August 7, 2014—Eric Demaree, President of Carpet One Floor and Home, and Kemp Harr, discuss market conditions across the country and how they are affecting the co-op members' sales levels. Listen to the interview to hear more about the challenges that retailers are facing as they compete with the price-focused discount chains.
August 6, 2014—Keith Spano and Frank Chiera, President and Vice President of Marketing, respectively, with Flooring America/Flooring Canada, and Kemp Harr, discuss this week's meeting of the retailer group in Dallas, branded conneXtion. Listen to the interview to find out more information about these semi-annual meetings, and new programs, products, and technology tools the company has rolled out to help its members drive sales.
August 5, 2014—Bonnie Cauthorn, Owner of Design Source, and Kemp Harr, discuss J+J Flooring Group's senior living design symposium that was held recently in Jackson Hole, Wyoming. Listen to the interview to hear more about Design Source (an interior design firm in Richmond, Virginia) and about the key benefits of attending this conference.
August 4, 2014—Randy Fiser, CEO with the American Society of Interior Designers (ASID), and Kemp Harr, discuss where the ASID fits within the design community and the state of the industry Outlook Report. Listen to the interview to hear Randy talk about the 19% growth that is forecast between now and 2020.
August 1, 2014—Armstrong's Joseph Bondi, VP of Residential; Milton Goodwin, VP of Hardwood Products; Mara Villanueva-Heras, VP of Residential Marketing; and Kemp Harr, discuss Armstrong's decision to move its engineered hardwood manufacturing from Kunshan, China to Somerset Kentucky. Listen to the interview to get an update on the hardwood business and to hear more about the factors that led to this onshoring decision.
July 31, 2014—Franco Rossi, President of Aquafil USA, and Kemp Harr, discuss Aquafil's $25 million expansion in Cartersville, Georgia which is almost completed. Listen to the interview to hear how Aquafil has been able to expand in a relatively flat carpet market.
July 29, 2014—Scott Sandlin, VP of Hard Surfaces for Shaw Industries, and Kemp Harr, discuss Shaw's expansion of its Epic hardwood plant in South Pittsburg, Tennessee. Listen to the interview to hear more details about the strategy behind that expansion plus an update on market dynamics.
July 28, 2014—David Crowe, Chief Economist with the National Association of Home Builders (NAHB), and Kemp Harr discuss the strong remodeler index that was released last week and the outlook for home buiding for the remainder of the year. Listen to the interview to hear David provide more information on this and also give his thoughts on why new home sales were weak in June.
July 23, 2014—Jenny Cross, VP of corporate Sustainability with Mohawk, and Kemp Harr, discuss Mohawk's 2013 Sustainability Report released earlier this week. Listen to the interview to hear more details about Mohawk's growth to $7.7 billion in revenue, their mix of hard to soft surfaces and a few highlights from this year's report.
July 22, 2014—Sharon Paley, an acoustical engineer with Ecore International, and Kemp Harr, discuss a recent white paper that studies the effect floorcovering can have on noise levels inside a hospital. Listen to the interview to hear more about this study and its findings that certain smooth surface materials can perform as well as carpet in reducing hospital noise levels.