By Matthew Spieler
ORLANDO, FLA.—“I think it’s baloney to say 2009 will be like 2008. Somebody will be a winner, and I think it should be us.” So proclaimed Randy Merritt, president of Shaw Industries, to a large crowd consisting of the mill’s best specialty dealers and vendors who make up the company’s Shaw Flooring Network (SFN).

The company that prides itself on full disclosure did not pull any punches during the biennial gathering—themed the Retail Revolution—about how tough business conditions have been the last two years.

Calling it “the toughest recession” he’s been in, Vance Bell, Shaw’s CEO, reminded the group that with every downturn, comes an upturn, so it is best to use these times investing in making sure you and your business are ready when things change for the better. “You being here shows your commitment to improving your business.”

One of the key ways to stay afloat during down cycles and thrive during the good times is to mingle with like-minded people and align with strong partners. “Our long-term commitment can be your success,” Bell said as he pointed to the fact Shaw has not only continued to invest in new technologies, resources and training, the company is “financially stable. Don’t confuse reality with pessimism.”

To make the point hit home, the crowd was shown a personal video message from Warren Buffutt, not only the country’s richest person, but chairman of Shaw’s parent company, Berkshire Hathaway.

“The ownership of Shaw and the company couldn’t be more stable. They’ll be around for over a century. Berkshire is strong and [financially sound] and whatever money it takes to do what makes sense—it’s there.”

He also reminded the group while it will take a while to “sop up” the excess housing inventory and turn the economy around “there are over 300 million people in this country. These are people with innovations, desires, skills—the minds that created millions of jobs have not disappeared. They are out there and the capital will be there.”

Two-way street

Buffett did admit that just because Shaw is on solid footing doesn’t automatically make it a good partner. “It is up to us to help you succeed once you’ve chosen us as a partner—it’s a two-way street.”

To show the Network its worth, Shaw rolled out not just an array of new products, merchandising concepts and marketing programs, it unveiled numerous innovations that offered extra value to end users.

Merritt pointed out the mill was not holding back as technological advances were being introduced in every product category. “We’ve got a lot of positive things going on. And, it’s all being tied together— from original products and merchandising to national and local advertising to our Web site.”

Part of the reason for this stems from the company placing research and design for all product categories under one umbrella. Emily Morrow, Shaw’s director of color, style and design, explained, “Sometimes technological advances are done simply for the sake of doing them—without any thought to how the process may affect the ability to design a product.”

She added this happens the other way as well. “A product is designed but the ability to manufacture it is either not available or commercially feasible. Putting everything under one umbrella allows for greater opportunities to combine innovation with fashion into working, marketable products.”

With the economy being soft, combined with an aging population, Shaw said the opportunity to sell carpet is greater than it has been in a number of years.

To that end, the two most talked about introductions were the news about Shaw’s Clear-Touch polyester (PET) fiber and the patent pending process to make it into a BCF from recycled plastic bottles, and a new licensing deal that brings the magic of some of Disney’s classic stories into the home.

PET peeve

Up to this point, PET could only be recycled into a staple fiber and the use of staple has been declining in the U.S. over the last decade to the point the majority of factory closings the past two years have been these types of operations.

Dave Wilkerson, Shaw’s corporate director of sustainability and product stewardship, said the company made “major investments to expand capacity and give us the ability to process used bottles into a filament.”

With this development, Shaw said it will keep three billion plastic bottles a year from America’s landfills by converting them to ClearTouch Filament PET. While the company has not dropped its commitment to its Evergreen Nylon Recycling facility which takes used nylon 6 and recycles it into new product, Merritt said the PET development is important because “we have got to find uses for other waste streams beyond nylon 6.”

Shaw’s environmental story—which resonated throughout its product categories—was received well by attendees such as Tony and Desta Lachner of Magic Carpet in Brooklyn Park, Minn., who understand green is the wave of the future. “The first things young people buy when they move are items such as flat panel TVs. But they do have a concern for the environment and once these items get paid off, any move they make to decorate they will be seeking all things green.”

Pooh comes home

The other big talking item in carpet was the Disney collection which is being produced by Shaw’s California division, Tuftex.

The non-character based line takes inspiration from some of the most well known Disney franchises including Princess, Fairies and Winnie the Pooh, Disney Pixar films Cars and Toy Story, and Disney Channel’s hit series “Hannah Montana.”

Merritt said the Disney line does more than just feature Tuftex’ trademark quality and design. “It stands up to the quality people expect from Disney as well. Disney was very involved in the project to make sure the designs were just right.”

Jon Pierce of Pierce Flooring & Design in Billings, Mont., called the Disney line a “no brain winner. I love it. We’re ordering it for all our stores.”

When it came to hard surface products, Shaw did not skimp on the innovations. In laminate the mill introduced the Luminiere collection, which not only incorporates all of Shaw’s best features—Enviro-Core, a high-density fiber core derived from recycled wood fiber, and LocNPlace, a mechanical locking system that renders such tools as a hammer and tapping block unnecessary—it brings “incredible clarity” to the visual, Merritt said. “It’s the most realistic looking laminate out there.”

In wood, the company’s Anderson division was on display for the first time at an SFN convention. The big news here was the company’s Exotic Impressions, a line of 100% sustainable domestic species.

What makes the collection so innovative is two-fold. First, no stains, solvents or chemicals are used during production. Second, is the exclusive PermaColor process. Using all natural accelerated aging, the color penetrates all the way through the top veneer for longer lasting performance.

Jeff Sills, Anderson’s COO, said not only does Exotic Impressions have a great environmental story, its performance is unsurpassed. Pitting the line against traditionally stained products, he said Taber test results showed the difference. Whereas it took 1,730 revolutions to get through the stained product, the PermaColor product required 9,400 revolutions.

While retailers gave their accolades and appreciation for what Shaw was doing to help them weather the economic storm and come out on the other end prepared, one of the biggest signs of approval came from Super Mom Kathy Ireland, whose moniker brand, Kathy Ireland Home, has been one of the most successful product assortment in the SFN program over the last decade, which includes carpet, rugs, hard surface and window treatments.

“Today’s mom is more aware of where her precious resources are going,” she told FCNews, “So durability is more important than ever, but she still wants fashion. Shaw is a leader in innovation and we are blessed to be working with such a healthy company that has the resources to invest in technology to create the types of products today’s busy family expects. We certainly appreciate it as does the retailer because these are exciting products that will move—mom wants it.”

Ireland added Shaw’s commitment to being an environmentally friendly company is another avenue that appeals to her because it is something she has strived for since introducing her first consumer product, socks, in 1993. “They were made from recycled soda bottles. Green is more than a trend—it’s a revolution—moms are looking for green in all their products. That was one of the areas that really attracted us to Shaw in the first place—its commitment to being green.”

Pierce best summed up the SFN convention and all that was shown by noting, “We have learned how we can advertise better, how to better utilize consumer credit, how to be better business people, how people like Warren Buffett envision our future and how we should factor that into our business. We have learned better practices through dealer networking and the value of strengthening our vendor relationships. Put simply, Shaw really went to extremes to give us tools to make our business more lucrative.”