Dalton—One month after Mohawk Industries announced it will not be exhibiting at Surfaces 2004 in order to conduct more company-sponsored regional events, Shaw Industries has said it, too, will skip the Las Vegas show in favor of doing more of its own regional conferences. “As grand an event as Surfaces is,” said Randy Merritt, Shaw’s executive vice president of sales and marketing, “it is extremely difficult from a logistical standpoint to bring all our field people to the show. “Our goal has always been to determine how best to service our customers and provide them access to our products and programs,” he continued. “Over the past few years, our customers have been clear in stating their preference for smaller, regional events and venues that allow them more time to review products and receive the one-on-one contact needed to gain a full understanding of what we are offering.”

While Shaw’s announcement comes shortly after Mohawk’s, Julius Shaw Jr., executive vice president, said the company has actually been discussing this matter “for months. In fact, on the plane ride back from this past Surfaces. “The question we face is,” he added, “Can we effectively show our vast amounts of products and services to so many customers without having our full sales force in place?” Part of what made Shaw debate the question for so long is the fact Surfaces is a “fantastic show that also brings so many intangible benefits. People like going to Las Vegas because there are so many products offerings for them, plus Las Vegas is a great venue to hold the market because it affords the opportunity to combine a trade show with pleasure; it’s a very attractive package. But, in the end, we decided that we can better show our offerings with more regional events.”

Merritt added the large crowds that Surfaces draws are attractive, but for a company as large as Shaw it has a difficult time in providing enough personal service to individual customers, and that has become a concern. “We know Surfaces represents an exciting opportunity for a vast number of retailers, and we have no doubt the show will continue to flourish. However, this year, we feel this is the right step for Shaw and its customers.” Shaw has been holding numerous such events for its dealers over the years, including a biennial market for its Shaw Flooring Alliance (SFA), which drew almost 3,000 people at its last event (FC-News, Jan. 20/27). Like Mohawk, Shaw said it will increase the number of regional shows it hosts, though a final amount was yet to be determined at press time. By holding regional events, Merritt noted the manufacturer is “not only able to give customers individual attention, it helps our sales and management teams to allocate time and resources more efficiently.”

This will be the second time in Surfaces’ 15-year history that Shaw has opted to skip it. When the mill ventured into the retail business in late 1995 it decided to not show at the Las Vegas market. In 1999, when the company broke from retail to concentrate solely on manufacturing it came back to the industry’s largest all-encompassing event with a bang by giving out over one million dollars in cash and prizes. While news of the mill’s decision did not come as a surprise to officials at Hanley-Wood Exhibitions, Surfaces’ owner, “it is still definitely disappointing,” said Michelle Troop, senior show director. “Any time a big customer is not going to participate in an event like this is a concern, but it still doesn’t change anything. It’s the same situation as with Mohawk.” She noted contracts have been sent in by all the other major players in the industry. “There are still 950 companies that are going to be exhibiting every conceivable product and service to help make attendees more successful. “Plus,” Troop added, “we are working on some exciting new things for the show. We’re just finalizing the details on them.” Surfaces ’04 will take place Jan. 28 to 30 at the Sands Expo & Convention Center in Las Vegas. For more information on the show, visit www. SurfacesExpo.com.