By Matthew Spieler
Albuquerque, N.M.—When Shaw Industries first established its Shaw Design Center (SDC) initiative, the idea was to take the program it had for its Shaw Flooring Alliance (SFA) members to the next level by partnering with select dealers to create a total store concept.

With nearly 60 dealers either fully integrated in the program or starting the process, the company decided it was time to gather them all together in one place to show them the various new marketing and merchandising tools it was developing specifically for SDC members as well as to get feedback on making the program stronger.

The first SDC Summit here last month brought together more than 120 people for four days of learning, sharing and bonding under the theme, “A Journey Down The Retail Road.”

“This is the pinnacle program Shaw has to offer,” said Blane Haywood, Shaw’s director of retail marketing, “and our commitment to you is to give you a cutting-edge showroom, marketing sophistication and the necessary tools to drive you above the pack.

“But,” he continued, “SDC is more than just a pretty showroom. It is all about the mutual brand—us supporting you—so we need your feedback, and we don’t want just lip service.”

Ken Jackson, Shaw’s CFO, added, “It says a great deal that you want to put our name with yours and we don’t want to let you down. So, if our ideas and initiatives are not on the mark or are missing something, tell us so we can fix it.

“And that is the subject matter for this whole meeting ” he added, “how we work collectively to broaden our chances for long-term success. This group gets it. You’re putting your hard-earned money and investing it for the long-term and not just the short-term, quick fix.”

John Godwin, Shaw’s executive vice president of residential sales and marketing, pointed out, “this is not a launch and leave program—we’ve done too much of that in the past. SDC is tied into our core values of what we want to do, which is to build the Shaw brand and drive traffic into your stores. That’s why we are investing money in the same wheelhouse that is important to you.”

Danny Crutchfield, director of corporate training and organizational development for the Shaw Learning Academy (SLA), added, “This is your program. And shame on us if we don’t take what you say and implement things and make adjustments to make it better for you. We’re willing to work hard if you are.”

With that, Shaw executives led the members on a behind-the-scenes journey into what the mill has developed, is thinking of developing and how it came to these ideas.

Whether it involved marketing, merchandising, promotions, technology or training, the majority of what was presented was exclusive to SDC members—from specially created Web sites and priority listing features to marketing materials and displays.

Even in training, as Crutchfield noted, “we’re creating a complete SDC curriculum and will have a variety of formats for you to access it. Everything we do and create for our employees we are giving to you, plus some specific courses just for you. You can even use us like an outside consultant by having us come to your store and propose solutions for you based on your needs.”

On the merchandise front, Kathy Young, Shaw’s marketing manager, showed members a number of new concepts and ideas. First, though, she pointed out hard surface displays have now been incorporated into the showroom concept. Beyond that, “we’re thinking outside the box and are looking at all areas to bring something different, yet functional to your showrooms. At the same time, we are trying to make it as economical as possible for you.

“That is why it is important to get your feedback so we can make these a reality,” Young added. “Remember, we all have the best intentions but the question that needs to be answered is, ‘will they be used in the store?’”

Jim McIntosh, vice president of Shaw’s Tuftex division, added, “We are not necessarily looking for you to place orders here. We want to create a dialogue so as to make the systems work with your showrooms.”

Technology, specifically the Internet, played a large role in the meeting as members were shown more than just the variety of tools available to them. Shaw shared its research and methods for creating these things, including a state-of-the-art eye tracking system from Resource Interactive that literally shows how a person views a Web page.

Robert Hale, useability specialist for the Columbus, Ohio-based company, said this combined with other research allows Web developers to create sites consumers find attractive and easy to use. By knowing how the average person’s eyes scan a page, a company can set one up in a manner that allows the user to flow through without getting lost, while also having an effective and enjoyable experience.

Kelly Mooney, president of the company, said the reason this type of knowledge is important is because “the Web has become a life management tool; it is fully integrated into the consumer’s life and there is no turning back.”

As proof, she noted there are 152 million adults in the U.S. who use the Web for more than just e-mail. “And, when they are researching a product, the number one source is the retailer’s site, followed by the manufacturer’s. So it is critical the two work together.

“Shaw is very attuned to what is going on with the Web,” said Steve Abernathy, the mill’s director of marketing technology. “Using the Web as a proper marketing tool can help you achieve multiple goals: increase brand awareness; inform/educate the consumer; market your products and services; do commerce and conduct business, and give you the ability to reach a target or world audience.

“That is why it is important your site reflect your brand and business,” he continued, “it keeps the continuity of what you are doing.”

Specifically for SDC members, Shaw created a Web site template than can be fully customized “to give your business message to your customers,” Abernathy explained. “Even if you already have your own site, you can still take advantage of this.”

“This Summit was a way of showing our SDC members in one shot what we have to offer them as well as emphasizing our commitment to them,” Haywood said.

And it worked, as members left with a feeling they made the right decision in joining SDC. Doug Gooch of Gooch & Co. Dist. in Kokomo, Ind., commented how “Shaw is being very progressive. Some of the items put us in league with the larger stores.”

Jerry Hall of Custom Floors in Fishers, Ind., agreed, noting when it came to the marketing tools, “dealers like us could not put these types of elements out and I feel this will be a good asset for us.”

Patrick Decosmo of Total Look Interiors in Tucson, Ariz., summed it best: “This meeting was not about pushing products on us. Rather it was showing and giving us tools to be better in our businesses. Shaw is teaching us to fish in order to be successful and not just giving us the food.”