greenberg will be remembered as one of the great visionaries in the floorcovering industry. Greenberg, who died August 28 after a battle with cancer, founded the organization with Howard Brodsky and served as co-chairman and co-CEO, building it to a $10 billion company.

A floor covering retailer “by birth” on December 13, 1943, Greenberg had a lifetime of experience in the floor covering business. He grew up in the family business—Tile Town/Carpet City of St. Louis. After earning his MBA from St. Louis University in 1968, he joined Tile Town/Carpet City as a minority stockholder. He quickly grew the company into a $20 million enterprise and one of the region’s largest floor covering dealers.

In 1974, Greenberg ventured out on his own to start Sun Carpet. His focus on customer satisfaction grew Sun Carpet into a four-store chain that was one of St. Louis’ premier floor covering retailers and set a new standard for customer service that raised the bar for the entire industry.

In 1984, Greenberg joined with a kindred spirit, Howard Brodsky, to lead 11,000 independent floor covering retailers to participate in the industry’s first “Billion Dollar Carpet Sale.” That pioneering effort sparked the idea for Carpet One, now part of CCA Global Partners, which Greenberg and Brodsky co-founded.

Having developed and nurtured 18 companies with over 3,600 stores in the flooring, mortgage banking, lighting, and bicycling industries, Greenberg and Brodsky’s CCA Global Partners demonstrated the potential for cooperative business. The companies in CCA Global Partners collectively employ thousands of people worldwide and had $10.2 billion in aggregate annual sales in 2006.

In addition to his commitment to CCA Global Partners and the flooring industry, Greenberg was devoted to his loving family. Married for 41 years, Greenberg met his wife, Sharon, in the third grade. Not only were they married for nearly their entire lives, but they were dear friends since childhood.

Greenberg filled his personal life with family, friends, and love for his community. At one time he was assistant sheriff of Westwood. He was on the Westwood Country Club finance committee and had a passion for golf that he shared with friends. In addition, Greenberg was on the board of directors of Jewish Center for Aged.

“We have lost a wonderful husband, father, and friend,” says Tod Greenberg on behalf of the Greenberg family. “His compassion, sense of humor, and quick wit will be sorely missed. His legacy will live on through his family and friends, and he will be forever in our hearts.”

“For over 24 years, I was fortunate to have a best friend to share experiences with. Not only did we work closely together, but he was my dearest friend,” says Brodsky. “It is rare in life for a person to live his dream, and Alan and I were able to live our dream together. Alan was a person of great integrity and warmth and was a true visionary. His love and commitment to CCA Global Partners, its associates, and its members was beyond imagination. He believed strongly in our mission and cherished all of the relationships he formed. This is a great personal loss to me and to the industry.”

Respected and quoted around the world, Alan Greenberg was considered one of the premier visionaries in the home furnishings industry. Greenberg truly changed the industry, and his innovations and vision were fundamental in the success of the now $35 billion floor covering industry.

“Alan Greenberg was perhaps one of the most outstanding visionary's the flooring industry ever had,” says Larry Nagle of N.L. Nagle, Inc. “In addition, he was creative, passionate and had the ‘touch’ for making great business decisions.”

As an active leader in industry associations, Greenberg served as president and later chairmen of the board of the Retail Floorcovering Institute, a multi-billion dollar national trade association. In 1999, he was named Entrepreneur of the Year by Ernst & Young in the Wholesale/Distribution category for the St. Louis region.

In 2002, Greenberg was entered into the World Floor Covering Association Hall of Fame.

For the past four years Greenberg has been named to HFN’s “Power 100”, a list of the top executives who influence the home furnishings industry. Greenberg has been the vice chairman of the Floor Covering Industry Foundation, and earlier this year was awarded the FCIF Lifetime Achievement Award. He had been actively involved in fundraising, and his efforts helped to establish the CCA Global Partners/FCIF Annual Charity Golf Tournament. Since the first tournament in September 2003, the event has raised more than $500,000 for the FCIF.

The impact Greenberg left on the flooring industry and on his community will be felt for generations. He leaves his loving wife Sharon; daughter Darcy Glidewell, son-in-law Dan Glidewell, and their daughter Natalie; and son Tod Greenberg, daughter-in-law Stefanie, and their daughters Emma and Abby.

A memorial fund has been established in Alan Greenberg’s honor. Please forward donations to the Floor Covering Industry Foundation:

Floor Covering Industry Foundation

Alan D. Greenberg Memorial Fund

2211 E. Howell Avenue

Anaheim, CA 92806