Article Number : 1615 |
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| Date | 12/28/2006 11:15:19 AM |
| Written By | LGM & Associates Technical Flooring Services |
| View this article at: | //floorbiz.com/BizResources/NPViewArticle.asp?ArticleID=1615 |
| Abstract | By Matthew Spieler Atlantic City, N.J.—Business conditions during the second half of 2006 were undeniably tough and forecasts call for virtually the same for at least the first six months of ’07... |
| Article | By Matthew Spieler Atlantic City, N.J.—Business conditions during the second half of 2006 were undeniably tough and forecasts call for virtually the same for at least the first six months of ’07. Despite the gray skies, it hasn’t stopped retailers from being optimistic nor wanting to see what’s new in product design, merchandising services and educational training. This has certainly been the case for Mohawk Industries as the first handful of events along its Product Tour ’07 not only saw larger than normal crowds, but a genuine case of optimism based on the purchasing activity that took place. Gary Hallowell, Mohawk’s executive vice president, noted the regional show in Florida was “the best one we had there. The biggest thing is how upbeat people are.” With more than four dozen regional shows and conventions scheduled through February, the one here at the Borgata Hotel Casino & Spa was early on the itinerary. But, as one of the larger events that take place along the tour route, it gave company officials a reason to be optimistic, especially when the four or so shows prior were also treated to better than average crowds. “I’m more pleased than you can imagine,” Jeff Lubinsky, Mohawk’s Northeast regional vice president, told Floor Covering News on the first day of the two-day annual event here, “especially with how business has been the last three months.” Coming into Atlantic City, he said pre-registration was higher than normal but until people start showing up you never know how things will turn out. Over 1,000 retailers from many of the surrounding states typically converge on the Borgota show, and this year was no exception. There was one difference, though. In recent years, Mohawk held just the Atlantic City show, which attracted retailers from all along the Northeast. This year, prior to bringing the tour to the Borgata, the mill staged an event at Gillette stadium, home of the New England Patriots, for more than 200 dealers from the surrounding area. Putting the total attendance and sales figures together for these two, Lubinsky said yielded “significantly better results than last year. There was a tremendous amount of first quality hard and soft surface goods purchased. In fact, there was a good cross section of everything.” The reason has to do with the fact all of Mohawk’s divisions were present. But is wasn’t just about product, as the company’s many business units were on hand to show how they can help dealers improve their profitability. In addition, a number of Mohawk’s “partner” vendors—Accu Cut and CarpetCycle, for example—were there to let attendees know how their products and/or services can play a part to increase profits. With this being the fourth year since Mohawk began the regional show concept, Lubinsky feels that along with retailers being positive about the future, “people are starting to look forward to these events. Either they know from past experience or through word of mouth they can see everything there is about Mohawk in a professional setting, from our many flooring divisions such as Quick•Step, Aladdin, Karastan, commercial and so forth to the myriad of services and programs we offer, from transportation and credit to the Mohawk University program.” With so many new products and programs, along with updates to many more, the theme for this year’s regional meetings, “We’re on the Move and Delivering on our Promise” was apropos to what Mohawk was communicating on the exhibit floor. “Our goal for ’07 is to become even better partners with our retail customers,” said Mike Zoellner, Mohawk’s vice president of marketing services. “The idea is to take all the various tools we offer to help make a dealer’s business more profitable and tie them together for each individual retailer to incorporate.” For example, instead of traditional seminars, Mohawk is holding hands-on workshops. Subjects go beyond just general product knowledge; rather topics include business operations, selling skills, advertising, etc. “It’s all about customer integration,” Zoellner explained, “that is, us connecting better with the retailer and them to the consumer.” New products include everything from the first Smart-strand PTT in an Aladdin product and a new, softer version of Smartstrand with DuPont Sorona polymer on the carpet side, to an enhanced exotic offering in wood and the most true-to-life visuals in the Mohawk laminate program. A new selling system. Easy Choice, was also unveiled, and officials said this will help eliminate confusion and allow the consumer to get the exact product she needs to fit her lifestyle. Zoellner said the four-tiered system took almost a year to develop because each level is based on “facts.” He explained Mohawk has come up with a proprietary testing method to evaluate products on more than a half dozen attributes. Right now Easy Choice is offered just for carpet products, but will eventually be used with hard surface categories. “We worked with a large number of people—including retailers and end users—to make sure this was an easy-to-understand, logical system for both the salesman and consumer to use.” One other big deal taking place is Mohawk not only openly promoting its environmental initiatives, which up to now have been confined to in-house programs and commercial products, it is bringing them into the residential market as well. For example, by the third quarter of ’07, 40% of the Smartstrand with DuPont Sorona fiber will be produced from corn sugar instead of petroleum. (Editor’s note: In future issues FCNews will go into greater depth on Mohawk’s latest products, innovations, services, programs and initiatives.) |