ATLANTA—The Gerflor Group has announced the acquisition of Architectural Floor Systems (AFS) of Chicago. The purchase includes AFS in its entirety (commercial and sports divisions). Financial terms of the transaction have not yet been disclosed.
Gerflor, headquartered in Lyon, France, and AFS have been long time partners. Gerflor is a manufacturer of resilient vinyl flooring including Taraflex Sports Flooring among its product lines. AFS has been the authorized Gerflor and Taraflex distributor and installer in the Midwest and on the West Coast for many years. The integration of AFS into Gerflor is currently in progress.
“Gerflor’s business strategy has always been about enhancing products and providing excellent customer service,” said Alan Fennell, president of Gerflor Commercial Flooring. “With the acquisition of AFS, we will continue to extend our leadership in the vinyl flooring industry by increasing manpower and expertise across the board.
“This is a new strategy in the U.S.,” he explained. “The acquisition further strengthens Gerflor’s foothold in the commercial and sports flooring markets by allowing us to utilize AFS’ longstanding expertise and distribution knowledge. We continually look for new growth opportunities that complement our extensive vinyl flooring collection and Gerflor’s visibility and brand awareness in the U.S.
“Additionally,” he explained, “the acquisition of AFS further adds expertise and knowledge to Gerflor’s employee base and therefore, to Gerflor’s entire global network. Information sharing among offices around the world helps drive new product development and innovation, and the acquisition will provide Gerflor a more concerted collaborative effort.”
Three former AFS sales team members, along with customer service reps, accounting, and warehouse and support personnel, he noted, will be integrated with Gerflor. Gerflor does not own other U.S. distributors, but does in other parts of the world.
“The AFS acquisition will help us bring products to market more efficiently and effectively,” Fennell said. “We will have greater efficiencies in our logistics channel through AFS’ distributor expertise that will ultimately benefit the client. Again, the acquisition gives us a stronger foothold in the U.S. market and allows us to better manage our supply channel efforts. Gerflor and AFS were partners for more than 10 years on the commercial side and more than 15 years with the sports division. “AFS distributed numerous products and as conversations among several manufacturers are ongoing,” said Fennell, “we are unable at this time to comment on which product lines, if any, will remain in place.”
Gerflor has one of the largest collections of commercial vinyl flooring products in the world, with offerings suited for healthcare, education, retail, corporate and public spaces. Founded in 1937 and headquartered near Lyon, France, Gerflor provides product and design solutions and is present in 100 countries around the globe with more than 1,700 employees.
As a clear leader in pioneering flooring solutions, Fennell noted, Gerflor has an excellent environmental record which includes an ‘A’ rated Green Guide (BRE) certification, outstanding whole life cycle performance, as well as full compliance with ISO 14001 and ISO 9001 standards. “In addition,” he added, “Gerflor commercial flooring can contribute toward LEED credits and is 100% recyclable at the end of its life cycle.”
In other news, Gerflor has appointed Tim Sweeney as regional vice president for the company’s western division, Carl Brester as sales representative for Wisconsin and Lisa Kaplan as sales representative for the Chicago area.
As regional vice president, Sweeney will manage and support the Gerflor sales team network through sales calls, lead generation follow up, product training and exhibition expertise. Both Brester and Kaplan bring a wealth of commercial flooring sales experience to Gerflor and will further extend the company’s leadership in their respective territories.
“We’re excited to have Tim, Carl and Lisa as a part of our team,” said Fennell. “Their expertise in sales and marketing will strengthen Gerflor’s brand identity in the U.S. as the vinyl flooring company that delivers high-performance solutions for virtually every industry.”
Before joining Gerflor, Sweeney, Brester and Kaplan were employed by AFS. Prior to his work with AFS, Sweeney spent 17 years working with the Mercantile Exchange in several senior level positions. Brester brings more than 20 years of commercial flooring expertise to Gerflor and has served on the board of American Society of Interior Designers (ASID) in Wisconsin.
Kaplan also has 20 years of industry experience and was part of AFS’ million dollar sales club.
For more information, please call 877.437.3567.
