Atlantic City—Having already enjoyed several successful regional shows, Mohawk’s Product Tour 2006 continued to move “Across the Nation” as it roared into the Mid-Atlantic for a two-day event at the Borgata Hotel & Casino here, where close to 1,000 dealers (a total of 2,400 people attended the show) came to see what was new for the new year. What they found were many product and program debuts, including several with technological advancements.

Whether it was Mohawk’s new tri-branded alliance with Wear-Dated/Scotchgard Protector, soft Smart-Strand products, soft olefins, merchandising for its Wunda Weve brand or Congoleum’s new K-Tech for Kitchens ( FCNews, Dec. 12/19), there were plenty of items creating quite a buzz throughout the show floor on both days. While day one was “invitation only” reserved for Mohawk’s biggest dealers, day two also saw hundreds of enthusiastic retailers checking out the new merchandise.

“So far, we’ve had shows in Vancouver, Calgary, Spokane and Chicago,” said Tom Lape, president of Mohawk Residential. “The traffic has been good and the dealers seem to be upbeat. While there is a bit of uncertainty out there in the retail community, I think overall, dealers are looking back at 2005 as a reasonably positive year.” “Registration for this show was up 30% over last year and we’re expecting a lot more people at this one show than we had at the Mohegan Sun in Connecticut and here at the Borgata last year combined,” said Jeff Lubinsky, Mohawk’s Northeast regional vice president.

“This is a very strong venue for us. The show has been an enormous success for us.” “We’ve had higher attendance this year and, in most cases, we are exceeding the sales from the previous year,” said Gary Hollowell, senior vice president of sales for Mohawk’s Residential Division. “Buyers are more cautious this year, so we really have to offer a good deal. From an introduction standpoint, our sample sales are a lot better than the previous two years. That’s probably because it’s the strongest introduction we’ve had in four to five years.”

“We are getting an unbelievable response to the Wear-Dated and Scotchgard Protector for carpet and wood,” said Lubinsky. “It is what is called an innovative ingredient that is going to give retailers the ability to make more profits than they could normally. The consumer understands Scotchgard, and the reality is, wood floors have always been a great vehicle, but now you have a wood floor that is so easily cleanable, it looks like the consumer is really going to enjoy purchasing this product. The response from the dealer-base has been overwhelming.”

The alliance will impact more than 80 products in the Mohawk soft surface line. Scotchgard’s new Advanced Repel Technology for carpet provides the ultimate in soil and stain resistance, while Mohawk is the only manufacturer to offer 3M Scotchgard Advanced Repel Technology for hardwood floors, the first-ever stain protection technology for pre-finished hardwood flooring.

The proprietary additive is an integral part of the hardwood manufacturing process, noted Lubinsky, and lasts for the life of the finish. It contains liquid spills and provides superior stain resistance. Mohawk’s advertising and merchandising program for the new hardwood treatment focuses on in-store P-O-P and an instore display that allows consumers to see the power of Scotchgard treatment.

Mohawk’s hardwood display features a built-in test station where consumers can see how easy it is to remove tough stains and spills, without harming the flooring surface. In addition to its premium products featuring Scotchgard Advanced Repel Finish Technology, Mohawk has rolled out a new line of exotic solid hardwood floors as well as a new value engineered wood line. It has also placed more emphasis on an entry level handscraped line that offers plenty of style for its price point.

For laminate buyers, Mohawk’s palette is target ed to darker colors with more variety, and there is a new “step-up” sales system that showcases more features and style as the customer goes up in price.

Aladdin by Mohawk gets 40 new products for 2006, while Horizon by Mohawk is enhanced with 33 new products. An all-new offering for 2006 is a collection of soft olefins featuring six solid color patterns, and one multicolor pattern. Wunda Weve gets a complete new look designed to enhance its “affordable luxury” position in the marketplace. New displays, graphics and a new logo treatment are part of the package.

Another highlight on the broadloom side for Mohawk is its new Opti-back, which is three times denser than traditional carpet backing. Another show-stopper for dealers was R.T.V. —real time visibility for deliveries. This computer technology provides retailers with the ability to see the driver’s name, trailer size and number, as well as the estimated time of arrival—a de livery window when the retailer should get his delivery.

The dealer will also be able to see exactly what orders he will be receiving. “Probably 20% to 25% of our dealers could use Mohawk.net right now,” said Lape, “we are going to be in a position where they all have access to this. First and foremost, we only want to have customers using this that want to use it. It is not our position to hide behind this as we will still have a live person for them to talk to if that is what they prefer. But many of our customers are very interested in this.”

Jeff Lieberman of Tri-State Carpet Connections in Tappan, N.Y., said, the Scotchgard with wood flooring “is really interesting. It is something you can really differentiate your business with, a way in which to set yourself apart from the competition. It’s great to be able to tell the consumer you offer something different.”

“I liked the DuraCeramic products from Congoleum,” said Frank Barrett of Good’s Furniture & Flooring in New Holland, Pa. “The design possibilities are great. I believe the Scotchgard protection in wood is going to be a hot item. It’s like Pergo when it first came out. I’ve seen many new designs in the broadloom. The Solutia in the carpet is going to be big as well. Mohawk is smart for branding with somebody so, if we can do a triple-brand for the dealer, it’s going to be great.”

“I’ve been impressed by some of the new Wunda Weve products, especially the looks and textures” said Alex Lord, a salesman for J&M Flooring Supply in Lakewood, N.J. “I like the new lines of carpets Mohawk is bringing out,” said Marc Straniero, also in sales with J&M. “I think it’s a smart thing for it to label its brand of materials. It’s a good move.”

“It’s good to see everything in one place where you can see the full lines,” said Tom Griepenburg, J&M’s owner. “That’s the most important thing, that’s why I brought my salespeople with me to this show, so they get a broader idea of what’s being offered, rather than seeing a few samples from a mill rep. Mohawk’s business is growing continuously because it’s so aggressive. It’s not a stagnant company by any means. It’s looking to grow, and that’s where I believe Scotchgard wood may come into play.

“For people with young children who are looking to keep the appearance of their home looking nice, it offers an ease of maintenance which really comes into play on everything now,” he concluded. “Everybody wants things simple, no one wants to work. People just don’t have enough free time, so anything that makes life easier, makes life better.”