By Steven Feldman
POMPTON PLAINS, N.J.—Patriot Flooring Supply, the Armstrong-owned hardwood flooring distributor which, until recently, serviced only New England, is now fully up and running in the New York and New Jersey markets, filling the void left by the demise of H o b o k e n Floors. Feb. 26 served as the “official” grand opening of the 95,000-square-foot warehouse here, although trucks were rolling as of Jan. 7.

“Immediately following the announcement that Hoboken was shutting its doors, the determination was made that Armstrong, given its stake in the market, would be best served by putting its own operation in place,” said Ryon Ganser, general manager of Patriot and former Armstrong Northeast regional manager. And once that decision was made, it moved forward at a breakneck clip. It took control of the facility here Dec. 17, purchased all the Armstrong-owned material from Hoboken, hired several Hoboken veterans and within three weeks was servicing retailers and contractors with Armstrong, Bruce, Robbins and Homerwood hardwood as well as Bruce laminate. Patriot also carries some other exotic, unfinished and prefinished lines including Lauzon, Landmax, Baltic and Expama along with a host of sundry products.

Eight former Hoboken-leased trucks roll daily through Patriot’s territory, which spans Dutchess County, N.Y., to Ocean County, N.J., and all of Connecticut. Meantime, what is now known as Patriot North covers all of New England— aside from Connecticut—from its Boston base and is expanding into upstate New York. “All of New York is under review as to how it can be best serviced,” Ganser said.

Ganser speculates Patriot currently commands about 15% to 20% of the territory’s wood market share with the goal to grow that number to 35% by the end of the year. Things are moving in the right direction. “The market has been flat as a result of the economy,” he said. “But we feel better and better about our business every day. Our order rate continues to grow. We feel like we’ve made a significant impact in a short amount of time.

“We feel like we will fill the crater left by Hoboken. We have great brands and great people in a great market.”

That’s not to say Patriot has not been faced with its share of challenges. “It’s a tough market, particularly on the unfinished side of the business,” Ganser said. “Getting customers set up from a credit standpoint has been an issue. Receivables have been an issue. Then there’s the general uncertainty as to where the market is headed. People are not as bullish about their businesses as they were a year or two ago. But the biggest challenge may be penetrating all segments of the market.”

In general, Ganser said the market has reacted favorably to Patriot. “We are finding people who wouldn’t do any business with Hoboken are excited about doing business with us,” he said. “On the other hand, we do have to prove ourselves to a number of people.”

Proving itself shouldn’t be a problem, he said, once Patriot conveys its competitive advantages, first and foremost being its partnership with Armstrong and Bruce. “Also, the fact that we don’t need to support 85 lines allows us to operate much more efficiently and not try to be everything to everyone. That allows us to place the proper products with retailers.” On the contractor side, Ganser noted that Patriot can supply products to a high-rise project backed by a domestic manufacturer.

“Contractors can be assured they will get the best price and the best service.” In fact, he said Patriot is far more sensitive to market pricing than any competing distributor. “If BR-111 is less expensive one day, then Global Exotics will be, too.”

But it’s about more than product, Ganser said. He cited the quality of the Patriot team, which includes Sean Connolly, the former sales manager for Hoboken, and John Salvatore, ex-product manager for Hoboken, both of whom fill the same roles for Patriot. The team also consists of six sales reps, seven customer service reps, a purchasing agent and a credit manager. About 25 of the 30 Patriot employees have the word Hoboken on their resume.

The grand opening also featured Nick Capotes, mayor of Pompton Plains, cutting the ribbon on Patriot’s Pro Shop, a venue to provide all the sundries and accessories to install, maintain or finish hardwood floors.

“This is a category that has been traditionally overlooked and difficult to serve because there are a large number of manufacturers and ticket sales are relatively small,” Ganser said. “The Pro Shop is all about convenience for the sand and finish contractor and a way to get closer to them.” Among the portfolio of brands offered in the Pro Shop are BonaKemi, Absolute Coatings, Basic Coatings urethanes and adhesives from Armstrong, Dri-Tac, Bostik and Mapei.