By Louis Iannaco
COLORADO SPRINGS, COLO.—More than 200 attendees to Alliance Flooring’s (parent company of CarpetsPlus Color Tile) 2008Summit converged here from Oct. 11 to Oct. 13 and all were treated to quite a flooring success story nestled near the beautiful and scenic Rocky Mountains.

The owners of Floor Craft, located on the west side of the city for the last 45 years, hosted the annual event, which marked the 10th Summit for Alliance.

Third-generation owner Mark Strauch was overwhelmed by the turnout. “I did not expect so many people to show up. I just didn’t grasp it would be of this magnitude. As far as the buildup and what it has taken to get ready for it, I thought we were in pretty good shape. We put a lot of work into this meeting.”

The purpose of the event is for Alliance members to learn, network and grow. And learn they did as the owners of Floor Craft opened all aspects of the business to their fellow members including sales, inventory control and operations. The oldest flooring store in the city, Floor Craft moved to its current location five years ago and has enjoyed great success, reaching $8 million in sales in 2006.

While the economic downturn has affected recent sales (Strauch estimates the business will make $6 million for 2008), the store’s overall growth has been dramatic. During his 10 years as co-owner and then sole owner of Floor Craft, Strauch has grown his business from $2.5 million to $7.8 million.

Key to this was the move to it current location, which includes a 30,000 square foot main building, a 10,000 square foot showroom with two outbuildings all sitting on 51/2 acres of land. Another crucial element to Floor Craft’s success since its move was Strauch letting his people do what they do best.

“Our people jelled,” he explained. “We started seeing more people fit and do what they like to do the best. We then tried to build their job around that. I stepped back and tried not to be the nucleus of the business as far as day-to-day operations were concerned. It was, personally, a hard task to do, and at the same time letting our people know this is how we run the business.”

Another import aspect for Floor Craft, which became part of the Alliance family in 1997, has been letting the CarpetsPlus Color Tile names do their thing as well. “We embrace our affiliation with CarpetsPlus Color Tile, just as other stores we’ve visited during previous Summits have done. We’re not trying to survive on our name even though it has been in Colorado Springs for so long. We’ve put our egos aside. With the turnover in population here over the years, many people don’t know the name Floor Craft, but they do know the name Color Tile. They know the name CarpetsPlus.”

Highlights of the Summit included a tour of the host store, Best Practices sessions, a dinner and reception as well as After Hours, a tabletop vendor event featuring more than 15 of Alliance’s suppliers. It was the fourth time Alliance had offered the sales opportunity at its Summit, which took place following dinner. Included among the companies selling their wares were Mohawk Industries, Armstrong, Beaulieu of America, Shaw Industries, Formica, Mannington Mills, Dal-Tile and Quick•Step.

“Because of the Floor Craft people, the success of this year’s Summit is really no surprise,” said Ron Dunn, co-CEO of Alliance, which currently boasts a total of 450 stores nationwide. “It’s a third-generation business, and we knew going in they had the infrastructure that many retailers need. It was a just a matter of them being able to communicate that, and I believe they came across great. People have gotten a lot out of the Summit.”

Peggy Field, co-owner of Color Tile & Carpet in North Logan, Utah, said she was very impressed with the way Floor Craft used its signage. “They had them all in a display up front instead of tagging products individually—much easier for the customer to read.”

Floor Craft’s signage was also a major plus for Michael Moore, owner of CarpetsPlus Color Tile of Medford, Ore. “I really liked the way they used it to distinguish the store’s laminate, hardwood, carpet, etc. I also liked the use of the large television screen, where they showed room scenes and installations.”

For Travis Wichern, owner of CarpetsPlus Color Tile in Woodbury, Minn., Floor Craft was a cornucopia of ideas his business could use. “Actually, there were several ideas that we will take back with us. One was the pricing on the front of the label, and when you flipped it over they had the installed price listed. And I liked the photos hanging in the store of the employees. It added the family touch. I also liked the technology the outside salespeople were working with.”

Mary Ann Dougherty of CarpetsPlus Color Tile of Bloomington, Ind., said she was interested in incorporating Floor Craft’s inventory control methods. “I was very impressed with that. They are adding a large rug gallery. We probably won’t add one as large as theirs, but we will add some rugs. Overall, their operation was very smooth.”

Her husband, Mark said, “From one area to another, the measuring to the service manager to warehouse inventory control to calling back the customer after one year, Floor Craft realizes that every individual section of the business has an importance.”