Surfaces organizers
are planning a different kind of shopping experience for retailers in Vegas. A
walking tour of several high-end Las Vegas shopping areas is set for Jan. 29. Led by retail consultants Rich
Kizer and Georganne Bender of Kizer & Bender Speaking!, the four-hour event
is designed to give retailers “valuable ideas on the art of store layout and
design,” according to show organizer Kelly Cooper.
Citing the increasing costs of raw materials, three
floor makers have announced price increases. Congoleum said it will raise
prices on all sheet, tile and sundry products by 5 percent on March 1. Armstrong
is set to raise prices 5 to 7 percent on its resilient and laminate flooring
products beginning March 3. Mannington said that prices will go up between 5 to
7 percent for its resilient flooring starting March 10.
Patriot Hardwood Floors & Supply Inc., a New
England-based hardwood and laminate flooring distributor owned by Armstrong
World Industries, said it is expanding. The Wilmington, Mass.-based company has
opened a new branch in Pompton Plains, N.J., staffed by many of the former
employees of the now defunct Hoboken Floors. According to Armstrong, the move
comes “as a result of Hoboken’s closure.”
Terry L. Wheat, an accomplished Carpet One retailer who has also been instrumental in developing computer software for the flooring business, is set to be the lone inductee for 2008 into the World Floor Covering Association Flooring Industry Hall of Fame.
Carpet cushion and underlayment maker Healthier Choice said
that all of its products now use BiOH, a soy-based polyol developed by Cargill.
The chemical is derived from a natural, renewable resource and is designed to
replace the use of petroleum in the manufacturing process, according to the company.
CCA Global Partners has named Rick Bennet co-CEO. Bennet
comes to the role with a wide range of retailing, general management, and
domestic and international experience. He was most recently president and CEO
of Direct Holdings Worldwide, an international direct marketing business with
holdings including Time Life entertainment. Also notably, he has more than 27
years of experience with the May Department Stores Co., including as vice
chairman.
Show organizers for Coverings 2008 are seeking projects that showcase “extraordinary
and innovative use of tile and stone in architecture and design” for the annual
Spectrum and Prism Awards. The prize money for this year’s awards for Spectrum
(best of tile) and Prism (best of stone) totals $30,500. Deadline for
submissions is Feb. 1
Thomas
R. Peck, Sr., co-founder of Seal Beach, Calif.-based Custom Building Products,
died Jan 3. He was 91. He is remembered by colleagues for his “rare combination
of genuine warmth and keen business vision that made him admired and loved by
everyone he met."
Business consultant, speaker and writer Ricardo Gonzalez has
launched The Gonzalez Report, a new website aimed at “delivering news, reports
and research that affect business with Latinos.” Aimed primarily at
businesspeople who manage Latino labor or are developing business with the
Latino community, the site focuses on Sales/Marketing, Labor/Management and
Political/Social topics along with commentary and analysis.
Two flooring service and installation companies serving the
multi-family housing market have merged. Brock Interiors, an 11-year-old
company covering the Southwest, said it will combine its operations with
Criterion Supply, a 26-year-old flooring service provider with six branches in
the West. Cary Jackson, CEO of Criterion, has been named CEO of the merged
companies. Cathi Brock, CEO of Brock Interiors, has assumed the role of
president and COO.
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