The U.S. division of China-based hardwood and bamboo maker
Wellmade Floor Coverings has set up a relief fund to bring aid to the areas
hardest hit by the earthquake that struck the Sichuan province of China earlier
this month. An estimated 65,000 people have died from the natural disaster,
with many more injured, homeless or missing. While the Wellmade factory in
Nanjing, Jiangsu, is approximately 900 miles outside the areas hardest hit, the
company said that many of the factory workers have been personally affected.
Brooks T. Mancini, a commercial contractor with 47 years of
experience, has been named Chairman of the Board of the World Floor Covering
Association. Set to assume his new role on July 1, he will succeed Donny
Phillips, who becomes immediate past chairman following Robert Hill.
INSTALL said that
nine companies joined the group after participating in the INSTALL Michigan
Floor Symposium recently. The event, which featured a range of product demos,
continuing education courses and an installation showcase, is the first in a
series of planned regional INSTALL events. Hundreds of Michigan-based
specifiers and other construction professionals were on hand for the show.
Shaw Industries was recently honored as Large Recycler of
the Year by the Carpet America Recovery Effort (CARE). The award recognizes
that Shaw has recycled more product than any other cradle-to-cradle recycling
effort – about 100 million pounds of post-consumer carpet at its Evergreen Nylon
Recycling Facility.
Washington D.C.-based designer Paula Schumann (left), one of the dozens of designers who checked out the carpets from Rosemary Hallgarten Inc., chats with Rosemary Hillgarten and Hillgarten's Jennifer Pearsall at the recent International Contemporary Furniture Fair in New York. -Richard Monks
Ceramic Tiles of Italy made its first appearance at the International Contemporary Furniture Fair this week at the Jacob Javits Convention Center in New York. The four-day show featured a variety of high-end carpets, tiles and wood flooring as well as the latest in home furnishings, wall coverings and accessories from manufacturers from around the world. In addition, ICFF offered showgoers the option of attending a full day of educational workshops on May 19. More than 25,000 designers and members of the public attended the 20th annual fair. -Richard Monks
The World Floor Covering Association is offering a PDF worksheet and online version of the 2008 financial survey for NFT readers. They are available here and here. The survey, which will collect 2007 financial results from retailers and other members of the industry, will be published as a benchmarking report that is free of charge to participants.
Three L and Co. president Linda Luppino, Margaritelli USA vp sales and marketing Tom Balboni and Margaritelli president Marco Cimmino were on hand to celebrate the opening of Three L's newest Manhattan showroom for Margaritelli's Listone Giordano wood flooring. Luppino explained that the 2,000-square-foot showroom in the city's Architects and Designers Buliding gives the company greater access to the city's interior designers. “Our first showroom featured more everyday wood products,” Luppino said. “But here we're trying to feature some more high-end products and more wide plank floor panels.” Besides a wide variety of Listone Giordano flooring, the new showroom is the first in the nation to feature Margaritelli's Listone Giordano wood wall panels. -Richard Monks
The World Floor Covering Association is partnering with Meredith Corp., publisher of Better Homes and Gardens, to offer a new annual consumer magazine dedicated to flooring. The new publication, called Flooring,
will be available in "thousands of retail outlets across the country,
including newsstands, grocery, drug and home improvement stores." Plans
call for the first issue to be published Oct. 28.
Show organizers of the Atlanta International Area Rug Market are seeking nominations from AmericasMart exhibitors for this year's Retailer of the Year Awards. The awards, which aim to honor the most innovative area rug retailers, are set for 5:30 p.m. July 14 at the Georgia Aquarium. The semiannual market will run July 13-16.
RSS