As EY celebrated the 30th anniversary of its entrepreneurial awards program, Mohawk Industries’ chairman and CEO, Jeff Lorberbaum, became the first flooring industry leader honored with the firm's Lifetime Achievement Award in the Southeast U.S. Region.

Lorberbaum joined Mohawk Industries in 1994 after the company merged with Aladdin Mills, the carpet and rug company his parents founded in Dalton. Under his leadership as first CEO and then chairman and CEO, Mohawk has grown, with 2015 sales of more than $8 billion and more than 34,000 employees worldwide. 

“I began my career in a small family business, which has grown into a large public company, and the success of both depended on talented, dedicated people,” said Lorberbaum. “I’m here tonight because of thousands of individuals who create, sell and deliver innovative flooring products to our customers around the globe.”

The EY awards honor entrepreneurs who demonstrate excellence and extraordinary success in such areas as innovation, financial performance and personal commitment to their businesses and communities. Award winners are selected by a panel of independent judges, most of whom are past Regional Entrepreneur of the Year award winners. The awards program is now global in scope, and during the past three decades, more than 10,000 emerging entrepreneurs have been recognized in 60 countries. The Lifetime Achievement Awards more selectively honor those individuals who have delivered extraordinary success in the field of business.

In his remarks, Lorberbaum explained that his success was an extension of the important work of many people within Mohawk’s business and that, even with the dramatic growth of Mohawk’s business, he always views success as being “halfway there.”

“Mohawk has become a successful business through the exceptional work of many people, but we remain dissatisfied with the status quo,” Lorberbaum said. “For us, entrepreneurship is not about celebrating what we did yesterday; it’s the excitement about what we can achieve tomorrow. All of us at Mohawk are proud of our past, but we’re more excited about our future. We continue to invest in the business at record levels, drive innovation in all product categories and develop programs and services that help our customers succeed. We’ve made great progress, but we’re still only halfway there.” 

Winners of EY’s national Entrepreneur of the Year awards will be announced in November during the firm’s strategic conference in Palm Springs, Calif.

For more information, visit mohawkind.com.