Flooring Podcast

Analyst Keith Hughes on Mohawk, Interface & The Armstrong Auction – Part 4 (12:35)

August 14, 2007—Keith Hughes, Managing Director in Equity Research, SunTrust Robinson-Humphrey in the final part of a four-part series discusses, Mohawk’s commercial business, the Dal-Tile unit and the role being played by the company’s newest manufacturing facilities. Hughes discusses the second quarter performance of Interface, the company after the sales of its fabrics unit, the company’s growth in the modular arena and its third quarter guidance. Hughes also discusses the Armstrong auction and reports that the prime potential buyers have dropped out. Discussed are the possible reasons for the wholesale withdrawal of would be buyers, the options for the auction going forward and his expectations for the auction and its timeline going forward.

Analyst Keith Hughes Assesses Mohawk’s 2nd Quarter – Part 3 (11:27)

August 13, 2007—Keith Hughes, Managing Director in Equity Research, SunTrust Robinson-Humphrey, in the third part of a four-part series discusses Mohawk purchase of hardwood assets for Columbia Forest Products and what it means to the company, when the properties will become profitable, and his take on Mohawk’s inclination toward more hardwood acquisitions. Hughes also discussed is the Mohawk sector, raw material costs and carpet prices increases during the quarter and his expectations for increases in the third and fourth quarters.

Analyst Keith Hughes Assesses Mohawk’s 2nd Quarter – Part 2 (11:56)

August 10, 2007—Keith Hughes, Managing Director in Equity Research, SunTrust Robinson-Humphrey in the second part of a four-part series, discusses Mohawk performance in the second quarter assessing the Unilin, Mohawk and Dal-Tile divisions and the European economy that was responsible for much of Unilin’s growth during the quarter. Hughes also discusses is shifts within the laminate sector, Unilin’s intellectual property.

SunTrust Robinson-Humphrey Analyst Keith Hughes Assesses the 2nd Quarter - Part 1 (10:13)

August 9, 2007—Keith Hughes, Managing Director in Equity Research, SunTrust Robinson-Humphrey in the first part of a four-part series, looks at the second quarter in the floor covering business analyzing the housing and builder sectors as well as the remodeling and commercial sectors, comparing the floor covering industry with the furniture industry. Hughes talks about his expectations for the third and fourth quarters and evaluates the Mohawk’s performance.

GE Money’s Greg Pittman on Credit and the Floor Covering Industry – Part 3 (12:59)

August 8, 2007—Greg Pittman, VP, GM, Retail Sales, GE Money in the final part of a three-part series discusses Pittman reviews some of the credit products offered to retailers in the floor covering industry including the GE credit card program, credit cards issued under the retailers own brand and establishing a credit line for consumers. Also discusses is how retailers can use each of the available tools with maximum efficiency, recent trends in credit as Pittman shares his expectations related to the credit tools of the future .

Floor Focus’ Kemp Harr, the Week in the Flooring Industry (33:42)

August 8, 2007—Kemp Harr, Publisher, Floor Focus magazine looks back that the past week in the floor covering industry discussing: Unilin’s $30 million expansion at its facility in Thomasville; Pfleiderer’s first-half earnings, its current marketshare position in North America and its integration plans for Pergo; A Global Industry Analysis study concerning the size of the global laminate market in 2010 and; What Retailers Really Think, the Floor Focus magazine’s 2007 retail survey of floor covering retailers.

GE Money’s Greg Pittman on Credit and the Floor Covering Industry – Part 1 (10:32)

August 7, 2007—Greg Pittman, VP, GM, Retail Sales, GE Money, in the first part of a three-part series, discusses the history of GE Money in the retail and floor covering markets, the importance of credit in retail purchases and in the floor covering industry and the percentage of durable and non-durable retail purchased made in the U.S. using some type of credit product comparing consumer credit purchases verses purchases without credit.

Economist John McDevitt, Assess the Economy – Part 2 - (20:41)

August 6, 2007—John McDevitt, former 3M Corporate Economist, in the second part of a two part series discussed is the state of the consumer, the consumer confidence index and his forecast for retail spending, Fed chairman Ben Bernanke and the Fed’s stance as it related to altering rates, the affects of the new minimum wage, the manufacturing sector and McDevitt’s forecast for the 3rd and 4th quarters.

GE Money’s Greg Pittman on Credit and the Floor Covering Industry – Part 2 (11:53)

August 6, 2007—Greg Pittman, VP, GM, Retail Sales, GE Money in the second part of a three-part series talks about the most popular consumer credit vehicles and the loss factor experienced by retailers who do not take advantage of some of the most popular credit options. Also discussed are some of the most frequent mistakes retailers make relating to credit.

Economist John McDevitt, Evaluates the Economy – Part 1 (20:41)

August 3, 2007—John McDevitt, former 3M Corporate Economist, evaluates today’s economy, discussing the housing market, if the bottom has been reached as well as how a recovery might play out. He also talks about the subprime lending situation, its potential for expanding into other segments of the economy, the commercial construction sector and its long-term prospects for growth. Also discussed is the state of the consumer, the consumer confidence index and his forecast for retail spending, Fed chairman Ben Bernanke and the Fed’s stance as it related to altering rates, the affects of the new minimum wage, the manufacturing sector and McDevitt’s forecast for the 3rd and 4th quarters.