January 19, 2018—Eric Demaree, President of Carpet One Floor and Home, and Kemp Harr discuss the health of the Carpet One members, the independent retail channel, and the major news items from this week's winter convention in Dallas. Listen to the interview for more details.
January 18, 2018—Kermit Baker, Chief Economist with AIA and Harvard Economist with the Joint Center for Housing Studies, and Kemp Harr discuss the strong Architectural Billing Index (ABI), and the ramifications from the recent tax reform bill on the commercial construction and the housing market. Listen to the interview for more details.
January 17, 2018—Andreas Gruchow, the CEO of Domotex worldwide, and Kemp Harr discuss the growth and success of Domotex Germany and the strategy behind Domotex's decision to open a new show in the U.S. in Atlanta in 2019. Listen to the interview to hear more information about both shows as well as why Domotex has grown to become so big on a global basis.
January 16, 2018—Tom Debusschere and Richard French, CEO of Balta and VP of Sales and Marketing at Bentley Mills (respectively), and Kemp Harr discuss Bentley's debut at Domotex, sales growth in 2017 and global synergies. Listent to the interview, recorded at Domotex in Germany, for more details.
January 15, 2018—Thomas Baert, President of CFL, and Kemp Harr discuss the firm's launch of the new FirmFit brand and his company's good, better, best pyramid strategy for multilayered flooring. In summary, the top layers change based on the performance attributes the consumer is looking for. Listen to the interview, recorded at Domotex in Germany, for more information. FirmFit will have an exhibit at Surfaces in Las Vegas.
January 12, 2017—Harlan Stone, CEO of the Metroflor Group, and Kemp Harr discuss the Metroflor and Aspecta brand message at Domotex in Germany as well as the continued evolution of multilayered flooring. Listen to the interview to hear more about the latest developments in the fastest growing flooring category.
January 10, 2018—Casey Johnson, CEO of Happy Feet, and Kemp Harr talk about the rapid growth and focus of this Dalton based importer of LVT plank products. Listen to the interview for more details about their business strategy and market focus.
January 8, 2018—Ray Bianchi, VP of events and business development with Hannover Fairs, and Kemp Harr discuss the decision to launch a new national, residential, floorcovering trade show in Atlanta Georgia in late February 2019 called Domotex USA. Listen to the interview to hear Ray talk about the fit for this new show which will focus on carpet, rugs, resilient, LVT, hardwood and laminate flooring. Domotex already hosts two of the largest international flooring trade shows in Germany and Shanghai every hear.
January 4, 2018—Karen Mendelsohn, SVP of Marketing with Mohawk, and Kemp Harr discuss Mohawk's key product and service initiatives for retailers in 2018. Recorded at the first regional market in Atlanta, Karen takes us through the firm's four hero product initiatives—one of which includes the launch of RevWood and RevWood plus. Listen to the interview to hear Karen explain Mohawk's repositioning of laminate flooring as hardwood flooring.
January 2, 2018—Carrie Edwards Isaac and Katie Ford, VP of Anderson-Tuftex and Director of Brand Strategy (respectively) with Shaw Industries, and Kemp Harr discuss the strategy behind the Anderson-Tuftex brand which kicks off this week. Listen to the interview to hear more details about their target consumer and the research that went into this launch.