Bathroom Blogfest '08 - Great Flooring Store Examples

Today, in honor of Bathroom Blogfest '08 - Cleaning Up Forgotten Spaces Around Us, I want to showcase delightful flooring stores with fantastic bathrooms.

What's your take on store bathrooms? Do you consider them the same way I do? A sort of litmus test for stores you can take seriously? Doesn't an unkempt bathroom send strong signals about what to expect from that store? And, doesn't a beautiful one delight you to no end?

Here are a few stores that I hope you will find as delightful as I have.

I recently featured this first flooring store in The Carpetology Blog. Perhaps you read the post? It's titled Atlanta Flooring Design Centers: Passionate About Customers. [I hope you don't mind, but I purposely didn't include these photos in that writeup. I wanted to save them to share with you during Bathroom Blogfest '08.]

These two photos come from the men's and women's rooms on the ground floor of the Suwanee, GA store. Above, in a blue theme is the women's room. Note the tile work [I love the mosaic border], the colors and the wavy glass sink. This space is deliciously soothing.

The men's room features a nifty waterfall faucet that I could have spent hours watching. Check out the tile pattern and how it complements the granite counter so perfectly. I love that the color scheme differs so much from that of the ladiesroom.

Note that both offer support bars around the toilet area. Practical, but also amazingly inspiring -- in terms of ideas to consider for your home, and what to expect from this store. What a great way to showcase what this store can do!

These next two photos come from a recently renovated and redesigned store in Webster, TX called My Flooring America. I had the opportunity to visit it in January 2008 and love the detail that I found in the bathroom.

Isn't the tile work fun? Don't you love that it's asymmetrical? Both of these photos come from the same bathroom.

I've featured other flooring stores in previous Bathroom Blogfests. If you'd like to read about them, here are links.

During the first Bathroom Blogfest in 2006, I included several flooring stores. My favorite is Aggieland Carpet One in College Station, TX. The owners, Claudia and Ron Smith, are really special people and their store is outstanding!

During last year's Bathroom Blogfest, I described Michigan Tile & Carpet. They've created a fabulous bathroom experience, worth checking out if you're in that area!

As with hotel rooms, so too in great flooring retail stores can you find inspiration. Inspiration for fashion and style ideas, and for attention that will have you wanting more. These are not forgotten spaces.

Thank you for reading.

Visit the Bathroom Blogfest Community [BBC] for Bathroom Blogfest ’08 updates:

Susan Abbott at Customer Experience Crossroads
Katia Adams at Transcultural Marketing
Shannon Bilby at Floor Talk!
Laurence Borel at Blog Till You Drop
Jo Brown and the blogging team at Kohler Talk
Lisbeth Calandrino at Lisbeth Calandrino
Sara Cantor at The Curious Shopper
Becky Carroll at Customers Rock!
Katie Clark at Practical Katie
Iris Shreve Garrott at Circulating
Ann Handley at Annarchy
Marianna Hayes at Results Revolution
Elizabeth Hise and C.B. Whittemore at The Carpetology Blog
Maria Palma at Customers Are Always
Sandra Renshaw at Purple Wren
Kate Rutter at Adaptive Path
Claudia Schiepers at Life and its little pleasures
Carolyn Townes at Becoming a Woman of Purpose
Stephanie Weaver at Experienceology
C.B. Whittemore at Flooring The Consumer






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Atlanta Flooring Design Centers: Passionate About Customers!

In mid-September, I shared What Your Register Tape Doesn't Tell You - my Surfaces 2008 presentation - with Atlanta Flooring Design Centers in Suwanee, Ga. What an experience!

First, you can't imagine a more focused and delightful audience, focused on the customer's experience. Participants peppered me with questions.

Next, the store. It's beautiful and thoughtfully laid out.

Michael Barrows, sales manager -- pictured here with me on the left and Alison Koeneman, our Wear-Dated representative in the Atlanta area, on the right -- is passionate about the store and making sure that it delivers an unforgettable experience to consumers.

He has a rich background in flooring, having operated his own store for several years, as well as worked on the manufacturing side of the business. He understands the product and what it represents to a consumer: a solution for her home.

Michael considers himself extremely lucky to be part of this business environment. He says "we have surrounded ourselves with talented, successful people. The passion throughout the company comes from many personalities that are allowed to thrive within our corporate community. Our basic goal and just one reason for success is the involvement of the company and its employees in the community that is a cornerstone of this business."

The store makes a strong statement about fashion and flooring, with vignettes and interesting juxtapositions. You'll notice hard surface samples in the soft surface section to show how the two can work together. You'll see samples as artwork. You'll also notice, particularly if you visit repeatedly, that it frequently changes to showcase something new, or to better demonstrate how to use products.

In addition to this store in Suwanee, Atlanta Flooring Design Centers also operates in Duluth, Ga. The company was started 23 years ago with a strong commitment to the customer. Just read through their Mission Statement and Core Values.

Michael offers background on how the company came to be. "Atlanta Flooring Design Centers' founder, Donny Phillips, started the business 23 years ago with a mission in mind to offer service and product to the community at a price that was fair and service that was above and beyond. The three principles are totally different in their skill sets and knowledge of the business which is what has allowed AFDC to thrive thru the years. You could say the principles complement each other's talents and personalities."

Atlanta Flooring Design Centers features a significant Karastan collection. When I visited, they had just received the Karastan Inspired Luxury collection and were about to set up. [If you haven't checked it out, you might. Not only does it include several styles made with Wear-Dated carpet fiber, but it showcases luxurious selection and customization. All of the carpet styles within the Inspired Luxury collection are available in 100 colors, in addition to each individual style’s running line of colors – even for those wanting a custom rug.]

The day following my visit, this store was hosting its first ever Design Expo - a full day filled with activities, education and presentations from representatives in the flooring industry. This was geared toward members of the design community. Local designers could take part in CEU credit classes in subjects ranging from design in carpet and natural stone to LEED and tile.

Allison said that the Expo was well attended. Designers not involved in seminars toured Atlanta Flooring Design Centers' showroom with expert commentary from the sales staff. Attendees mingled from morning to evening.

As Allison commented after the day's program "With outreaching events such as today it is easy to see why AFDC shines as a premier resource for designer flooring in the Atlanta area!"

To give you a feel for this beautiful showroom, here are a few more photos I took.

Note, in the photo above, how these patterned tile samples are engagingly fanned on the table.

Pictured on the right is this delicious seating area, with easy access to a TV if needed. This space is within easy access of the soft surface section of the store, immediately off the front central entrance area. Notice how it showcases product in a home-like setting.

It's also extremely comfortable. A perfect place for considering ideas, taking a phone call or for exhausted spouses and children to relax and enjoy other things [sports? Nemo?]

This photo on the left was taken in the soft surface [i.e., carpet] section of the store. I like how Michael has interspersed hard surface samples amidst the carpet samples. After all, that is how consumers use product in their homes!

Hanging from the wall were other hard surface samples [you can see a suggestion of that in the photos].

[In the hard surface section, I saw carpet as art.]

If you find yourself in Suwanee, Georgia, please do visit Atlanta Flooring Design Centers. Ask for Michael [he's charming and most knowledgeable]. If he's not available, everyone there will absolutely make you feel 100% welcome and inspired.

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A Discussion About Carpet Maintenance With Kerns Carpet One Floor & Home

"90% of consumers are never told how to maintain their carpet."

So says Bill Kerns, President of Kerns Carpet One Floor & Home in Milwaukee, Wisconsin. And it's a missed opportunity to build a relationship with customers, as well as reduce claims and complaints.

According to Kerns, 40% of manufacturer claims are maintenance related. Help a consumer understand how to protect her investment and you will have a customer for life.

Powerful words and actions.

Annette Smith and I recently spoke with Bill Kerns and Tony Marotta, his carpet maintenance expert. We wanted to understand how Kerns Carpet One Floor & Home - a family run retailer in business over 70 years - goes about educating the consumer, particularly in view of new cleaning requirements that went into effect Jan. 1, 2007 and further ones that went live on Jan. 1, 2008. Not following these requirement can nullify carpet warranties.

More specifically according to Janet Herlihy's 5/5/2008 FCW writeup titled "Cleaning requirements raise awareness," the major carpet mills - Shaw, Mohawk, Beaulieu, Blue Ridge and Tai Ping Options - "announced that to maintain warranties on certain residential carpet, they would have to be cleaned according to a schedule using cleaning products and equipment with the Carpet & Rug Institute's [CRI] Seal of Approval [SOA]."

Most of the cleaning schedules range from 12 to 24 months, with some in the 12 to 18 months range. Please be sure to check your warranty requirements! [Note: the Wear-Dated warranty requires professional cleaning every 24 months.]

Effective Jan. 1, 2008 - according to FCN's Sarah Zimmerman in "Carpet maintenance and cleaning allocated by mills" from 5/19-20/2008 - a new requirement has gone into effect: to only allow professional carpet cleaning from IICRC [the Institute of Inspection, Cleaning and Restoration Certification] accredited and certified carpet cleaners.

The genesis of all of these new requirements and regulations: diminishing consumer satisfaction with carpet because of the level of incompetence demonstrated by so many installers and carpet cleaners. "In fact, CRI found in a study done on chemical cleaning agents nearly 80% of the products on the market were as effective as water, and many heightened resoiling" which led to the SOA program, and the Green Label vacuum program. The IICRC addition helps guarantee consistent high-quality workmanship.

Says Kerns: "It means that consumers won't be at the mercy of fly-by-night operations. They can count on approved cleaning solutions, methods, and technicians." However, consumer education is paramount, as without knowing about these stipulations, consumers might easily void the terms of their warranties. "What a way to burn bridges with consumers!" he adds.

Kerns Carpet One Floor & Home has trained its salespeople, giving them talking points to bring up with consumers, and demonstrating to them how best to maintain carpet. Tony gets personally involved in these demonstrations. After all, the Kerns organization takes carpet maintenance seriously!

They refer to teeth and hair to help illustrate the importance of carpet maintenance: Why brush teeth? To maintain the longevity and health of teeth and mouth. It's the same with carpet. Maintaining it extends the life expectancy of carpet. Proper maintenance means fully removing soap after cleaning otherwise it attracts more dirt. It's best to rinse with non-soap. Just like washing hair. And, it's important to reapply factory protectors for stain and soil resistance.

Now, let's put things into perspective. Kerns Carpet One Floor & Home takes cleaning so seriously that it has established an IICRC certified cleaning service: Kerns Carpet Cleaning, which also offers upholstery and area rug cleaning services.

Kerns explains that it's important to talk about maintaining floor coverings. It's an expensive investment and needs to be cared for. So, the organization takes a lead on this front by offering carpet cleaning services. On selected items, Kerns Carpet One Floor & Home offers a $100 carpet cleaning gift card to new customers. This entitles the customer to 150 square feet of free cleaning or a spot cleaning during the first year of ownership of their new carpeting. It's a marvelous reason to followup on if there's been no redemption within that first year and helps to reinforce that they are there to help. They also offer a free spot cleaning bottle at the time of the order.

How best to maintain a carpet:
+ Vacuum frequently.
+ Immediately clean stains and spots by spot cleaning.
+ Professionally clean carpet using an IICRC certified cleaner and CRI approved cleaning products every 12 to 24 months depending on the carpet manufacturer's warranty requirements [can range from 12 to 18 months].

Cleaning frequency varies with households. A house with animals and kids will experience more soiling and may require cleaning twice a year, whereas one without may find that yearly cleaning with traffic lanes done more often works well.

Kerns and Tony explained the IICRC cleaning methodology:
- pre-vacuum to remove 80% of the soil
- with CRI solutions, agitate, rinse, groom, then with an air-mover dry the carpet

Tony says that he routinely cleans a room in salespeople's homes so they understand and feel comfortable recommending the service. It's effective and generates customers for life. Per Kerns, "we see a customer every 7 to 12 years for carpet replacement, but every year because of the relationship we've built through the cleaning service."

NOTE: Prior to a claims-related inspection, a customer must have their carpet cleaned within 30 days before opening a claim if the concern is stain/soil. Please refer to the warranty terms for details. Customers have an obligation to maintain their carpet.

"Carpet is safer than hard surface. It's a lot easier to maintain than hard surface. It's a beautiful product that offers so many benefits - including stylishness - to a consumer. Why not make sure that consumers understand how to care for carpet? That way we ensure they are totally satisfied, we prevent them from voiding warranties and give them a reason to come back for more carpet," states Kerns.

"Carpet is also expensive and by providing the proper maintenance information and offering a cleaning service we can help the customer preserve the investment they are making in their home. This added touch helps us forge a long term relationship with the customer and provides us with more opportunities in the future," adds Kerns.

Thank you, Bill and Tony, for explaining how best to maintain a beautiful carpet. It's a complicated subject and the better a consumer understands her obligations under the warranty terms, the happier and more satisfied she will be. And the better her carpet will look over time.

Click on this link to locate IICRC certified cleaners. Click on this link for CRI - SOA approved products. Click on this link for details on the Wear-Dated warranty.

Note: if you have shag carpet, please do NOT use a beater bar. Instead, use a suction-only vacuum cleaner. See Shaw/Tuftex Care & Maintenance of Shag Carpet.


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Lewis Floor & Home Offers Endless Home Solutions

We have friends in the Chicago area: Lewis Floor & Home in Northbrook, Illinois.

They have just expanded their magnificent carpet and flooring store with a 2,000 square foot kitchen and bath gallery that features custom cabinetry and counter tops, a fantastic addition for their 24,000 square foot floor and home ultimate destination for anyone wanting the most unique and customized home solutions....

Susie Axelrad, vice president merchandising and marketing, graciously welcomed two of the Women of Wear-Dated- Marianne and me [Christine] - last year at this time when we wanted to learn more about Lewis' advertising [see Flooring It Differently - Lewis Carpet One Floor & Home, Chicago].

We were blown away with the store and with Susie's creativity and deep understanding of the experience that this store creates. Given Lewis Floor & Home's exciting expansion, we invited Susie to share her thoughts about the store, the added kitchen and bath selections and how consumers shop for the home.

CB: Susie, would you give us a short history of Lewis Floor & Home?

SA: Lewis Floor & Home was started in 1954, so it is over 50 years old, and into the third family generation with Steve Lewis, who is President and CEO. Earl Lewis began it as a carpet cleaning business. His son, Richard, decided he preferred to sell carpet rather than clean it.

Steve, a CPA and attorney, came into the business around 1984 when the only product sold was carpet. He dreamed to be the marketplace leader. He did everything himself from unloading pad trucks to measuring and selling carpet 7 days a week. As he grew the business, he needed more people, so he hired neighborhood people - primarily women - to help sell. Having women on staff was an asset because women like to buy from women.

Steve listens to customers. In the mid 1990s, he was being asked about tile. Then about wood. He realized that a customer coming in to purchase one type of flooring wanted to purchase all flooring from the same source. So, he decided to expand beyond carpet.

Early on, the store consisted of a 5,000 square feet showroom and equal size warehouse. When I came on board, the showroom had expanded to 10,000 [and the warehouse to 15,000 sq. feet in a separate location]. The store is now 24,000 square feet. We expanded because customers asked. Steve listened and responded.

Our most recent expansion into counter tops and cabinetry is the last piece of the consumer puzzle. We've added 6 kitchen vignettes, of those, 2 are traditional and 4 are modern. Another 6 bathroom vignettes, 2 entries and a laundry room/mud room finish out the new Kitchen and Bath Gallery and also showcase a variety of the latest modern trends in kitchen and bath design.

I'm excited about the interest in modern, after such a long period of traditional design dominating the marketplace. Essentially for the last 20 years, we've seen a focus on old world looks. It's time for a change.

CB: Who are your customers?

SA: Our customers primarily come from the Chicago area, with quite a few from Wisconsin, Indiana... And many have second homes in Arizona, California, Florida and Colorado. So we frequently sell them product and ship it to those locations.

Our core customer is a homeowner interested in residential replacement or remodeling.

We also work with a select group of custom home builders.

The main street commercial business relates to our residential business in that it serves neighborhood businesses.

The designer business weaves itself through all of the business segments.

From our association with Carpet One, we also get referrals for insurance replacements.

Lewis Floor & Home has strong ties to this neighborhood and the Lewis name has a solid reputation. We also have a strong association with carpet and have worked to expand that as we have expanded our product selections. It's an ongoing process because the consumer takes part in the flooring buying cycle every 7 to 10 years. And, breaking the carpet association means that customers will visit more frequently as they undertake other home related projects. We've been doing that through advertising, promotions, and remodeling the store to tell people in different ways about the different segments we're involved in.

Purposely, when you walk into the store, you will see tile in front, and carpet behind.

CB: Your store exudes fashion. How do you convey that sense across so many categories?

SA: I take great pride in conveying that sense of fashion. When I came into the business, carpet had nothing to do with fashion. It was entirely a price oriented business. But as an element of home furnishings, it should be considered design and an important part of the overall design process in the home.

People now want high design. Target has showed the world that design can be for everyone. And, it is! We carry every price point because it all depends on where product goes in the house. The solution must fit what's needed in each room of house. And design is a part of that solution.

As far as the store goes, we lay it out the same way apparel boutiques do. It must feel like fashion and apparel! That means that our salespeople can better help customers enjoy the experience. We train them so they have great product knowledge and we also attract designers to work with Lewis.

We still have a majority of women selling, and many more designers want to work with us because of the kitchen/bath showroom. They say we have created a mini design center!

The store has to be an extension of who the consumer is. It has to look good. Otherwise, why bother coming in?

The expansion allowed us to create many vignettes to help illustrate different design concepts and trends - based on extensive research I conducted! We expect those to remain relevant for about three years and plan on adding additional vignettes around the coffee bar area.

CB: Consumers may learn about you from the Carpetology Blog, looking for flooring - and more specifically - carpet. Would you talk about the latest trends in carpet that appeal to your customers?

SA: We have seen a lot more interest in wool and have created a wool specific room with great designs. We've also created a green section.

What's hot in carpet? Definitely animal prints, stripes and traditional patterns [e.g., large, small trellis, brocade/damask patterns].

As far as colors go, contemporary colors line up with the CB2 palette, with lime/orange on the high end. There's also interest in geometric patterns for media rooms to make the experience more like going to the movies. Red is popular. On the traditional side, we're seeing greens and combinations of browns/chocolate with colors. Then, there are black/white designer statements, as you see in apparel.

CB: How do customers hear about you?

SA: Word-of-mouth. From our magazine ads. We've redone our website and plan to add content, particularly educational content. By the way, the website not only attracts consumers, but it also helps us in our recruiting.

CB: How should customers prepare for a first visit to your store?

SA: Pick up every design magazine they can get their hands on, and then rip out any pictures that appeal to them! Those ideas then become concepts that we can help customers create. From the ideas, we look for trends that they relate to and want. There is so much out there; go ahead and find that look/feel that you want, and then we can make it for them.

CB: Any other thoughts?

SA: I see tremendous pent-up demand. I recently saw a statistic that, with the downturn in new homes and existing homes, viewership in H&G has increased 15% in last 12 months. That tells me that there is big pent up demand! There's a watch out, though. It means that our store has to be relevant to the customer. [Note: See "Housing Slump Helps the Draw of Fixer-Upper TV" by Brian Stelter from the 6/12/2008 issue of The New York Times.]

On the carpet side, many of the fresh new looks and styles make carpet more exciting and create a reason for consumers to replace what they have.

CB: Susie, thanks very much! I wish you great success.


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