LAS VEGAS—Surfaces has long been considered the “official” start of the year, a time when the entire industry gets to come together and plan out the next 12 months. And for anyone attending, there was no better place to get a laundry list of tips and ideas on how to fight their way out of the recession than the show’s general session.

Held just prior to the opening of the exhibits, the 90-minute session, co-sponsored by Floor Covering News and Armstrong World Industries, touched upon everything from the new economy and ways to position your store to survive and grow, to different areas of opportunity that exist if you are willing to get out and do something different.

“Facing Challenges and Winning: A Retail Power Panel,” featured the leaders from seven of the industry’s leading buying groups—residential and commercial— and included Ron Dunn of Alliance Flooring/ CarpetsPlus Color Tile, Jeff Macco of the National Floorcovering Alliance, Jeanne Mattson of Starnet Worldwide, Scott Perron of Big Bob’s Flooring Outlet, Steve Silverman of Abbey Carpet & Floor, Vinnie Virga of Flooring America and Bruce Weber of American Home Surfaces.

Gerri Willis, financial correspondent for CNN, returned to the podium to reprise her role as moderator of the general session. And like last year, she kept the discussion on target and moving at a comfortable pace that allowed each panelist the opportunity to make point and counterpoint when needed.

“I thought she did an outstanding job selecting relevant questions and positioning them in such a way that assured application to store owners,” noted Dunn.

Opening remarks

Willis opened the session by noting at CNN she tries to “give special attention to small business because it’s the backbone of our economy. So I have a special place in my heart for all you small business owners.”

Before questioning the panelists, she set the tone saying, “It’s been a tough time—over seven million jobs have been lost, we have a $1.6 trillion deficit… but things are changing— we just heard the GDP was up 5.7%.” While admitting it will be revised the figure is still impressive enough for the audience to “get the picture” that things appear to be “turning around.”

After a brief discussion from the panelists about what, if any, positive signs they are seeing and where, Willis focused their attention on particulars such as asking how retailers can operate in an environment they think is turning for the better but are not sure, to right sizing a business and getting capital. She also asked what the biggest mistake a dealer could make was in this changing climate.

The panel shared ideas that ran the gamut, from going back to the basics—aggressive and consistent advertising, networking and making sure the store is clean and professional looking inside and out—to making sure you take advantage of the many modern and emerging ways of connecting with consumers such as having an Internet presence and getting involved with social media.

Flooring specifics

Willis also touched on specific subjects pertinent to helping specialty flooring retailers, such as what is the best way to compete against the big boxes to getting Mrs. Consumer to buy—and not just at the lowest price—as well as what can be done to make sure employees put on their best face everyday.

On the subject of the boxes, Silverman told the audience they should “move directly across the street from them, share a parking lot—no box can out-service you. They many generate traffic but their people are not trained.”

Virga added, “You should go right at them and show her why you’re different. Your salespeople are more capable, and she is willing to pay for that service. But you need to make her aware of it.”

Finally, when it comes to getting the best out of employees, Dunn suggested “setting them free.” By that he explained owners should listen to them and solicit ideas. In giving them a stake in helping the business succeed, “they [will] be happy to come in each day.”

—Matthew Spieler