FLOORtalk

Rick Oderio, president of Conklin Bros, discusses this three-store operation in Silicon Valley, Calif., and the unique set of challenges it presents to the store with people earning sizable salaries and working long hours. He talks about his approach to digital marketing and his plans going forward. Oderio also discusses competition in the area, his plans for future growth, and the challenges high real estate costs presents for expansion.

Rick Oderio, president of Conklin Bros, discusses this operation with locations in San Jose, Dublin and San Mateo, Calif., the level of business in the Bay Area, and the growth his operations have enjoyed in 2017. Oderio also talks about the installation problem in the area and his approach to installation, which includes hiring installers, as well as the millennial shopper and their tendency to buy floor covering at local big box stores. Also discussed are potential changes he is contemplating for his business.

Lew Migliore, president of LGM & Associates Technical Floor Covering Services, discusses a carpet tile problem in an office environment that began to look extremely worn and unsightly after a number of years on the floor. After cleaning samples of the carpet in the lab, Migliore determined that the problem was not a manufacturing defect but a lack of a sufficient maintenance program.

Piet Dossche, president of US Floors, discusses the acquisition of the company by Shaw Industries, the progress of the integration, and the role US Floors will play in in the future of hard surface products at Shaw, as well as what US Floors brings in the hard surface arena. He also talks about plans for the future, including the startup of its WPC facility in Ringgold, which he anticipates will result in the development of a number of new products. He notes that WPC is only in the early stages of its growth. Dossche talks about CORETec, its growth, how it is viewed as the industry standard, and his plans for the brand going forward.

Sandy Montero discusses joining the staff of Floor Trends , the role he will play in the publication, and the magazine's reach and impact on the industry. Montero also talks about changes that have occurred in the retail sector and changes that he expects in the future. Montero elaborates on the future of the industry as younger people enter the industry and the opportunities for growth to come.

Sandy Montero discusses joining the staff of Floor Trends and the role he will play in the publication. Montero talks about the changing role publications play in the floor covering industry in an environment that is seeing a great deal of change at both the consumer and the retail level. Also discussed are Floor Trends electronic media and the important functions served by digital media.

Dev O’Reilly, CEO of Roll Master, a developer of industry specific software for floor covering retailers, discusses the future of industry software and the new tools that will be available to retailers. He talks about recent changes within the retail community, younger people entering the community, ways industry-specific software assists retailers in following up on leads, improves levels of service retailers can offer to customers, and involves installers in the communication process.

Dev O’Reilly, CEO of software-company Roll Master, talks about the growth of industry specific software in the retail community, the importance of it for the efficient operation of a retail business, and its role in the industry in the future. He estimates the usage of industry specific software and FCB2B in the retail community, its rate of expansion, and the direction of the development for new tools among developers in the industry.

Stuart Hirschhorn, research director for Catalina Research, discusses the retail sector store closures and online sales, online sales in the floor covering industry, and his view of what the future will look like in online and offline sales. Hirschhorn also discusses millennials and the housing industry and his expectation for a housing boom in the future, the research studies he is currently working on, and the reports he will be issuing in the near term.

Stuart Hirschhorn, research director at Catalina Research, discusses the affordability of housing and a Harvard University’s Joint Center for Housing Studies 2017 report. He also discusses the performance of the floor covering industry in the first half of 2017, the various hard and soft surface segments of the industry, and the surge in laminate sales in the period.