Toledo, Ohio, -based Betco, a floor care products supplier in the janitorial business, said it has acquired Basic Coatings, a maker of wood care maintenance items for residential, commercial and sports floors. The acquired company, which is based in Des Moines, Iowa and is formally known as Atlas Companies, Inc. provides water-based coatings as well as oil-modified coatings that meet low VOC requirements. Terms of the deal were not disclosed.
A new cable TV home make-over show that highlights "unique or extreme design" will give prominent exposure to hardwood product from Mullican Flooring. The company said it supplied more than 1,000 square feet of its 2 1/4-inch solid oak saddle hardwood flooring for a house in Beltsville, Md. featured on the TLC show "Moving Up." The hour-long episode, titled "Calamityville Horror," is set to run on Saturday, April 9, at 8 p.m. (ET/PT).
Five flooring retailers who participated in Anso Nylon's "Time For Changing Colors" sales promotion last fall can now change into Bermuda shorts and set sail for the Tropics. The winning store owners where chosen in a random drawing of dealers who participated in the carpet maker's third annual fall sales event, held in September and October last year. The company also said it will build on the success of the first three events with an Autumn 2005 promo tied to the theme "Harvest of Color."
The National Wood Flooring Association said it will hold the first session of its new Subfloor Solutions School May 18 - 20 at the trade group's International Training Center in St. Louis. The school is designed to provide broad-based, hands-on training for subfloor preparation and repair on both concrete and plywood subfloors.
Jim Clardy, whose efforts to help a struggling country from the former Soviet Union led to the formation of the area rug manufacturer 828 International, died April 3 due to complications from a heart attack. He was 50 years old.
The Mirage line of prefinished hardwood floors said it is making available a new web-based "personal design assistant" that enables consumers to see a 360-degree view of flooring products in specific types of rooms. The company says its new "Mirage Dreamer," available at www.miragefloors.com, lets consumers "view, design and simulate various flooring configurations and other room features in real-time."
In an ambitious effort to increase its presence at retail, on the web and, most importantly, in the minds of consumers, Armstrong said it 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.
Shaw is gearing up for a month-long discount and promotional program aimed at driving sales of its new Couture collection. During the month of May the manufacturer will offer retailers special discount rates on the line as well as promotional material and special financing plans for consumers.