In an ambitious effort to increase its presence at retail, on the web and, most importantly, in the minds of consumers, Armstrong is embarking on a multi-faceted brand building effort. Included will be major expansion and re-positioning of its Hartco Wood flooring line, a doubling of Armstrong's consumer ad budget, a redesign of its website and a plan to beginning selling its interactive Design my Room CD to retailers for use as a sales tool.

Its Hartco Quality Wood Flooring line has been renamed Armstrong Hardwood Flooring by Hartco and will use a logo that gives greater prominence to the Armstrong name. The collection will see the addition of 128 new entries across 11 collections in mid-2005. In addition, Armstrong plans to double its print ad budget this year. The campaign calls for ads in at least 60 mass circulation magazines including those that target black and Hispanic consumers and younger buyers.

Armstrong has also retooled its www.armstrong.com website with an improved store locator. In addition, stores will be able to feature Armstrong web tools on their own websites by including a link. (Instructions will be available through the armstrongconnect.com portal.)

Other features, including the Shop by Room section and the Design a Room, viewer are designed to help consumers make product selections right for their tastes and budgets. A Design my Room feature, which can be downloaded from the site, is also being made available on a CD.