Las Vegas—Following months of questions and what ifs, the 2004 edition of Surfaces was seen as the most productive in the show’s 15-year history. Like a rebellious teenager, the industry’s premier market refused to listen to conventional wisdom and, because of that, finished up stronger than many believed possible due to the various obstacles the show faced—most notably the absence of the industry’s three largest manufacturers as well as some other prominent companies and horrendous weather east of the Mississippi that forced many retailers from the North and Southeast to either arrive at the show late or not attend at all.

Despite these occurrences, exhibitors and attendees felt the market was an all-around success. “We are having a lot of fun being the largest manufacturer of soft floor coverings here at Surfaces,” said Pete Ciganovich, Beaulieu of America’s executive vice president of sales and marketing. “We are happy we supported the show because we have had a tremendous turnout right from the start. “We have been rewarded by a number of large customers for being here,” he added, “and it has allowed us to become involved with many more companies that we have not been in the past four to five years.” Ed Duncan, senior vice president of residential marketing for Mannington Mills, called Surfaces 2004 “the best market we have ever had. People came here with an upbeat attitude and wanted to see what’s new. They were not concerned with who wasn’t here.” “It has been totally amazing,” said Ulf Mattsson, president and CEO of Tarkett, whose company unveiled a new global corporate identity ( FCNews, Jan. 26).

“The attitude at the show has been excellent. The dealers are feeling good about the upcoming year and are purchasing our new products and merchandising units. It’s been very encouraging.” “Dealers coming into our booth,” noted Jim Dougherty, vice president of marketing and new business development for Crossville, “are excited and, more importantly, wanting to talk about our new products. I am very optimistic about the future.” Chris Davis, CEO of the World Floor Covering Association ( WFCA), Surfaces’ official sponsor, said, “There is a tremendous loyalty to this show. The dealers really seem to want to support the exhibitors who are here. And, as for the manufacturers, if they achieve their objectives, then that’s what it is all about.”

Craig Vaughn of Georgia Carpet Industries, a prominent retailer in Dalton, summed up the feelings of many attendees FCNews spoke with by noting, “Where else can I go to see everything the industry has to offer? I don’t have time to go to all the shows and this provides me with a one-shot deal. “Plus,” he continued, “it’s the only time of the year I can interact with other dealers and exchange ideas in a way that can’t be done on a day-to-day basis. And, Las Vegas is a great place for an event like this. Bring your wife, take care of business, see a show, have some great food and see friends you only get to see once a year.”

The mood was so upbeat some manufacturers “knew within the first two hours that we not only made the right decision to be here but that we’ll be back next year,” said John Woosley, director of marketing for Anderson Hard-wood Floors. “Retailers are buying products and displays; it has been sensational.” Time Well Spent Woosley also echoed a sentiment many exhibitors stressed. “One of the best things about this year’s show is the amount of quality time we have been able to spend with customers.” Wilsonart’s Rob Tarver, national marketing manager, added, “Without the big mills there seems to be less pressure on the dealer. Many of them went to the regional shows hosted by Shaw and Mohawk, and they should because of the amount of business they do with those two companies.

“Because of that,” he added, “we have been able to spend more quality time with them here. Instead of just quickly running through our new products and programs, we have been able to sit down and explain our strategy and direction for the year. It’s been very productive and equally as good as last year in terms of business and 2003 was our best show ever.” “It’s been scary” said WFCA’s Davis, “in that both our dealer members and the manufacturers have been saying the same thing: it’s a great show, the atmosphere is more relaxed, we’ve been able to spend quality time with decision makers, we’re getting more business done, etc. Everyone seems to be on the same page.”

That attitude was from exhibitors on both levels of the Sands Expo & Convention Center. Interestingly, the mood concerning Hall G (the lower level of the Expo Center) is now drastically different from when Surfaces first opened the downstairs to exhibitors in 1995. At that time, many of the exhibitors downstairs felt like a stepchild saying “it is not the place to be.” Ten years later, FCNews was hard pressed to find a single company not wanting to be downstairs. “Reaction to our offerings has been very positive,” said Rose Abraham, national sales director for Nova Distinctive Floors. “Traffic has been very good,” said Fabiana Bertolani, a partner in Venteak, a wood company from Venezuela. “People are very interested in what we’re showing.”

Bill Smith of Campbell Smith Enterprises, was “very happy with the traffic and mood of the attendee. They are looking for something to help them stand out from the crowd and have been very interested in our custom display for bamboo and cork.” “The downstairs has really become the hot bed of new innovations,” said Michelle Troop, senior show director for Hanley-Wood, Surfaces’ owner, “and the retailers have realized it is the place to be for products and services which are not only unique but can help them differentiate themselves. Some exhibitors have told us they prefer being downstairs so much due to the traffic and energy level that they do not want to move upstairs.”

Though new products, programs and services were certainly the main focus of Surfaces, there were a number of ancillary events which helped add to the energy and enthusiasm surrounding the show. While manufacturers were still setting up their displays, hundreds of retailers participated in 11 three-hour workshops the day before the exhibit hall opened for business. Two of the sessions were hosted by FCNews’ Lew Migliore, author of the “Claims File,” and Warren Tyler, author of the “Salesmanship” column. “We each had an excellent turnout,” Migliore said. “The dealers were interested in the topics and came prepared to learn." Over the course of the next three days, more than 2,000 retailers attended numerous educational sessions including two more by Migliore and Tyler as well as one by Scott Perron, author of FC- News’ “Retailer2Retailer” column. “Our Educational Conference continues to be a strong program,” Troop said. “Dealers are looking for ways to better themselves and their businesses which is why our program is broken into five business tracts to help them narrow in on what they need.”

While final figures were not available at press time, she said preliminary estimates “make us feel attendance will be on par with last year’s educational program.” One of the reasons for the continued success of the education al program is “all 41 sessions were brand new this year,” Troop explained. “It’s just like last year in that we strive to keep the courses fresh and up-to-date on topics attendees can use to better their businesses.” Town Hall Hours before the exhibition hall doors opened approximately 550 people gathered to participate in the first-ever industry Town Hall meeting and also to honor veteran retailer Herb Wolk who was inducted as the 31st member of the WFCA’s Industry Hall of Fame.

In a way, Wolk’s acceptance speech not only set the tone for the Town Hall meeting but the show as a whole in that he stressed the need for the industry to sell fashion as it is the only means to quicken the replacement cycle and also allow everyone in the supply chain to make a profit (editor’s note: excerpts of his address are featured in “Al’s Column” on page six). The Town Hall meeting featured a panel of seven distinguished industry experts, including: David Polley, vice president of marketing for The Dixie Group; Alan Braunstein, president of Worldwide Wholesale Floor Coverings; James Gould, chairman of Misco Shawnee; Tom Jennings, CFE, president of Bud Jennings Carpet One and WFCA chairman; Stuart Hirsch-horn, research director for Catalina Research; Kermit Baker, senior research fellow at Harvard University’s Joint Center for Housing Studies, and David Meberg, president of Consolidated Carpet.

To make sure things ran smoothly, Bruce Koepcke, president of New Horizons Marketing, moderated the session which featured a number of pre-determined topics—industry consolidation, competing with the big boxes, recruiting installers and consumer awareness/ spending—as well as an opportunity for audience members to submit questions. “This meeting is a great opportunity to think and talk about items of interest concerning the industry,” Koepcke said. “Panel members cover every spectrum of the industry and will help put in perspective topics that affect everyone here.” Regardless of the topic discussed, the solution always seemed to come back to selling fashion and service. For instance, Gould said when it comes to competing against the boxes, the only area specialty dealers can differentiate themselves in is service and “giving her the right product for her needs.”

Polley pointed out the need to be “customer oriented and sell/promote flooring as the fashion item it is.” Braunstein added, “We can’t go toe-to-toe with them. Plus, in all consumer surveys cost is the least important item. What she is more concerned about is how the product looks, ease of shopping and help of the sales staff—all things specialty dealers do better.” Even in the area of attracting and retaining installers, the panel noted the importance of fashion. “We need to view installation as a profit center,” said Meberg, “not a cost against the sale. You can’t pay minimum wage and expect to get a professional installer.” “Consumers are buying good quality products from us,” added Jennings, “and they expect to pay more to have it installed correctly. It works the same in all industries. I would expect the chef at one of the fine restaurants here to be paid more than the chef at Sizzler. Why? Because I’m getting more quality.”

Though the one-hour meeting flowed without interruption and held the interest of everyone in the room, most agreed the program was a “good first step.” “This provided exactly what we wanted,” Troop explained. “And that was a forum to express issues pertaining to the industry and discuss solutions. A lot of people didn’t understand what a Town Hall meeting was supposed to be like so this was a good start to a program we hope to expand.” Other major events helping to create a buzz was the first Installation Showcase presented on the upper level throughout each day of the show. “It was much better than we anticipated,” explained Troop. “We’ve never done anything like this before and had great feedback concerning the entire program—from how very dynamic the speakers were to how well each segment was presented. We want to do this again next year based on the reaction and the fact that installation is such an important topic in the industry.” (Editor’s note: more complete coverage of this and other installation related matters at the show will be featured in the next issue.)

One of the biggest events this year was the first-ever Surfaces Celebration, a world-class networking event highlighted with a one-hour concert by the legendary disco and R&B band, Kool & the Gang. With just over 2,000 people in attendance, Troop called Celebration “a huge hit. It was a great way for everyone to come together in a casual, relaxed atmosphere and have some fun after walking the exhibit hall all day.” In addition to these events, many of the more than 950 companies exhibiting at this year’s show used their booths to demonstrate how their products are installed as well as provide some entertainment for those stopping by.

From the usual fanfare of giveaways dealers could stick in their bags and take home to the larger, more expensive prizes—big screen TVs, trips to exotic locations, cars, vans and trucks, etc.—along with appearances by world renown cyclist, Lance Armstrong at the Alloc booth and magical performances by Arian Black at the BHK of America space to name a few, Surfaces provided retailers with opportunities to explore new ideas and strengthen old relationships. Also, many companies held their own after-hour parties to reward distributors on their 2003 accomplishments and thank retailers for their support and business.

While all these auxiliary events helped keep the mood of the show upbeat, it was the bevy of new products, technology, merchandising units, marketing programs and services that was the main reason for exhibiting and attending Surfaces. Even though this is true of all markets, it was clearly evident at this show as companies across the board came prepared with goods and services designed to meet the needs of the specialty flooring retailer. What follows is a synopsis of what was shown in the various flooring categories. In future issues, FCNews will go more in-depth on specific company introductions. Carpet Designs Expand As Surfaces neared, many industry people were interested to see how the show would fare without the category’s two largest players at the festivities.

But while Shaw Industries and Mohawk Industries were off doing their own thing—holding regional meetings across the country—life went on in Las Vegas as Beaulieu of America and others took advantage of the situation by welcoming dealers to a bevy of new products and programs. “We’ve had a tremendous turnout and people are excited about the introduction of all our new products,” said Ciganovich. “At Beaulieu, we have had a tremendous turnaround in the past two years and our company is now sound and has been for the past 25 months. We have revamped our entire product line and have brought not only our brand to the marketplace but an elite product base and brand new application with the Stainmaster product lines.”

From its own retooled product line, to the new Stainmaster carpets Beaulieu received critical praise from the many attendees who visited its booth, which became one of the show’s busiest destinations. “There is a lot of excitement in our booth right now,” he said. “We introduced our Ultima Performance product last year, a complete line of loops, textures and friezes in solution-dyed nylons with features and benefits beyond anything else in the marketplace. We’ve added more product base to that. It has been an extremely successful show for us. We have also added to the styles in the Laura Ashley line. But the real big hit for us at this show has been our luxury collection of Stainmaster carpets.” Ciganovich, like many others in the carpet and fiber categories, talked about what it will take to make the consumer give broadloom a second look following the last several years of hard surface product growth.

“With the technology available to us today, it’s vital to give the consumer new looks. At Beaulieu, we are dedicated to becoming the dominant player in soft floor covering. We are not going to have anything else complicate our abilities. One of the things we wanted to do was not just look at the dealers, but look at the end users. What does the consumer want and how do we make the consumer choose soft floor covering over hard? And that’s where we are going with our product base, to make her aware of carpet’s attributes.”

According to Rob Beistline, director of marketing for Milliken Carpet, “the traffic in our booth has been very good. Many people have said we’ve seem a lot busier than many other booths. The biggest point we are trying to make at the show is our service, what we can bring to market now that we’ve streamlined the sales process by offering a selection of our contract, hospitality and traditional carpet and rugs through one Milliken salesperson. Everything in our booth is brand new, we didn’t bring any old products with us.” Beistline noted, the mill was introducing a total of 300 SKUs of new patterns. “We have a brand new collection called Earthscapes, a monochromatic group of designs which are being very well received. Earthscapes coordinates with a new solid program we’ve introduced called Cameron Pointe.

Another one of our new introductions is Trading Spaces, a pattern collection which has nine different designs and is displayed on a 24X40-in. sample board. It has garnered a lot of interest from people who know about the popularity of the Trading Spaces TV show. It is a program we are going to build on for the next couple years.” Beistline also mentioned how well Milliken’s camouflage line of Camo Carpets were doing. “It’s one of those great niche products. The interest in it has been amazing.” The line features a number of styles from Realtree and Mossy Oak, the premier designers of camouflage patterns with some of Realtree’s and Mossy Oak’s best-selling patterns (Realtree Advantage and Mossy Break-Up) on 13-1/2-ft. broadloom.

The mill has also expanded its offerings to retailers with a new style. Tessare Essentials, a professionally installed or do-it-yourself carpet panel, will be offered to all retail accounts. With 15 colors, dealers can now offer a wide variety of color options and design possibilities to consumers with Tessare Essentials, a 24-in. carpet panel made of frieze construction with a six-pound pad and moisture barrier directly attached to each square. The mill’s stain resistant, indoor and outdoor mats featuring college licenses were a big hit at the show as well. The mats, with more than 150 colleges to choose from, come in one size—18X28-in. Also debuting were new outdoor wildlife and home accent designs under the name Surface Visions. These consist of traditional entry and accent designs along with wildlife impressions. “By offering a variety of carpet products through one salesperson, we are able to provide the best service possible,” said Beistline. “We want to be known for providing the perfect fit for our customers.”

“We have been doing great,” said Stanton’s executive vice president, Jonathan Cohen. “We have had a lot of traffic. The first day of the show was sol id; the second day was busy as well. We couldn’t be more pleased with how the show has gone.” With about 200 new SKUs, Stanton had many introductions at the show. “We have a number of new products, including a great indoor/outdoor collection in our flatweave line, so now people can have a decorative outdoors. We have some great microhook runners that are available in cut-length. We have great new additions to our woven Wilton gallery, and our cut-pile Royal Sovereign Collection.”

Also included in Stanton’s new offerings was a handcarved nylon broadloom product. When discussing how carpet mills can attract more consumers, Cohen replied, “We are in the decorative end of the business, so we sell pretty things. Attracting the consumer’s eye is easy for us. The way the carpet segment can keep up with the hard surface technology is by using our own. There is constantly new technology in broadloom equipment where you can make a woven product from a synthetic fiber and make it look like a woven Wilton. Now there is technology where you can create different structures and loop sizes. As a result of these advances you can get some incredible looks.”

“The traffic has been very good and consistent in our booth,” said Dixie’s Philip Reisz. “Overall, we are very pleased with this market. People coming into the booth are interested in a better quality of carpet, more fashion-oriented products, a lot of patterns on the floor. The soft products are still gaining popularity along with the textured looks we’ve been able to incorporate into our carpet styles. “There has been a migration toward hard surface with stone looks,” he added. “What we are doing with the broadloom is, developing styles that coordinate well with those hard surface products. Instead of fighting each other, we are trying to design products that flow throughout the home to where carpet and hard surface can co-exist. When you get to your bedroom, living room and den, we can offer unique styles that do fit into the overall theme of the home without it being just another beige carpet. We want to be able to offer more fashion on the floor.”

“We are very pleased with the show, it’s been excellent,” said Tony Prestipino, executive vice president of sales & marketing for Gulistan. “The traffic has been dynamite and a lot of our key accounts are here.” A major highlight for Gulistan at Surfaces was its new Rug & Home line, which features a room-size area rug collection, including million-point woven rugs made with 100% New Zealand Wool; tufted and printed Invista Stainmaster nylon rugs, and million-point woven polypropylene rugs. Also debuting was a accent rug and door mat offering consisting of accent rugs with Teflon stain resistant tech nology, and Classic Berbers. The collection also includes indoor and outdoor mats. “Gulistan Rug & Home is a natural extension of our existing broadloom product offerings,” said Charles Kennedy, president. “These distinctive products reinforce our reputation as a fashion company and further enhance the value of the Gulistan franchise. This collection gives our dealer structure a unique opportunity in the marketplace.” 

Despite the fact laminates still account for the smallest piece of the flooring pie in terms of annual sales, the category is quickly nearing some of the more established hard surface segments due to the amount of innovation and technological advances that continue to emerge from the sector. This year promises to be no different as mills came to Surfaces with products that were not only more durable than their predecessors but featured the most realistic wood and tile looks since laminates were first introduced to the U.S. market in 1994. “The laminate market with the end user has picked up again in the last year,” said Wilsonart’s Tarver. “Part of that is the category has gone back to what made laminates successful in the past: durability, ease of maintenance and great looks. “We can still improve on looks,” he added, “but right now they are the best the category has ever seen. And, because of that we have been able to bring an element of fashion back to flooring.”

Alloc made a fashion statement by displaying its products “as artwork,” said Mark Kieckhafer, director of marketing. “We’ve never displayed product like this before but we wanted to show dealers that our floors are not just durable and easy to install, but have the ability to beautify any type of setting.” Two of its key Alloc Original introductions got their inspiration from different sides of the Atlantic. The Handscraped Collection, available in Antique Oak, Heritage Cherry and American Cherry, replicates the popular look of distressed hardwood with a manufacturing process that utilizes “actual craftsmanship behind scraped wood,” he explained. “The plates used to create high pressure laminate products are literally scraped by hand to generate aged wood styling.”

Oiled Wood Collection is the second addition to the Original label and takes its cue from the oiled finishes in wood flooring, a style that is very popular in Europe and quickly becoming a desired look in the U.S. “Even though this is a shift in what people are used to seeing,” Kieckhafer said, “the response has been phenomenal.” Products have a distinctive low sheen as opposed to the high gloss look found in most American floors. Oiled Wood is available in three options—Maple, a three-strip design; Teak, a two-strip style, and Teak Shipdeak, a two-strip product featuring black decorative grooves and no end joints, giving it a rustic, lineal appearance.

Another innovation brought to the table by Alloc is Herringbone. Featuring A and B planks which mirror each other, the floor is installed using Alloc’s patented mechanical locking system and creates the popular configuration seen throughout the world. BHK was another company using technology to create innovative laminate products, and not all of them were specifically for the floor. First was Miro Molding, a unique system not for floors but ceilings and walls. “It’s a great crossover product,” said Bill Byrne, vice president of sales and marketing, “meaning it can used in both residential and commercial settings. It complements any decor, while, at the same time, covering unsightly wires from computers to home theater systems. Plus it works in conjunction with our Moderna Logo Ceiling Planks which offer the same quality as our flooring products. BHK also rolled out Scala, a solution for putting laminate floors on all types of stairs, including spirals, and can even be used in basements and garages.

By offering five of the most requested colors from its popular Moderna Lifestyle flooring collection, he said retailers can now offer a total package to consumers. “We consider ourselves to be a niche player,” Byrne noted, “but also one that is not one dimensional. Our goal is to offer retailers other profit opportunities and from the response we have been getting they appreciate what we are doing. Most of all because they know we are here to stay and they want to do business with companies committed to the U.S.”

Pushing the fashion button was Wilsonart which introduced the Red Label Collection. Tarver said the new concept “builds on the heritage of high-end clothing designers like Ralph Lauren. Red Label will serve as an umbrella under which new flooring products designed specifically for discriminating customers will be developed.” The initial offering consists of 15 patterns in three styles—Planks, Woods and Stones. The first two offer six and four designs, respectively, while Stones has two marble and three granite looks. Utilizing Wilsonart’s Tap-N-Lock glueless technology, Red Label and the display created for the line “are a celebration of style and individuatliy. And that’s the key, design and style,” he said.

When it came to looks, Pergo was not only showing new products but, like Tarkett, a new corporate attitude. “We have a whole new look and image,” said Tony Sturrus, president and CEO. “This marks a fresh start for us. Start judging us from when I took over this time last year and what we have done since and are doing at this show.” What Pergo was doing was showing how much the company is committed to helping the specialty dealer be profitable. Sturrus noted one of the things Pergo is striving to do is change the perception that it is primarily focused on selling to home centers. “The fact is, “he explained, “we are among the top laminate suppliers to specialty retail and have no intention of turning away from this important channel. Rather, our focus moving forward will be strengthening these relationships even more and better serving our specialty customers.”

Helping to do that was an array of products and services specifically design for dealers, not big boxes, including an exclusive collection, Vintage Classics, and a patent-pending four-in-one molding system (FCNews, Jan. 26), along with a visit by Göran Bernhoff, Pergo’s new global president and CEO. “I want to meet the people in the U.S. and Surfaces is a fantastic start,” he said. “We need to be very attentive to dealers’ needs and plan to be aggressive in meeting their desires.” Bernhoff not only wanted to hear from dealers but assure them “our global financial position is stronger now than it was at the start of 2003. And that we are dedicated to the North American market, which is why we have strengthened our distribution network in the last several months and are investing a lot of money into our manufacturing facility in North Carolina.”

Like Pergo, Witex was sprouting a new look, stemming from its new president and CEO, Hartwig Siemerling (FCNews, Jn. 26). Though the hard surface supplier did not make as big a statement in its booth as in previous years, such as bringing in Hall of Fame quarterback Joe Montana last Surfaces, Siemerling was “pleased with the reaction we have gotten. People are starting to seek us out. And, similar to Pergo, he said the company’s parent firm “is giving us tremendous support. In fact, the top Witex people came to the show and were very pleased with what they saw.”

Attendees were pleased as well, as Witex offered a revamped look and feel to its Laura Ashley branded products along with floors marketed under its own name. “This is a totally North American program,” Siemerling said. For example, the Witex line is now Town and Country, Town and Country Select, and Casa Tiles with all three shown in a single display. Quick-Step kept to its reputation of pushing the technology envelope with a a variety of offerings. Like Alloc, the company introduced a herringbone pattern utilizing its own patented mechanical locking system. Standing out among its introductions were two distressed products “that we are testing the waters with,” said Tim Tipton, director of marketing. To create the look of worn wood, Quick-Step “white washed” or in the case of the second product, “dark washed” the planks.

“Dealers and distributors have loved it,” he said. “While its different, it offers a classic look, yet with the benefits of laminate.” Also, the company unveiled a 16-in. no grout line tile that replicates a look that is extremely popular in Europe and is quickly making its way to the U.S. This style has each tile literally bumping against another tile, but due to an advanced manufacturing process, the seem is so tight, it creates a virtually invisible line in the tile.

There was a period of time in the late 1990s when the wood industry remade itself following a string of innovations, including toughening up wearlayers so they are compatible with laminates, introducing mechanical locking systems to replace gluing tongue-and-grooves, and expanding and contracting the width and length of individual planks to allow for more creativity in the installation as well as make it easier to work in the different shaped rooms being built in today’s new homes. In recent years the segment has continued to make advances in the product’s overall construction and look, but it has expanded its appeal to end users by branching out around the world for different and unique species.

In addition, manufacturers are treating their woods in ways to add elegance and style to their already up-scale looks—from the distressed, handscraped look to lower gloss levels as found in other home furnishing items. Mirage was one of the companies bringing the popular European look of oil finished wood to the U.S. “It still has a strong, urethane finish,” explained Chris Thompson, vice president of sales, “but due to its low gloss, it really hides the scuffs. “From what we are hearing,” he added, “this type of finish is accounting for a lot of sales in numerous home furnishings products, such as appliances, furniture, paints—they all are being asked for in a low shine or matte finish.”

Thompson believes the reason for this new inter est is that consumers “are beginning to understand these types of surfaces are easier to maintain and look better over a longer period of time. And, by the reaction we are getting from attendees, we are on the right track.” Mirage has also taken a cue from other industries by introducing a Signature label exclusively for its Maestro dealers and installers. Made from diecast, lacquered zinc, these oval plates come with a serial number to validate the authenticity of each product. Not only will this give consumers peace of mind in knowing they purchased a quality floor and that it was installed by a professional, he noted, the Signature plate will stand as a status symbol when she shows off her new floor to friends and family. “Just like when she buys a new dress or accessory. Everyone wants to see the label and now they can do it with their floors as well.” Following its most successful product launch ever at last Surfaces, with Della-mano, Anderson Hardwood Floors was making waves yet again, not only with new products, but a new merchandising system. Fashion Showcase takes up just 8-ft. of floor space but was created specifically for women shoppers.