Dallas—With an uncertain global economy looming and growing concerns about cross country travel due to an elevated terrorist alert, executives from Mohawk Industries expressed pride in the fact that several hundred of the mill’s ColorCenter dealers made their way here to the Hyatt Regency at Reunion Hotel for the Wild Wild Best 2003 Dealer Convention. “They love coming here and getting together in a group like this,” said Ed Williams, Mohawk’s senior vice president of marketing. “The retailers who are here are here for a reason; to make their businesses better. And when you do that, usually business is good for you because you are working at being a better retailer.”

In reaffirming to its members Mohawk’s Continuous Concept Renewal (CCR) program, Mark Olson, director of retail marketing, said, CCR “is important because it enables us to address a number of issues related to the ongoing effectiveness of the ColorCenter retail environment.” He likened the idea, which began with the birth of ColorCenter in 1974, as an attitude in which ColorCenter “is truly a perpetually evolving work in progress” focused on meeting and exceeding end user expectations. This is accomplished by consumer research and feedback, emphasis on a “fresh and responsive” store environment, providing ease of selection and a broad scope of products.

For ColorCenter in 2003, two of the new selling options introduced at the convention included a window treatments program with Comfortex Window Fashions, a division of Hunter Douglas, and a truck-mounted sanding/refinishing and cleaning equipment program. “Our latest research indicates a stronger-than-ever preference for one-stop shopping preference,” Olson explained. “The new Mohawk Custom Window Fashions program lets dealers capture a share of the $3.3 billion custom window covering market, allowing them to bring in new customers, develop add-on sales and generate additional cash flow through upfront payments without the need to hold inventory.” The program includes nine product lines: sheer horizontals, sheer verticals, cellular and pleated shades, wood blinds, wood alloy blinds, vertical blinds, roman shades, mini-blinds and woven wood shades.

“So far, the response to our program has been tremendous,” said Jim Donnellan, regional sales manager for Comfortex. “The Window Fashions is an interesting program and looks to be very competitive, price-wise,” said Ray Valencia, floor covering manager for Lukasiewicz Furniture, Carpeting & Appliances in Farwell, Neb. “It looks like it’s going to be a good, beneficial program for the members.” Dealers were also given the opportunity to take advantage of two new truck-mounted systems, one does cleaning, the other 100% dust-free hardwood refinishing. Dealers can acquire territories for offering cleaning and refinishing services to a broad range of customers, and the trucks are designed to offer a variety of additional services, including upholstery and duct cleaning.

The ColorCenter members were also presented with several new exclusive carpet products, a new ceramic tile line, new hardwood, resilient and laminate offerings, as well as a new television commercial that focuses on the Color-Center concept. “”It’s added value—and then some,” said Manny Llerena, vice president of retail programs for Mohawk. “Our truck mounted systems give dealers a way to expand their cleaning services, and the window treatment program directly addresses a challenge our dealers put to us. As long as we can help our dealers create programs like these, the Mohawk ColorCenter program will continue to grow.” “Our new window treatment and truck-mounted sanding/refinishing and cleaning programs,” Olson said, “are outgrowths of the CCR process of how to build a better package that independent specialty retailers can leverage in their store presentations.”

Introduced to dealers last year at ColorCenter’s convention in Anaheim, the FloorCare Essentials program, which features a display of exclusive floor cleaning products as well as the latest in high-tech vacuum cleaners, continued to do well among the dealers. “We signed on hundreds of dealers to the FloorCare Essentials program last year,” said Mohawk’s Brian Warren. “It’s a money maker. The margins are great on these products. It’s also growing the dealer’s core business. We’ve got ColorCenter dealers who are seeing consumers who may have bought flooring from their competitors, but are now coming to their store for floor care. The dealers tell them, ‘When you’re ready for flooring, come back and see us.’ So, they are growing their business.”

Members also showed interest in the Wundaweve collection, Eternally Soft, as well a new enhancement to the ColorCenter concept called “Elite,” which also incorporates the FloorCare Essentials and Custom Window Fashions programs. The Elite enhancement includes new desks for salespeople and planning tables that aid in reviewing products with consumers; new vertical displays featuring flatter shelves, better spacing, woodgrain sides and an elegant new appearance; new theme card displays, deckboard storage bins and overhead graphics which give consumers more direction to different store departments. The Elite element is designed to give the store a new look and new tools to use with consumers, and it can be retrofitted into any existing ColorCenter store, noted Llerena. “Elite is the latest step in keeping this program fresh and effective.” “The show has been going great for us,” said John Rivers, district manager for Mannington Mills. “We’ve had many customers come by and we’ve sold many displays and products.

The ColorCenter dealers are wonderful to work with. They are very proactive and they design their showrooms well.” Fred Chastain, installation trainer for Mohawk University said, “We’ve sold quite a bit of our new hypoallergenic, urethane bonded carpet cushion during the show. It has no odor and nothing will grow in it. It has a slow depression and a slow recovery. The technology used for it originally came from Astroturf. It’s the future of carpet cushion.” “I really like the soft products I’ve seen at the show,” said John Wright of Wright’s Furniture in Dieterich, Ill., “as well as some of the new berber introductions. We have had very good success in the limited amount of time that we’ve had soft products on our floor. We have a satellite store that sells window treatments and, because of that, we are seriously thinking about getting involved in the Custom Window Fashions program.”

“We’re looking at several things this year,” said Dave Dokka of For Your Floor in Jacksonville, Ill., “especially the Custom Windows and the area rug programs. We are also getting more involved in Mohawk’s hard surface program. We like the ceramic tile we’ve seen and are very encouraged with the relationship with Daltile. We feel we can do more with one supplier and utilize that buying power. “Our hard surface volume has increased substantially,” he added, “so now we are looking to find related areas to enhance the profit on those items, that’s why we’re looking at the rug program.” “We’ve never carried Mohawk area rugs,” said Thad Harrison, general manager of Banner Furniture in Twin Falls, Idaho. “We are going to be offering them now. And we are getting involved in the TV commercials, as well.” “Mohawk has the right ideas on how to help retailers,” said Terry Reddell of H&R Carpet & Sales in West, Texas. “It does the things that help us help ourselves. That’s what it’s all about.”