floorcoveringnewsvolume 33number 15 I fcnewsnet I the publication more retailers prefer I January 815 2018 I $200

NEWSPAPER

ATLANTAmdashThe SoutheastFlooring Market now in its sec-ond year was held Jan 3-4 atthe Cobb Galleria Centrehere exemplifying theimportance of regionalshows to the independentflooring retailer Attendedby 1069 dealers from 19statesmdasha 52 increasefrom 2017mdashthe marketboasted 65 exhibitorsshowcasing both hard andsoft surfaces

The show was unoffi-cially born to piggyback onShaw and MohawkrsquosSoutheast regionals theonly time in which bothare held in the samevenue In the past smaller sup-pliers would show product invarious meeting roomsthroughout the convention cen-ter and adjoining hotel But last

year trade show companyMarket Maker Events wasasked to come in and organizethe smaller exhibitors in itsown ballroom with Shaw and

Mohawk as the bookends ldquoThe Cobb Galleria came to

us and said lsquoThis has grownpast our ability to manage itrsquordquo

Continued on page 50

I trsquos not every day that someone sails into the sunset after acareer that touched five decades Itrsquos even more rare whenthe person spent all 40 years at the same company But then

again Randy Merritt is a rare breedMerritt on Dec 31 retired as president of Shaw Industries

the only company he has ever known Merritt found his way toDalton in 1977 upon graduating from North Carolina Statewhere he would enter the ldquoreal worldrdquo at Star Finishing the pre-cursor to Shaw Industries He would rise through the ranksfrom product development to the presidency with honestyintegrity and humility as his hallmarks

In his final days in his corner office Merritt sat back andtook a walk down memory lane His final interview at Shawappears on page 20

RANDY MERRITTREFLECTS ON A

40-YEAR CAREER

Southeast Flooring Market

Specialty retailersfind therersquos value in regional show

By Lindsay Baillie

IN THIS ISSUE

Anderson-Tuftex brandto debut at SurfacesPAGE 6

TISE educational program revealedPAGE 12

Bravo series profileGesco GroupPAGE 22

Strength in numbersAligning with retailer distribu-tor or even manufacturergroups could be the answer tosome dealersrsquo woes

PAGE 26

The Southeast Flooring Market had a record 1069 attendees

from 19 states

SPOTLIGHT

Hannover Fairs set to debut Domotex USA in 2019Move extends eventrsquos brand beyond Europe Asia and the Middle East

ers Domotex USA will consist ofexhibition space conferences andeducation along with networkingfunctions and activities DomotexUSA is an extension of DeutscheMessersquos worldwide portfolio offlooring events With theexpansion of the brandDomotex USA aims toleverage the power of theDomotex global portfolioin North America comple-menting the floor coveringshows in HannoverShanghai and Turkey

Ray Bianchi vice presi-dent events and businessdevelopment at HannoverFairs USA said launchingDomotex USA in Atlanta ldquomakesperfect senserdquo because it can offerindustry players across theMidwest Northeast and

Southeast the chance to both visitexhibitors on the show floor andto tour the arearsquos manufacturingfacilities

Dr Andreas Gruchow mem-ber of the management board

Deutsche Messe AG Hannoveradded ldquoMany industry represen-tatives have been asking us foryears to launch the Domotex

CHICAGOmdashHannover Fairs USAis planning to bring DomotexUSA to Americarsquos shores Theevent which will be held at theGeorgia World Congress Centerin Atlanta Feb 28 to March 22019 will be focused on the USresidential flooring industry

According to show organiz-

brand in the North Americanmarket as there has not been aflooring trade fair in the EasternUS that demonstrates the quali-ty and breadth of the worldrsquos lead-ing carpet and flooring show

which is DomotexHannoverrdquo

Itrsquos important to notethe Domotex USA showwill not include ceramictile Instead it will displaythe latest machine-madecarpets wall-to-wall car-peting textile floor cover-ings handmade rugsresilient flooring designflooring luxury vinyl tilelaminate flooring parquet

and wood flooring as well asapplication and installation tech-nologies designed for the residen-tial flooring marketplace

The launch of Domotex USA aims to leverage the power of the Domotex

global brand in North America

Randy Merritt right with Vance Bell Shaw Industriesrsquo CEO

Scan this QR code with yoursmartphone to link to our fea-tured site

2 I January 815 2018 fcnews

LARRY BROWDERchief sales and marketing officer Karndean

Making sure we continue tohave a forward-thinking

aggressive strategy that continues to keep usahead of our competition

DON FINKELLpresidentCEO American OEM

The big question is the impact of tax cutsand a reduced regulatory environmenton the housing market The risk isCongress might not be able to get all ofthese things passedmdashalong with a dis-appointed stock market But I am opti-mistic that the strength of the economy and the pent-

up demand for housing will overcome the dysfunctionin our political system

JEFF FENWICKpresidentCOOTarkett

Keeping our employeesengaged and energizedespecially in the environ-ment we live in today where there is so muchwhite noise Itrsquos tough to keep people focused andengaged in this kind of world For us wersquore reallydisciplined about measuring our employee engage-ment and making sure our folks have a voice

DON MAIERCEO Armstrong Flooring

My biggest concern is also ourgreatest assetmdashour people I believedeeply that it all begins with talent

To support our growth Armstrong Flooring needs toattract develop and retain the highest level of talent ineach and every position I tell my team all the time I do notjust want to have a winning season I want to win the SuperBowl To do this we do not just need a great team we needthe best team I see the most important part of my job is toensure we win this war for talent

TM NUCKOLSpresident Dixie Residential

With the growth in hard surfaces I amconcerned with the replacementcycle of flooring in the futureConsumers will replace their floor-

ing less frequently than they have in the past whichpresents volume and profitability dilemmas for theentire value chain

PAUL MURFINpresidentMohawk resilient

As evolving as the category isitrsquos [about] staying in front ofthe curve so we continue tokeep our product line relevant in the marketplace

MICHAEL RASKINCEO Raskin Industries

Executing all of the ideas that I have andchoosing which ones to go with No mat-ter who you are everyone is spread verythin today the market is moving fast andthe economy is good and I think itrsquosmaking sure everyone is following up and taking care of yourcustomersrsquo needs

DREW HASHVP hard surface product

portfolio Shaw Floors

In laminate the broad range of prod-ucts available within the market can

create misconceptions for this prod-uct category making it increasingly important for manufac-

turers and flooring retailers to be able to effectively commu-nicate the benefits and attributes of each product line

BRAD WILLIAMSVP sales and marketing Boa-Franc (Mirage)

While politics dominated 2016 weather led theway [in 2017] with the most active hurricane

season since 2005 This major flooding cou-pled with heat and dryness on the West

Coast fueled some of the largest fires we have seen Thesecatastrophes will lead to new construction and renovation

seems to put things on hold in the short term

PIET DOSSCHECEO USFloors

How can I continue to lead and edu-cate our industry to not fall into thetrap of commoditization and priceerosion of this exciting new productcategory Composite Core Waterproof Flooring

CHRIS OrsquoCONNORpresidentCOO Congoleum

The industry is changing at an unprece-dented pace Our continued success liesin our ability to stay ahead of the competi-tion by not only understanding the needs of

the market but also by leveraging our nimble size to respond tothose needs faster and more completely than anyone else

DEREK WELBOURNCEO Inhaus

Competition is often themost challenging howeverin the bigger picture I think ithelps keep everyone focusedand ultimately results in cre-

ating better products and service This helps thecategories overall and results in more business foreveryone With new product developments thereis more competition across product categoriesthan ever before

WADE BONDROWSKIdirector US sales Mercier Wood Flooring

Our challenges come fromquantifying what is a hard-wood floor vs importedstained plywood or cheap rotary peeled productsalong with the pricing pressures they bring Theothers are the wood knock-offsmdashLVT WPC ceram-ic etc All have wood lookalikes that are good instyling and design with a lower price But I wonderwhy our industry is so concerned with going to thebasement and trading dollar down per square foot

PAUL REZUKEdirector of sales US Wickham HardwoodFlooring

The market remains strongand most economists believethat barring any unforeseen issues things look solidright through 2019 What concerns me is the uncer-tainty regarding potential trade regulatory restraints

What keepstop executives

awake in 2018

There is no rest for the wicked ormdashit wouldseemmdashfor the flooring executive with so much toconsider How the next big launch will fare in themarket How to keep your talented staff engagedand motivated How best to navigate the digitallandscape Indeed the daily grind can be daunt-ing especially when the decisions you render canhave such great consequences

By Ken Ryan

BOB BALDOCCHIchief marketing officerVP business development Emser

We have 70-plus locations andfive different segments thathave their own sets of chal-lenges I wish I could point toone thing there is still a lotof business out there to becaptured even with thelabor shortage

DARRELL LOCKEVP residential sales

Lexmark Carpet

Industry consolidation As theindustry continues to narrow

consumers and retailers willcontinue to feel the pinch with limited suppliers and

less fashionable selections Consumers will be forcedto settle

JOHN TURNER JRpresident Dal-Tile

The changing environment in retail With theemergence of Floor and Deacutecor or Tile Shop and

with Lowersquos and HomeDepot competing withthose models itrsquos goingto create stress on floor-ing retailers Those whoinvest in well-trainedRSAs will win