In a bid to increase the design flexibility of its
carpet fiber, Invista unveiled a major expansion to its Antron commercial brand
during NeoCon. The company more than doubled the number of colors in the Antron
Lumena solution dyed nylon line to 200. The new options use “a broader,
brighter, deeper and richer color spectrum,” according to the company.
Opinions were mixed on the health of residential
sales and largely positive about commercial sales, according to a new survey of
World Floor Covering Association members. The portion of members who said their
residential business was down from one year ago-about 40 percent- was equally to
those reporting an up tick in the segment. On the commercial side, however, 46
percent of those polled said that sales were up while 29 percent noted that
sales were flat. Eighteen percent reported a drop in their commercial sales.
Shaw said that all carpets made using the
company’s Anso nylon now contain recycled content from its Evergreen Nylon Recycling
plant in Augusta, Ga. The move is part
of an aggressive push for the company’s Shaw Green Edge marketing initiative.
The Evergreen plant, which recycles post-consumer carpets made using Nylon 6
fiber into the raw materials needed to make new nylon, is a cornerstone of the
company’s environmental efforts.
James T. Lucke has joined Mohawk Industries as
vice president and general counsel. He succeeds Sal Perillo, who is retiring. Lucke
most recently served as senior vice president, secretary and general counsel of
Spectrum Brands (formerly Rayovac) in Atlanta, an organization with $3 billion
in worldwide sales.
With a vow to “build a beach house and goof
off,” flooring veteran Brian Radditz has announced his retirement after 30
years as president of the distributor Wanke Cascade.
Sales of new single-family homes jumped 16.2
percent in April to a seasonally adjusted annual rate of 981,000 units,
according to a recent U.S. Commerce Department report. According to the
National Association of Home Builders, a spate of builder discounts and
“substantial non-price sales incentives” helped fuel the increase in sales.
Additionally, the NAHB reported that buyers are seeking out lower-priced homes.
Commercial flooring maker Tandus said it has
finalized a five-year, $83 million deal to provide flooring for the largest
community college district in the U.S. The agreement with the Los Angeles
Community College District, which oversees nine colleges in L.A. and the San
Fernando Valley, gives Tandus exclusive rights to supply environmentally
sustainable contract carpeting for all construction projects in the district.
According to Tandus, the deal is the “largest such contract awarded, as well as
the most environmentally sustainable [agreement], in the history of the
flooring industry.”
Continuing
the focus on environmental concerns in its consumer marketing, Shaw is offering
a new in-store kiosk designed to educate shoppers about carpet recycling. In addition,
the company said it will add separate environmental
pages to its residential website, shawfloors.com, beginning June 15. Visitors
seeking additional information can link to the company’s corporate
environmental website, shawgreenedge.com.
Taking “a different approach in the region,”
Armstrong has opened a Pacific Northwest distribution business that will cover
six states including Alaska. The new
business unit, Armstrong NW, will handle sales and distribution for residential
products using a warehouse in Seattle. The credit and customer service
departments will be based in Armstrong’s corporate headquarters in Lancaster,
Pa., and operate on Pacific Standard Time.
Mohawk is offering retailers
a new in-store merchandising system aimed at eliminating one of the biggest
obstacles to a carpet purchase-fear of making a mistake. Mohawk’s
color coded EasyChoice divides products into one of four categories based on
performance characteristics. The four categories-“Select,” “Preferred,”
“Premier,” and “Elite’ – are designed to help shoppers guide themselves through
the shopping experience. By specifying the benefits of each product level, the company says the system will also help
sales people encourage shoppers to consider higher-end products. The company
says the new system “does the consumer’s homework for her.”
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