Dalton—Thomas R. Durkan’s belief that carpet is a key element to interior design allowed him to build his company into one of the commercial sector’s most respected mills. On Nov. 25, at the age of 78, the founder of Durkan Patterned Carpets, passed away at his home here. A family spokesperson said he suffered from leukemia. A selfmade millionaire who helped many others achieve the status as well, Durkan “literally started his business with dimes in his pocket,” said daughter Pat, who would eventual ly become president and CEO of the manufacturer, “and built it to a $110 million a year company. “He was a true visonary,” she continued, “always thinking of the future and ways to expand.”

“Tom was a true friend of CFI and will be sadly missed by all,” said Jim Walker, CEO of the International Certified Floor-covering Installers Association (CFI). “He sincerely believed in the value of quality installation and promoted this throughout Durkan Carpet. “He was a kind man,” Walker continued, “who believed in others and always supported those who were sincere.” Durkan began his floor covering career in 1951 as a trainee for then Mohawk Carpet Mills. Ironically, he retired in 1996 after selling his successful contract carpet mill to his alma mater, now known as Mohawk Industries.

He officially began to build his broadloom empire in June 1964 with the founding of Durkan Carpet Corp., a small contract operation in New York City catering to the architects and commercial interior designers he served throughout his career. Between Mohawk, in which he held various positions, and starting his own business operation, Durkan was national sales manager for Stephen Leedon, a carpet company in New York, and national commercial manager for Stark Carpet Corp. The early years were truly formidable for Durkan, who sold carpet produced by way of commission manufacturing. And, even though he spent many years struggling to remain above water, he held to his vision that carpet is a fashion item.

By 1980, Durkan had a 10,000 square foot rented warehouse, 12 employees and annual sales of $3 million. At the age of 54, Durkan made the decision to focus on the hospitality trade as the company’s prime target of business. In doing so, he gave up the business’ previous efforts of supplying carpet to department stores for their own in-store use. In targeting the hospitality segment, Durkan worked tirelessly to change the poor image of printed carpet. He felt it could make the same visual statement as woven Axminsters, yet it would be more durable and far less expensive than the imports of the time. His goal was to market truly dynamic looking carpets to hotels and restaurants. He did this by investing in high quality manufacturing equipment. “My father never held back,” Durkan said. “He was unbelievable in that he worked to get top-of-the-line equipment and cutting edge technology and, at a time when no one else wanted to pay for these things.”

Gradually, Durkan overcame challenges in the manufacturing and marketing areas so that commercial interior designers would specify his product. To do this, he continued to work on product improvement, which became the company’s hallmark. “He was always looking for ways to make it easier for architects and designers to use our products.” Durkan said. “He was not only my father,” she added, “but was my best friend and mentor. We worked together for 25 years and made a great team. He was always thinking ahead, on ways to grow the company and keeping it strong to making it easier for our customers.” Besides having the vision to acquire the best equipment, Durkan was also a visionary in his hiring practices. In an industry that, to this day, is male dominated, Durkan always had females on his management team and sales force. “There was a joke he invented women,” Pat said, “because our sales and management teams were mostly women.”

In 1982, his children joined him in the business, with each learning all aspects, from sales and marketing to manufacturing. The family operation soon expanded Durkan’s market reach to include healthcare, the gaming industry, theaters, shopping malls and other large contract jobs, including many international sales. Though Durkan had limited credit from banks and other lending institutions, the company was able to become vertically integrated through a series of shrewd acquisitions. The first one came in 1981 when he purchased a small tufting plant. Three years later Durkan built his own facility to make printed carpet. In 1989, Durkan bought a yarn spinning mill and finishing plant. During the next eight years, he invested over $40 million in upgrades and plant improvements.

By 1996, at the time of his retirement, Durkan had built the company into one of the industry’s most respected mills in terms of both its ability to produce stylish, quality carpets and a company atmosphere built on family. “He was a father figure to everyone who worked for him,” Pat noted. “He molded a company personality like a family and was quick to praise his sales agents in the field and staff for their accomplishments.” Durkan once attributed the manufacturer’s rise from a small contract commission house to one of the most successful niche companies in the industry to “good fortune, tenacity, the assistance of many talented people, perseverance and sacrifice.” Those attributes helped him ultimately grow the company from $3 million in annual sales in 1980 to $110 million and from a one-man operation to an organization of 80 sales agents and 550 employees at the time he retired. Durkan is survived by five children, daughters Pat and Tara Durkan of Los Angeles, and sons, Thomas III, Charles and James all of Dalton.