Flooring Podcast

FloorExpo President and Three FloorExpo Members Discuss the Homebuilder Market – Part 4 (16:53)

April 23, 2006—The fourth part of a five part series that will be presented in shorter segments of about 10 minutes. This series looks at the homebuilder sector of the floor covering industry with three flooring contractors and FloorExpo members: Tom Boschwitz, Home Valu Interiors, Minneapolis, Steve Hoppe, Arlun Interiors, Colorado Springs and Denver, Blake Lewis, Atlanta West Carpets, Atlanta and Jay Smith, president of FloorExpo. In this segment the panelists discuss Mohawk’s recently launched Portico Select program, a program that seeks to circumvent the contractor and specify product and pricing directly with the builder, Also discussed is the history of programs that circumvent the contractor, how these systems works in the field, how they negatively affects contractor margins and their expectations as to where these types of programs will lead in the future.

FloorExpo President and Three FloorExpo Members Discuss the Homebuilder Market – Part 5 (11:40)

April 23, 2006—The fifth and final part of a five part series that will be presented in shorter segments of about 10 minutes. This series looks at the homebuilder sector of the floor covering industry with three flooring contractors and FloorExpo members: Tom Boschwitz, Home Valu Interiors, Minneapolis, Steve Hoppe, Arlun Interiors, Colorado Springs and Denver, Blake Lewis, Atlanta West Carpets, Atlanta and Jay Smith, president of FloorExpo. . In this segment the panelists discuss the future of the home builder sector of the marketplace in an environment of rising prices, a slowing housing market, expanding national builder companies and suppliers increasingly seeking deals with builders. Panelists discuss their expansion plans, their affiliation with FloorExpo and the benefits they derive from that affiliation and their views on the changes in homeowners’ tastes with regard to hard and soft surface floor coverings.

Economist John McDevitt on the 2006 and Beyond (34:28)

April 20, 2006—John McDevitt, former 3M Corporate Economist, now in semi-retirement, discusses the state of today’s economy, the consumer and his expectations for retail spending for the second quarter and 2006 and factors that may affect spending in the months ahead. McDevitt looks at the rising prices of oil and energy, his expectation as to when the Federal Reserve will take a rate hike breather. He takes a look at the health of the manufacturing sector and reviews the housing market, sharing his forecast for 2006.

Bill Reid, EVP StoneXpress on Laura Ashley Stone and Ceramic (14:04)

April 19, 2006—Bill Reid, Executive Vice President, StoneXpress, in a conversation recorded at Coverings 2006, discusses the company its background in stone, growth in the category, which is greater than that of ceramic and the company’s Laura Ashley branded stone and ceramic. Reid talks about the company program, which is aimed at making it easy for retailers to get into stone, its good, better, best approach, its merchandising package and its distribution program, which includes floor covering distributors.

Floor Focus’ Frank O’Neill on Coverings Attendance, Formica and the Laminate Sector (35:25)

April 18, 2006—Frank O’Neill, Publisher, Floor Focus’ Frank O’Neill discusses: The increase in attendance at Coverings 2006 and the boost by category; The restructuring and management changes at Tarkett Residential with Guillaume Laverdure being named president; The launching of the Formica Flooring brand by Kronotex USA, and the naming of the top five U.S. laminate producers; The takeover of Sears Canada by Sears Holdings and some potential outcomes for the Sears Canada flooring operation.

Retailer Patrick St. Pierre, The Décor Shoppe, Lutcher, Louisiana (17:25)

April 17, 2006—Patrick St. Pierre, owner of the Décor Shoppe, a floor covering retailer in Lutcher, Louisiana, discusses his operation, which offers ceramic, wood, carpet, vinyl, laminate counter tops and paint. St. Pierre discusses his recent trip to Coverings 2006 with one of his distributors, and how he worked the show with that distributor. Also discussed are the new products he bought and how he purchased products at the show as well as the seminars he attended.

Retailer Patrick St. Pierre, The Décor Shoppe - Pt. 2 (12:16)

April 17, 2006—Patrick St. Pierre, owner of the Décor Shoppe discusses his counter top business, and the growth he has enjoyed in the sector. St. Pierre also discusses how he will prepare for Coverings 2007 in Chicago, the ratio of hard surface to soft in his operation, the growth he has experienced in the past few years in each product sector and what he sees as a resurgence in carpet, a move to higher end laminate in the past few years. St. Pierre also discusses is his approach to customer satisfaction.

Retailer Patrick St. Pierre, The Décor Shoppe Pt. 3 (10:51)

April 17, 2006—Patrick St. Pierre, owner of the Décor Shoppe discusses his pricing philosophy in terms of his company’s product offerings, his move toward higher-end products. St. Pierre also shares his approach to selling quality as well as the wants and needs of his customers that directs the Décor Shoppe to higher end sales. Also discussed is approach to technology, his growth plans for the future and his experience with filing claims.

Retailer Lee Horwitz, Owner A&M Carpet (15:05)

April 15, 2006—Lee Horwitz, owner of A&M Carpet and Big Bobs of Fresno California discusses this unique four store operation, keeping abreast of his customers’ needs, offering unique products to his customers, and how he makes buying decisions.

Lee Horwitz, A&M (11:12)

April 15, 2006—Horwitz discusses A&M’s approach of visiting the customer’s home, his efforts to reduce SKU’s in his stores, the advantages of being a stocking retailer, how his philosophy differs from soft surface to hard, the advantages of square foot pricing in carpet. Horwitz also describes the A&M operation, the company’s ad budget and the approach he takes in his advertising program.