The International Surfaces Event (#TISE2021) Special Edition: Maintaining Profitability

TI SE E dit ion | 2021

The official magazine of the World Floor Covering Association

Premier FLOORING RETAILER The International Surfaces Event Special Edition

Maintaining Profitability: New Products Business Software Training Customer Experience

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e: info@fcif.org p: 855.330.1183

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The official magazine of the World Floor Covering Association

Premier FLOORING RETAILER 2

TISE Edition | 2021

Your Attitude Matters Scott Humphrey, CEO, WFCA

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If it Weren’t for Installation …

Tom Jennings, Retail Training Expert

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Rollmaster Road Map to Efficiency

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Safety and Risk Management—Reduce Costs and Increase Revenue Stacy Eickhoff, Senior Vice President for Risk Strategies Company

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QFloors—How to Increase Business Without Increasing Overhead Trent Ogden, co-founder and CFO of Flooring Technologies

24 On the Cover: Metroflor Corporation’s Metrostone SPC Tile with proprietary Grout Effect™ edge that replicates the look of a traditional grout line without the staining, cracking and maintenance of traditional grout lines. Shown in the 16" × 32" format in Quarry.

Are You or Your Subcontractors Properly Licensed?

Jeffrey W. King, Legal Counsel for the WFCA

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The Beautifully Responsible™ Momentum of Resilient Floorings It’s the winning combination of research, message, media and support to help flooring retailers sell more

34 How the Beautifully Responsible™ Campaign Covers all the Bases for Selling Resilient Flooring Lisbeth Calandrino, Flooring Specialist & Associate Publisher, Fabulous Floors Magazine

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Innovations in Metroflor’s Metrostone Provides New Opportunities in Tile Stone, Tile & Plank Looks with Grout Effect™ Edge

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Do you fully use fcB2B Lewis Davis, Senior Director of Technology and Research

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Plan for Concrete Slab Moisture Testing or Plan for Failure Jason Spangler, Wagner Meters’ Flooring Division Manager

56

What Do Consumers Want To See On A Company Website?

Geoffrey Colon, Business Evaluation Services

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Carpet Padding or Carpet Cushion. There’s a difference Healthier Choice

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Engineered Floors—Color, Style, and Fashion for Floors DW Select brings five new introductions of beautifully styled carpet patterns, textures, and colors to the Dream Weaver product family

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TISE—The International Surface Event

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Realtors Make Good Partners!

For the Very First Time: Realtors Are Invited to TISE 2021—The International Surfaces Event

Premier Flooring Retailer | TISE Edition 2021

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TAKING THE LEAD

Your Attitude Matters

A

Scott Humphrey CEO, WFCA

s the 1965 hit song says, “What the world needs now is love sweet love…”. We live in a world filled with hate. Just look around you at the divisions in our country, the anger, the riots, etc. Attitude matters, and if there was ever a need for strong leadership to turn the tide of negativity, it is now. Still, as leaders, sometimes we forget in the hustle and bustle of getting things done, we can be guilty of sending the message that “something” is more important than “somebody.” It can be easy to see interruptions as merely distractions instead of opportunities.

I must admit, this is really a struggle for me. I am a “check off the box” type of person. I want to accomplish the task and move onto the next opportunity. I am often guilty of missing the beauty of the journey because I am locked in on the destination.

Sadly, this has become more apparent to me as the last of my children draw closer to leaving the nest. It is a constant reminder that you can’t go back. The good news is, even though you can’t change the past, you can live differently from this point forward. I know I sound like a broken record, but let me say it once again, “The past is a great place to learn, but a terrible place to live.” I am so thankful for the opportunity we have each day to improve on the past by improving our attitude.

Here are a few reasons to focus on your attitude:

Your attitude impacts others

… let me say it once again, “The past is a great place to learn, but a terrible place to live.” I am so thankful for the opportunity we have each day to improve on the past by improving our attitude.

Years ago, my family went to Disney World. I know that Disney is a glorious place of dreams and fantasy, but when you are a Type A personality, it can be a nightmare.

The endless flow of lines can be torture to those of us who are wired to check off the box and accomplish as much as we can in one day. We don’t mean to be this way. It is just the way Type A’s are wired. Knowing this about myself, I determined that for one whole day, I would not be in charge. I would allow my wife, our sitter, and the kids to determine what we would do and when we would do it. In a sense, I sought to eliminate myself from the picture, so my natural tendencies would not put a damper on their special day.

I remember that day like it was yesterday. I kept thinking to myself, “Relax and enjoy. You don’t have to be in charge today.” Amazingly, I was able to keep my cool and enjoy the day….. for one full hour.” Yep, that’s right. We rode the first ride, and I calmly sat back and allowed the family to determine what we would do next. When they asked me, I would gently say, “It doesn’t matter to me — whatever you want to do is fine.” In fact, this banter went on for about 30 minutes. But after 30 minutes and still standing in the same place, I was having a hard time holding my Type A back. The next time they asked me what I thought we should do, I responded, “I don’t

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know, but I do know that if we had made this decision 30 minutes ago, we would be halfway through our next line.” I will never forget what our sitter said next. She looked me directly in the eyes and said, “You’ve been leaving since you got here,” and she was right! I wasn’t saying anything, but my body language was communicating that I was a prisoner at Disney. My attitude was ruining this special time. My sitter’s words were exactly what I needed. I gave up worrying about the end of the day and began to enjoy the moments that made it special.

Your attitude sets the example for your team If you treat people with respect, those who look to you are more likely to do the same. Likewise, if you treat others as a distraction, a second-class citizen, or a nuisance, you are setting the acceptable standard for customer service for your team. It is amazing the number of times I have encountered bad customer service only to meet the manager of that employee and see clearly the source of the attitude. Leaders often set the tone for what is allowed. I have seen this first-hand in youth sports. When I see a bad attitude and poor behavior on the court, the first place I look is to their parents. They are usually the ones in the stands yelling at their kids, the refs, the coaches, and anyone else that will listen.

Your attitude today impacts your relationships tomorrow Finally, it is important to remember that every encounter you have has a potential payback. Years ago, I was the sales recruiter for a large flooring manufacturer. One responsibility of that job was traveling all over the USA and interviewing students to potentially become sales reps for my

company. Though I enjoyed meeting each student, it was often apparent in the first 60 seconds that the person I was slated to spend the next 30 minutes with was not a match for our training program. Even so, I greeted each person at the door, offered them something to drink, asked them questions to determine if they were a good fit, answered any questions they had, and thanked them for their time. Now you might ask how a Type A personality who knew in the first 60 seconds that a person wasn’t the right fit would spend the next half hour listening to their responses. Let me give you a couple of reasons: I was taught at an early age to treat others as I would like to be treated; I genuinely enjoyed getting to know people from different walks of life; and most importantly, I realized that every person I spoke with would likely one day be involved in purchasing flooring. I wanted them to leave that interview with such a positive impression of my company that even if they didn’t get the job, they would want to purchase from the company I represented. That is right. I was convinced that my attitude — the way I treated them — could potentially impact their purchase decision one day.

As a leader, I challenge you to be aware of your attitude and how it sets the example for your team, impacts your future, and affects future relationships. I close with this quote from famed leadership writer John Maxwell: “We cannot choose how many years we will live, but we can choose how much life those years will have.

We cannot control the beauty of our face, but we can control the expression on it. We cannot control life’s difficult moments, but we can choose to make life less difficult. We cannot control the negative atmosphere of the world, but we can control the atmosphere of our minds. Too often, we try to choose and control things we cannot. Too seldom we choose to control what we can…our attitude.” ❚

As a leader, I challenge you to be aware of your attitude and how it sets the example for your team, impacts your future, and affects future relationships.

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The Floor Covering Education Foundation’s purpose is to recruit new installers, scholarship their trade education, and place these new artisans into floor covering industry careers.

Visit us at T.I.S.E. Booth #3007 to see how you can become part of the solution.

For more information on the Foundation, contact: Jim Aaron, Executive Director email: jaaron@fcef.org

Visit fcef.org to learn more.

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IT’S YOUR UP

If it Weren’t for Installation …

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Tom Jennings Retail Training Expert Tom Jennings is a lifelong member of the flooring business. Since selling his family’s retail business in 2006, he has served the industry as an educator and speaker.

He is a past board chairman of the WFCA and is currently the board chairman of WFCA Services, Inc. He may be reached at tomg.jennings@gmail.com

hen visiting with a prominent retailer not long ago, he exclaimed that “if it weren’t for installation, this would be a pretty good business!” While I certainly understand running an installation department presents difficulties, especially as well-trained installers are becoming increasingly demanding, I couldn’t disagree with this dealer more. If it weren’t for installation, this would be a horrible business to be in!

Personally, I don’t view simplifying the installation process as being in the best interests of the independent retailer. If the majority of our customers did not require professional installation services, we would be forced to compete with the big boxes and internet sites on a level playing field. To do so would require tremendous resources that most dealers simply don’t have. One only has to look at what has happened in the last decade to the local appliance dealer, the local paint store, etc., to see how well this has worked for them!

While recognizing that installation is viewed by many as our industry’s biggest problem, with both input and attention, it can be your firm’s biggest asset! Remember, the only thing that makes us truly different from our competition, in the customer’s judgment, is the ability to deliver a superior service experience.

It is very difficult in the flooring business to separate our stores from the competition based upon product alone. This is a fact that most dealers seem to be in denial about. Too many seem to feel their products are in some fashion superior to what is being offered elsewhere. The problem is that they seem to be the only ones who feel this way.

We operate in a marketplace where the majority of dealers seem to be able to access nearly every style manufactured. If you were to remove the labels from your samples, most of your staff members would have difficulty identifying the very products they work with daily. To think that a customer who buys our products infrequently can judge subtle differences in largely similar selections displayed on largely similar display systems from store to store as they shop for flooring is to give them too much credit!

While recognizing that installation is viewed by many as our industry’s biggest problem, with both input and attention, it can be your firm’s biggest asset! Remember, the only thing that makes us truly different from our competition, in the customer’s judgment, is the ability to deliver a superior service experience.

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It is very difficult in the flooring business to separate our stores from the competition based upon product alone. This is a fact that most dealers seem to be in denial about.

Also, there are more varied outlets from which to purchase products than ever before. A customer can be sitting at home in their pajamas at 3 a.m. and buy all of the products that their credit card will allow! In addition, when you also consider that there is more product information available for customer research than ever before, it becomes clear that focusing only on the product may have diminishing returns.

What savvy flooring retailers understand is that their staff is truly the only unique offering that their company has to sell. This is the area that independent retailers should be able to take the greatest advantage of, but unfortunately, seemingly, very few do.

When installation services are sold properly, they can often return a higher margin than the goods themselves. Despite this fact, many dealers remain hesitant to markup labor properly. Why? Shouldn’t the portion of the sale that inherently carries the greatest risk also have the potential to create the greatest reward?

When the consumer is spending their paycheck, they will willingly spend more for services when you

… consumers… will willingly spend more for services when you show them the value of a quality installation compared to substandard offerings.

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show them the value of a quality installation compared to substandard offerings. Considering the example of a cheap haircut is usually enough to reinforce this fact for most of us, and it’s not permanent as it will grow back!

I have long used the following line to emphasize the value of a craftsman: “When you desire to have an area painted, I’m sure that you may find some differences in brands of paint. I am even surer that you will find that there is a great deal of difference in painters! My experience is that your satisfaction with the look of a room will eventually be more dependent on the choice of a painter than on the choice of paint.”

In theory, I don’t see much difference between a box of tile, a carton of wood, a roll of carpet, or a bucket of paint. In the wrong hands, each one can be a mess.

In the right hands, the end result can be a work of art.

If you have installation artists working for you, don’t be hesitant to show and sell the value that they add to the entire project. Convince your customers that they deserve a masterpiece! ❚

COMING AUGUST 2021 The Resilient Floor Covering Institute (RFCI) and Fabulous Floors Magazine Presents

Beautifully Responsible Luxury Flooring—Your Design Resource for Luxury Vinyl tile, planks, sheet vinyl and more...

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● Use LF in your store to educate your customers

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Celebrating its 18th year, Fabulous Floors Magazine is

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Beautifully Responsible Luxury Flooring Your Design Resource For Luxury Vinyl Tile, Planks, Sheet Vinyl, and more…

Roadmap To Efficiency for Your Flooring Business RollMaster is made for flooring professionals by flooring professionals. Our team spends every day in flooring stores of all kinds and sizes. From small mom and pop shops to huge multi-store operations, we know how to make every department of your flooring businesses more efficient and profitable.

Read on for a wealth of tips from our team that we’ve learned over the years.

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Flooring Software That Makes Doing Business Easier WHY ROLLMASTER...

RollMaster’s industry leading cloud-based software automates every process within your busy flooring operation, giving you the tools you need to bring your business to the next level. One of the ways RollMaster makes business operations easier is by integrating all your flooring software needs into one place. RollMaster’s integrations use a unique API to seamlessly connect with the operational tools flooring businesses rely on, such as accounting and estimating software, and marketing platforms. These integrations benefit every level of your business, from simplifying warehouse tasks to making big business decisions much easier.

Get in touch to learn more

Premier Flooring Retailer | TISE Edition 2021 9 info@rmaster.com | 866.822.4904 | www.rmaster.com

Sales

People, Processes & Estimating

Empower Your Sales Team Your sales team is the number one key to growing your business! With increased sales, each part of your business is able to expand. But, awesome sales teams don’t happen overnight. Effective incentives, tools, and management is needed to help this critical part of your business thrive.

A clear commission structure is key to motivating your sales team to achieve success. Your sales reps should never be in the dark on their commissions, or be allowed to feel like they don’t know how commissions work in your business. A good commission structure is both dynamic and scalable. Commissions are best tracked through software, taking job cost into consideration.

PRO TIP Use incentives based on gross profit to focus on what helps the company the most!

Track Jobs and Margins Managing an effective sales staff requires more than goal-setting and team building with their managers. Your sales team should have access to technology that allows them to monitor their job costs and margins. This allows them to work on increasing margins while they increase their commission at the same time!

Giving your sales reps these tools gives them control of their work (and their take-home pay)!

But, that doesn’t mean that management’s job is done. It’s still important for business owners to measure how effective their reps are for their business. Tracking and comparing close rates and margins for each sales rep is key. Slicing and dicing detailed data to make comparison by the team member, customer, vendor, category, and product also helps to spot weaknesses.

RM Analytics powered by Tableau allows you to track big business data in a snap with clear, easy to read charts and graphs. This kind of data visualization used to only be available to huge corporations but is now affordable for businesses of all sizes. In one instance, a dealer found a sales rep had stopped selling labor!

Using visualized data/BI, they quickly spotted the drop off in labor sales. They were able to quickly remedy the situation.

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Sales

People, Processes & Estimating

Pay Attention to Sales Tax All businesses must keep in mind sales tax. Sales tax varies dramatically based on state and county laws, and must be done properly to save as much money as possible. If your state allows you to utilize “Use Tax,” you need a software that can easily assess and track that tax data, allowing you to minimize that expense with no additional effort. Many software options don’t handle tax, so this should be a consideration before using a new software.

Create Fast Accurate Estimates

PRO TIP In a recent instance, RollMaster Software was able to help a business owner switch to “lump sum billing”. This saved her over $20k in tax remittance!

It all starts with an accurate estimate. When done incorrectly, a bad estimate trickles downhill and affects all other departments frustrating staff and clients. A good estimation helps win the sale, and boosts the accuracy of all departments in your organization - from the warehouse to installation to accounting.

The most accurate measurements are done on location with a tablet and laser measuring tool. Not only does it increase your professionalism in your clients home, but pinpoint accuracy helps you give your clients the most precise estimate.

Using MeasureSquare in conjunction with RollMaster Software provides the best blueprint take-off program, seamlessly integrated into your core business software. Speed up your bidding process with best-in-industry accurate measurements, and give all departments access to crucial real-time data.

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www.rmaster.com

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Operations

Warehouse, Job Costing & Budgets

Optimize Your Warehouse & Inventory Mistakes in the warehouse can be extremely costly for flooring businesses! Making sure you have an efficient, optimized warehouse, and detailed inventory information can help you save both time and money.

An inventory software that is integrated with information on sales history, lead times, and open orders allows you to have a clear understanding of your warehouse, and helps you bring in new products at the right time.

Create a “Culture of Inventory.”

Make sure your staff knows how important accurate inventory management is, so they’ll know to take it seriously. This means running physical inventory on a regular basis, and having upper management participate to reinforce its importance.

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Make managing inventory easier with wireless warehousing! RollMaster is integrated with the latest Android Barcode Devices to allow your team to be as mobile as possible. Update inventory, shipping, and receiving in real time, without needing to run back and forth to the office.

www.rmaster.com 12 Premier Flooring Retailer | TISE Edition 2021

Operations

Warehouse, Job Costing & Budgets

Budget and Job Costing Proper budgeting and job costing can help businesses see flaws in their process, and ultimately help your business become more profitable by stopping profit leakage.

There are two key things to consider: the profit you expected when you sold a job, and the actual profit you received. For example, if your focus is on apartment or builder business, you need to know what you budgeted when you wrote the sale for the Unit or House, and where you wound up at the end of the day. This will help direct you when looking for profit leaks.

Keep an Eye Out for the Following: • Are certain sales reps always overpromising and under delivering?

• Are certain customers hurting you with last minute changes, prep, and rip charges?

• Does one particular installer need more floor prep and patch than others?

PRO TIP Fixing problems like these allows you to grow your bottom line! RollMaster’s sales dashboard allows you to run highly detailed reports to look for ways your business can boost profits.

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Money Management

Credit Card Processing & Deferred Financing

Credit Card Processing Accepting credit cards is critical for all businesses, as it’s one of the most common ways consumers pay for goods and services.

But, utilizing credit card payments can be expensive for flooring businesses both in time and money spent.

Businesses can save money on credit card processing by making sure they include credit card fees in the job cost. These fees can really add up, but when they’re analyzed properly, and built into your cost then it can be a win-win!

Businesses also have a huge opportunity by saving money with Level 3 transactions. That alone can save your company up to .3%, which, if factored on just 1 million in sales, represents $3,000 in recaptured revenue. You need only utilize an integrated credit card processing software like the one we offer with RollMaster, and this becomes and automated process.

RollMaster partners with Gravity Payments to make credit card processing smooth and efficient. This can save your business valuable time by eliminating double entry into other software, and

Smart Financing Decisions Opt for deferred financing. Many flooring companies don’t utilize deferred financing the way many furniture, mattress stores, and car dealerships do! Adopting the “finance first” mentality can be a huge benefit for flooring businesses as it tends to lead to bigger sales, and a somewhat easier job for sales reps. Our data analytics pros have found that extended financing increases the average ticket by 50%!

reducing the need for reconciliations.

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www.rmaster.com

Business Analytics

Financials, Data & Integration

Knowledge is Power Knowlege is power, and there is no area where this is more clear than in business financials.

Having clear and accurate information on the financials can make or break a business! The top three things a business should keep track of are: • Revenue and gross profit • Staff Productivity • A/R and Inventory See the whole picture with accurate data.

Having up to date information is key, and monitoring changes is essential. It’s no longer necessary to run the business with spreadsheets.

Data Visualization lets you see the whole picture with intuitive charts and graphs. When you’re just starting to keep track of this information, it’s helpful to jot down the specific question you are trying to answer. This will help you focus on the relevant information without getting bogged down in data

PRO TIP Overwhelmed by financial information? RollMaster customers can benefit from our Virtual CFO our talented flooring finance experts can help get you on the right track! We also offer the ability to automatically email reports to key staff. To properly address a situation, you need the right data, in the right presentation, at the right time.

Work as a team with integration. Keep in mind that the front office and back office are part of the same business! Many flooring companies have their accounting distanced from the rest of the business, so much so that they’re completely disconnected. Utilizing one integrated software allows the entire company to have the information that they need, when they need it.

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Marketing

Automate & Stay in Touch

Automate Your Marketing Marketing is becoming more important for flooring businesses to stay competitive. The latest in marketing technology is automation!

Automated marketing efforts saves your business hours of manual work. With a “set it and forget it” approach, you can bring in more jobs from existing customers, while welcoming new faces too.

Impressing potential clients with rave reviews online can help open the door to clients who may have otherwise overlooked your business. Gaining trust before the client even steps in the door is key, and online reviews help you get there. This is especially true for big ticket sales, as they tend to need more convincing. Automated marketing efforts can help you send emails to existing customers, send a text message reminding a client to review your business, and can help you troubleshoot problems before they damage your relationship with that client. By setting up campaigns to reach out to clients at specific times in their sales cycle, you’ll be able to get the best possible results with less effort on your end.

PRO TIP

Keep In Touch

Meet Customers Where They Are. One of the most important ways to ensure People are more likely to trust a business that satisfied customers is by keeping lines of is new to them when they see positive reviews communication open. But writing online. Getting those reviews can be harder individual emails and text messages to than you think! RM5Star helps you gain every customer comes with extreme labor costs. Automated text message glowing reviews by sending reminders to your marketing can solve that problem! clients wherever they’re most likely to reply: Integrated communication platforms like through text, email, or in person at a kiosk.

RM Text Alert allow businesses to send customers installation reminders automatically, helping to confirm dates and avoid those last-minute cancellations. Flooring professionals who utilize automated text message communication are able to up-sell to satisfied customers much more easily. For less satisfied customers, texting allows for quicker communication and response! This allows dealers the opportunity to correct problems before being caught unawares and helps to lower stress on both the customer and the flooring team.

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The official magazine of the World Floor Covering Association

Premier FLOORING RETAILER A Special “Thank You” to all the manufacturers and their marketing departments who provided outstanding editorial to make this publication a success.

Publishing Staff Margo Rodgers Locust, Publisher Karen George, Managing Editor Stan Michelson, Communications Director Toelke Associates/Ron Toelke, Creative Director

This Issue’s Guest Columnists Geoffrey Colon Contributing Writers Charles Stiles, Business Evaluation Services;Trent Ogden, QFloors; Jason Spangler, Wagner Meters

Editorial and Advertising Offices: Fabulous Floors Magazine, LLC Phone: 678-761-5002 Email: Margo@pfrmag.net

Although every effort has been made to ensure accuracy and timeliness of information, Premier Flooring Retailer Magazine cannot be held responsible for discrepancies, typographical errors, discontinuance of product nor color reproduction.

WFCA Scott Humphrey, Chief Executive Officer Freida Staten, V P of Marketing Communications & Membership Steve Abernathy, Chief Financial Officer Kay Wiley, Executive Assistant to the CEO

All rights reserved. No portion of this publication may be reproduced in any way without written consent from Fabulous Floors Magazine, LLC or the WFCA.

Contributing Columnists Lisbeth Calandrino, Lewis Davis, Scott Humphrey, Tom Jennings, Jeffrey King, Stacy Eickhoff

Premier Flooring Retailer is published quarterly in print and digital by Fabulous Floors Magazine, LLC located at 741 Main Street, Andrews, NC 28901 and the World Floor Covering Association located at 855 Abutment Road, Suite 1, Dalton, GA 30721.

The World Floor Covering Association (WFCA) Phone: 855-330-1183 Email: wfca@wfca.org Premier Flooring Retailer is a joint initiative of the World Floor Covering Association and Fabulous Floors Magazine, LLC. Copyright© FABULOUS FLOORS MAGAZINE and WFCA 2021.

Change of Address: in order to ensure the uninterrupted delivery of Premier Flooring Retailer, notice of change should be made at least 5 weeks in advance.

Postmaster: Please send address changes to WFCA, 855 Abutment Road, Suite 1, Dalton, GA 30721.

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FLOOR ED

Safety and Risk Management—Reduce Costs and Increase Revenue

2020

Stacy Eickhoff Stacy Eickhoff is senior vice president for Risk Strategies Company.

She has worked in the insurance industry over 25 years with a focus on property and casualty within the floor covering and construction industries. Ms. Eickhoff holds licenses in over 40 states. Risk Strategies Company is the endorsed provider for the World Floor Covering Association.

was an unprecedented year, and as we near the middle of 2021, who would have thought we would still be battling the impacts of COVID19. Social Distancing, Face Masks, Hand Sanitizer and 6 Feet have become safety buzzwords for everyone from housewives to CEOs. Willingly or not, almost everyone has had to adapt to a culture of personal safety. In the short term, businesses had to invest in safety measures to comply with a myriad of ever-changing regulations to keep employees and customers safe just to stay in business.

The focus on safety the last year is the perfect opportunity to maintain and drive a culture of increased risk management and safety.

A robust safety plan and culture can save business owners thousands of dollars and help to increase revenue. An effective safety/risk management program sets a consistent standard of performance for your employees and includes all aspects of your business, from dress code to customer engagement.

When talking about safety, most tend to focus solely on employee safety and workers’ compensation and how employee injuries affect your premiums and rates.

However, a work-related injury can affect more than just the individual worker and your premiums.

A single workplace injury can include the potential for increased costs due to: ● Lost productivity ● Increased injury risk for other employees ● Disruption in the workplace ● Potential loss to equipment ● Harm to company reputation A severe injury can bring potential fines and penalties. According to the Federal OSHA website, during the period of October 2019 and September 2020, the following Floor Covering NAICS codes experienced the following OSHA actions: NAICS Code

Citations

Inspections

Penalties

442210 Floor Covering Stores

6

2

$32,000

238330 Flooring Contractors

52

26

$96,306

238340 Tile and Terrazzo Contractors

45

14

$95,149

https://www.osha.gov/pls/imis/citedstandard.naics

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A robust safety plan and culture can save business owners thousands of dollars and help to increase revenue.

An effective safety/risk management program sets a consistent standard of performance for your employees and includes all aspects of your business, from dress code to customer engagement.

While the total number of inspections and citations may seem low, it is worth noting that the period surveyed includes the first 6 months of the COVID-19 shutdown.

Under the Occupational Safety and Health Act of 1970, employers are responsible for providing safe and healthful workplaces for their employees. OSHA’s role is to help ensure these conditions for America’s working men and women by setting and enforcing standards and providing training, education, and assistance. This includes not only your retail store but also the job site.

An effective Safety/Risk Management Program includes at a minimum the following: Responsibility — Who in the organization has authority and responsibility for implementation.

Compliance/Accountability — This component includes both recognition and discipline for performance Communication — Effective communication is key; are employees aware of the methods used to communicate with you about health, safety, and customer service issues.

Hazard Assessment — Are there procedures for identifying and evaluating workplace hazards? Assessments should be done periodically at your location and daily for every job site.

Accident/Exposure Investigation — These should be done by Supervisors and/or Managers with a focus on understanding what and why the accident or loss occurred and what can be done to prevent future accidents Hazard Correction — Once identified, any hazard must be addressed in a timely manner. Proper training on equipment and utilization of all safeguards is a must.

Training and Instruction — Training is one of the most important elements of a risk management program. Training should be relevant and both organizationally and job-specific. Training should be conducted at hire, whenever new tasks are assigned, and new equipment and procedures are implemented.

Recordkeeping — This includes documentation of training, facility & worksite inspections, and any job condition that may result in a potential loss or injury and what was done to correct or prevent it. If it is not recorded, it didn’t happen.

Safety and Health training must include the Date, Time, Employee Name receiving the training, and who provided the training. Worksite inspection documentation should include the name of the person inspecting, hazards encountered, and corrective action taken, if any.

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Having a safe, clean, and well-maintained showroom or installation site prevents not only workplace injuries but general liability and property losses. Over my 25+ years in the industry, I have seen everything, including theft of materials and tools, customer slip and falls, property damage to your customer’s property, and even fatalities. Most, if not all, could have been prevented with a good safety/risk management plan. These situations can impact a business’s profitability by increasing insurance premiums, labor costs and damaging brand reputation.

The insurance marketplace has been hardening over the last two years with increases in premiums, reduced capacity, and increased underwriter scrutiny. Unfortunately, this trend is predicted to remain through 2022. Having a clean loss history and the ability to articulate clearly your risk management and safety protocols will better position your business to obtain premium credits where available and keep both your insurance costs and business overhead down.

Maintaining your showrooms, equipment and having high worksite standards combined with withholding your employees accountable for safety and performance will work to reduce losses and drive a consistent, positive customer experience which will ultimately lead to increased revenue.

A negative customer experience can impact your business far more than a positive one.

Setting up a safety/risk management program and training your employees to follow it will not only reduce overhead but can drive revenue. Consistent protocols and procedures not only drive safely but a positive customer experience.

A Salesforce study found that 80% of customers consider the experience a company provides to be just as important as its products or services. (Salesforce) The book Marketing Metrics reports that the probability of selling to an existing customer is 60 to 70%.

“According to Nielsen, 92% of consumers believe recommendations from friends and family over all forms of advertising.” (Glover, 2021) In summary, a robust Risk Management program will help you prevent injuries to your employees and reduce business overhead by preventing both physical and intangible losses resulting from poor performance and brand reputation. A happy and healthy workforce promotes morale and creates a positive customer experience, leading to increased revenues.

Our team at Risk Strategies are experts in the field of insurance and risk management. We are here to help. ❚

Having a safe, clean, and wellmaintained showroom or installation site prevents not only workplace injuries but general liability and property losses. Over my 25+ years in the industry, I have seen everything, including theft of materials and tools, customer slip and falls, property damage to your customer’s property, and even fatalities.

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The Next GIG

How to Increase Business Without Increasing Overhead

I

Trent Ogden Trent Ogden is the co-founder and CFO of Flooring Technologies, developers of QFloors and QPro business management flooring software. Trent holds an MBA, and a Bachelor of Science degree in Accounting. He has over 30 years of experience in the flooring industry.

Contact Tren trent @qprosoftware.com

or call 801-563-0140.

s your business growing? For many, after the anxiety of the initial first few months, the pandemic delivered marked increases in business. And the upswing seems to be continuing.

While orders pouring in is a great problem to have, many dealers are finding themselves (and their staff) stretched thin. With so much to juggle, balls are inadvertently dropped. Stress increases, and sometimes, customer service decreases. Owners naturally look to hiring more employees as a solution. But that requires additional budget, which cuts into profits. Furthermore, what happens when things slow down?

Will they be forced to lay off new hires? It’s a difficult question.

But there are other options. Some flooring dealers have been able to sit back and enjoy the explosion of business without adding more employees and without working themselves to the bone. How you ask? With the right software and systems in place.

Case in point: One $10M flooring retailer with multiple locations saw a 38% increase from May 2020-April 2021, compared to the same time period a year earlier.

They were able to handle all of that explosion without new hires. As you can imagine, having that level of increase in sales (given a similar Gross Profit margin), without having to offset it with an increase in overhead costs and salaries, means the profit gain was significant. In their case, they increased from 2.8% net profit to 6.2% net profit in the first quarter, year over year.

How did they do it? The owner attributes a big part of it to his QFloors software. They were already using the software to help operations run smoothly and efficiently when things got busy. QFloors organizes, verifies, and integrates information between departments. The owner also said the software saves time, which helps boost productivity. His QFloors software, along with his other technology and his operational procedures, was able to absorb the increase in orders without requiring more hands-on deck. Boosting productivity and sales without increasing overhead costs is where net profits really start to grow.

Furthermore, QFloors allows you (and your team) to have a life outside the office. The fact that you can do so while still increasing profits makes it all the more satisfying.

So what if you are in the midst of the boom, and you don’t have systems in place? I hope you’ll consider talking with us to see if QFloors can help. It does require an investment of time and resources to get started. But there’s a lot of wisdom to the adage of “sharpening the axe.” You’ll find that once incorporated, things will run better than ever before, and you can manage (and enjoy) any growth that comes your way. ❚

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NEVER LOSE MONEY ON A JOB AGAIN QFloors business software job costs instantly and accurately, as proposals are created.

Learn about other money-saving features of QFloors. Reach out for a free demo. www.qfloors.com sales@qprosoftware.com 801-563-0140 Premier Flooring Retailer | TISE Edition 2021

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LEGAL MATTERS

Are You or Your Subcontractors Properly Licensed?

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any states and local governments require construction contractors to have licenses or register before undertaking any construction or home improvement work. Unlicensed or unregistered contractors often can be subject to fines and find it difficult to get paid. It is not just the contractor at risk. A flooring retailer that uses an unlicensed or unregistered contractor to install floor can be subject to fines and liability.

Licensing and Registration Requirements

Jeffrey W. King Legal Counsel for the WFCA Jeffrey King has more than 35 years’ experience in complex litigation with a focus on contracts, employment, construction, antitrust, intellectual property and health care. He serves as legal counsel for WFCA and other trade associations, and is a LEED Accredited Professional. For more information, contact him at (561) 278-0035 or jeffw@jkingesq.com.

Licensing and registration requirements vary from state to state. Some states, such as Idaho, Kansas, Colorado, New York, Wyoming, and Texas, do not require general contractors to be licensed. However, there may be licensing requirements at the local level in these states. Even if a general contractor does not need a license, states like Connecticut, Delaware, and Nebraska require the contractor to register with a state agency. Iowa, for instance, requires all general contractors, subcontractors, and handymen performing more than $2,000 in work over the course of a year to register their business with the state Division of Labor. In states requiring licenses, the requirements vary. States like Alaska and Arkansas require either the prime contractor or the subcontractor have a license. Other states, including California, require both the general contractor and the subcontractors to be licensed or registered.

The license and registration requirements also can vary on whether the work is for residential or commercial construction. It is common for a state to require a residential contractor license for contractors who work only on residential housing, while contractors working on commercial projects need a general contractor’s license. Many states and localities also require licensing for specialty trades, like mechanical, plumbing, HVAC, refrigeration, sheet metal, and hydronic contractors.

These specialties can include the flooring installation, such as tile work, stone installation, masonry, and other trades.

It is important for every flooring retailer, contractor, and installer to understand the state or local licensing or registration requirements where they are installing floors. Being licensed in one state does not authorize the contractor to work in another state. Failure to follow the licensing and registration requirements can expose the flooring retailer, contractor, and installer to liability and fines.

Many states and local governments require construction contractors to have licenses or register before undertaking any construction or home improvement work.

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Flooring Installation Contractor As explained below, flooring installers that fail to comply with licensing or registration requirements expose themselves to serious financial losses.

Fines and Penalties: An installation contractor that is not licensed or, where allowed, working under the retailer’s or general contractor’s license can face serious fines. In Michigan, for example, operating without a license where one is a requirement is a misdemeanor, punishable by a fine of $5,000 to $25,000) and one year in prison. Similarly, a first offense in Florida is a first-degree misdemeanor punishable with up to a year of jail or probation. Subsequent offenses could result in a third-degree felony, with a maximum jail sentence of 5 years and civil penalties up to $10,000. Unlicensed and unregistered contractors in Iowa face a $500 citation for the first violation and up to $5,000 for subsequent violations. Other states have similar fines and penalties.

Unenforceable Claims: Fine may be the least problem faced by an unlicensed and unregistered contractor.

Almost all states preclude an unlicensed and unregistered contractor from filing or enforcing a mechanics lien. (For more information on Mechanic Liens, see “Mechanic’s Liens— Little Mistakes, Big Problems,” Premier Flooring Retailer Magazine (2nd Qtr., 2020). Similarly, an unlicensed or unregistered contractor is likely to be prohibited from suing to get paid. The courts have often held that an unlicensed or unregistered has no recourse for non-payment.

Disgorgement: Not only is an unlicensed or unregistered contractor precluded from bringing an action to collect payment, they may have to repay all the money they have received. In California, the law allows the client to recoup all compensation paid to the contractor that was not properly licensed at any stage during

the project, even if the client knew the contractor was unlicensed.

In other states. even without a specific statute like the one in California, the unlicensed or unregistered contractor can be required to repay all payment they received. The courts have strictly interpreted licensing requirements and have held that an unlicensed contractor should not be allowed to keep payment of unlicensed work. For example, Carlson Construction Company entered into an agreement to renovate the Dupont West Condominium Buildings in Washington, D.C. Carlson commenced work on the project and had received progress payments of $108,000 for the work performed.

Dupont West then refused to pay the remaining $75,500 due because they became aware that Carlson was not licensed in the District of Columbia. Carlson sued for breach of contract seeking the remaining $75,500.

Dupont West counterclaimed, seeking repayment of the entire $108,000 they had paid to Carlson. The court determined Dupont West was entitled to reimbursement of the entire progress payments paid to Carlson, notwithstanding the work had already been performed. The courts in other states have come to a similar conclusion requiring an unlicensed construction contractor to pay back any money it was paid.

Working Under Another’s License Caution needs to be taken if the installer is working under another’s license. States with licensing requirements, like California, Florida, and North Carolina, require the license holder to supervise the work, and the licensed contractor cannot simply “rent” its license to another contractor. The purpose of licensing to ensure the work is performed or supervised by a competent contractor that has met the licensing standards.

If the licensed contractor does not provide the required supervision, the installer will be considered as working Premier Flooring Retailer | TISE Edition 2021

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It is not sufficient that an individual owner or employee of the subcontractor holds a license—the subcontractor with whom the retailer contracts must be licensed. without the license and subject to fines and penalties, losing its rights to file a mechanic’s lien, and possible disgorgement of the money it already received.

When working under another’s license, it is important that the construction license is held by the entity doing the work. For example, William Opp was a California licensed builder and the President of Mountain Connections, Inc. (“MCI”). MCI did not have a California contractor’s license. MCI entered into a subcontract to work on a construction project. Opp signed the contract as MCI’s president. He inserted his individual contractor’s license number where the subcontract called for that information. Opp claimed that he was individually licensed, and that was sufficient. The Court disagreed and dismissed Opp’s entire claim seeking payment. The Court held that the California Law required that a “contractor” may bring or maintain an action only if it is licensed in the State of California.

Since MCI was the contractor and it did not have the license, it could not sue for payment.

Flooring Retailer Whether acting as the general contractor or simply hiring an installer, the retailer must be careful with regards to licensing or registration requirements. First, a retailer acting as the general contractor that uses an unlicensed or unregistered subcontractor may be subject to the same fines and penalties as the subcontractor. Second, the retailer may be liable for any damages caused by the unlicensed subcontractor and could have problems in getting paid.

Third, and maybe most problematic, is the impact on whether the installer is determined to be an independent contractor or an employee. Under California law, for example, a contractor, licensed or unlicensed, who engages the services of unlicensed subcontractors or construction workers is, by statute, the employer of 26 Premier Flooring Retailer | TISE Edition 2021

those unlicensed subcontractors or workers, even if the subcontractors or workers are independent contractors under the usual rules.

If the subcontractor or installer is found to be a statutory employee, the retailer is responsible for reporting the wages paid to the employee and paying Unemployment Insurance and Employment Training Tax on those wages. In addition, the retailer is required to withhold and remit State Disability Insurance and California Personal Income Tax due on the wages paid. The general contractor is liable for the unpaid wages that were due to the unlicensed subcontractor and its employees.

In summary, without a valid contractor’s license, a person performing services in the construction trade is an employee of the contractor who either holds a license or is required to be licensed.

It is not sufficient that an individual owner or employee of the subcontractor holds a license—the subcontractor with whom the retailer contracts must be licensed. The California Employment Development Department provided the following example specifically citing flooring: A general contractor who holds a valid contractor’s license hires a subcontractor that is a partnership to install carpets. One of the partners holds a valid contractor’s license; however, the partnership is unlicensed. All workers, including the partners and their employees, are statutory employees of the general contractor… because the partnership does not hold a valid contractor’s license. The [Contractors State License Board] … must have issued a separate license for the partnership in order for the license to be considered valid. This concept also applies to corporations and joint ventures as the entities must be separately licensed.

While most states do not have laws like California’s statute, using unlicensed installers may impact whether the installer is an independent contractor or an employee. This is especially true if the installer is using the flooring retailer’s or contractor’s construction license. In evaluating whether an installer is an independent contractor, the court will look at whether a contractor acts as an independent business, including whether it has its own licenses to do the work.

Summary Given the potential costs of not complying with licensing or registration requirements, it is recommended that flooring retailers, contractors, and installers undertake the following steps: ●E nsure you understand all state and local requirements in all the locations you are installing floors. ● I f possible, the retailer should require all installers or installation contractors to have the required licenses or registrations. ● I n your contract with the consumer, the retailer should clearly state whether or not it has a license and that the actual construction work will be done by a subcontractor who is licensed. ●T he agreement with the installation subcontractor should specifically state that the subcontractor represents that it is the license or registered contractor and that the retailer is relying on that representation. ●T he installation subcontractor’s license number should be included in the contract with the installer. ●T he subcontractor agreement should also provide that the subcontractor will “hold harmless, indemnify and defend” the floor covering retailer in the event that there is a dispute regarding the subcontractor’s license. ●F inally, the retailer can check with the local licensing divisions to determine if the installation subcontractor is appropriately licensed in your state.

In addition, it is always important to get competent legal counsel to review your contracts and the licensing requirements to ensure you are fully compliant with all legal obligations. ❚

While most states do not have laws like California’s statute, using unlicensed installers may impact whether the installer is an independent contractor or an employee.

This is especially true if the installer is using the flooring retailer’s or contractor’s construction license.

Notice: The information contained in this article is abridged from legislation, court decisions, and administrative rulings and should not be construed as legal advice or opinion and is not a substitute for the advice of counsel.

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SHOWIN’ OUR STUFF

The Beautifully Responsible™ Momentum of Resilient Flooring It’s the winning combination of research, message, media and support to help flooring retailers sell more

I

f 2020 was the year of the sudden pandemic, 2021 is the year of the slow and steady recovery. The home improvement fervor that began during lock-down continues even now,

fueling replacement flooring sales–especially for resilient. Resilient flooring has a number of advantages that consumers have become aware of, thanks in part to the Beautifully Responsible™ campaign launched by the Resilient Floor Covering Institute.

“Beautifully Responsible is both the name of our new consumer digital campaign and a very apt description of resilient flooring in general,” observed Dean Thompson, president and CEO of RFCI. “Our organization, representing 22 resilient flooring manufacturers in North America, believed the time was right to spread the word.”

What does resilient flooring encompass?

A Beautifully Responsible floor made by any of the RFCI member manufacturers (including flexible luxury vinyl tile and planks (LVT/LVP), rigid core luxury vinyl, linoleum, heterogeneous and homogeneous sheet vinyl, rubber, cork, and vinyl composition tile (VCT), must meet very stringent standards for qualification to assure a responsibly made and performing product.

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“42 percent of Americans want to be seen as someone who buys eco-friendly products, but they don’t want to have to make trade-offs. Beautifully Responsible™ meets the need perfectly,” said Suzanne Shelton, CEO of Shelton Group…

The purpose of the Beautifully Responsible campaign “42 percent of Americans want to be seen as someone who buys eco-friendly products, but they don’t want to have to make trade-offs. Beautifully Responsible™ meets the need perfectly,” said Suzanne Shelton, CEO of Shelton Group, the leading marketing communications agency focused on sustainability and corporate social responsibility. Shelton Group, along with the top marketing professionals from the RFCI member companies, developed the campaign based on three communication ‘pillars’: Mindful Manufacturing™, Living Well™, and Made for Life™.

Research indicated that all three mattered to floor covering consumers and were easily satisfied by resilient flooring. “Flooring is a considered and heavily researched decision, so our job is to point the consumer to resilient flooring as the easiest and best answer as a starting place for a new floor,” said Thompson.

“Beautifully Responsible is both the name of our new consumer digital campaign and a very apt description of resilient flooring in general,” observed Dean Thompson, president and CEO of RFCI. “Our organization, representing 22 resilient flooring manufacturers in North America, believed the time was right to spread the word Premier Flooring Retailer | TISE Edition 2021

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Reaching consumers with our message To reach floor-buying consumers with the Beautifully Responsible message, RFCI is employing popular social media and sharing platforms such as Pinterest, Instagram and YouTube to display inspiring room scene photography from resilient manufacturers and informative video content. Everything is linked to the BeautifullyResponsible.com website with even more infor-

To reach floor-buying consumers with the Beautifully Responsible message, RFCI is employing popular social media and sharing platforms such as Pinterest, Instagram and YouTube to display inspiring room scene photography from resilient manufacturers and informative video content

mation and links to manufacturers websites to dig deeper… to ‘learn what matters to you.’

Google display ads have also been deployed to broaden the reach even further. “As the campaign develops, we are not only adjusting and improving from the data we collect, but we are also sharing those analytics with our members,” commented Thompson.

Our own design idea book In addition to the social media campaign, RFCI will be introducing a design print and digital magazine in August called Beautifully Responsible Luxury Flooring. This glossy idea book format will showcase new products and design trends, sustainability advancements, and all the benefits of Beautifully Responsible resilient flooring. Over 10,000 copies will be on newsstands and sold in 1500+ bookstores including Barnes & Noble, Books-A-Million and Hastings, where well-educated, affluent customers shop for home décor books and magazines. In addition, Beautifully Responsible Luxury Flooring will be available to 30,000+ members of the American Society Interior Designers (ASID) via the ASID national website in their Industry Partner Library.

Online, it will be linked to RFCI.com, FabulousFloorsMagazine.com, and BeautifullyResponsible.com and be readable and interactive on Magzter.com, joomag.com and issuu.com.

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Beautifully Responsible

™

Summer | 2021

LUXURY FLOORING

™

Your Design Resource for Luxury Vinyl Tile, Planks, Sheet Vinyl and More...

Sales training help RFCI has also tapped the flooring and retail expertise of industry icon Lis Calandrino to produce a video tutorial for retailers and sales associates on understanding and communicating the Beautifully Responsible campaign messages with their floor covering customers. “Today’s flooring consumer is becoming just as cognizant of sustainable manufacturing practices, recycling and healthy and safe environments as architects and designers for commercial projects,” observed Dean Thompson. “That’s why it is so important for the sales associate to relate to those concerns when getting to know the customer and close the sale.

Lis can help them do that.” The video is free to download and use in your sales training. (Link to video)

Resilient Flooring is… ✔ Made for Life ✔ Mindfully Manufactured ✔ Helps You Live Well beautifullyresponsible.com

Advertising bundle

Fabulous Floors, the publisher of Beautifully Responsible Luxury Flooring, has also worked with TISE TV, produced by The International Surface Event (TISE): SURFACES | StonExpo/Marmomac | TileExpo to offer resilient flooring man-

The Beautifully Responsible campaign is a researched,

ufacturers a deeply discounted rate when they advertise

fact-based, comprehensive consumer and trade campaign

in both the Beautifully Responsible Luxury Flooring mag-

that truly resonates with the needs of everyone when it comes

azine and TISE TV. The unique ‘webisode’ format of TISE

to shopping for, selecting, buying or even selling a new floor.

TV brings network quality video presentations with a highly

“Resilient flooring is the fastest growing floor category there

targeted reach to potentially 750,000 flooring and home

is. This campaign is designed to ensure that momentum con-

improvement professionals and design enthusiasts. Man-

tinues.” For more information on RFCI and all of its programs,

ufacturers interested in taking advantage of this program

visit RFCI.com or RFCI on LinkedIn. To experience the cam-

should contact Margo Locust at 678.761.5002 or email at

paign for yourself, visit BeautifullyResponsible.com ❚

mailto:Margo@FabulousFloorsmag.com.

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THERE’S NEVER A COMPROMISE FOR STYLE, BUDGET, FUNCTION, WELL-BEING OR SUSTAINABILITY... EVER.

That’s the promise with a Beautifully Responsible™ resilient floor.

Today’s flooring customer wants it all. With a Beautifully Responsible™ resilient floor, you’ve got what they’re looking for. From a floor that’s made responsibly, with safe and sustainable processes and materials, to a floor they can live with confidently–knowing that it contributes to a healthier indoor environment with FloorScore® certification, resilient flooring is the answer. And not to mention a floor that’s durable, easy to care for, and retains its beauty as well as its value.

They get it all and more.

Beautifully Responsible resilient flooring comes from these leading manufacturers who maintain the environmental sustainability, well-being and durable performance of the floors they make for the uncompromising trust of you and your customers:

®

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Sharing the message of resilient flooring in a BeautifullyResponsible.com way.

Today’s shopper is online by the millions, looking for a new floor. That’s why we’ve not only launched a new consumer-facing website, but we’re also engaging consumers with social media, bloggers, videos and more.

For expert sales training about the key motivators for Beautifully Responsible™, we’ve released a video for retailers hosted by Lisbeth This August, we’re launching a new idea

Calandrino.

book available at retail in top bookstores and as a digital version online with the latest Beautifully Responsible™ resilient flooring inspiration.

Beautifully Responsible™ is exclusively by Premier Flooring Retailer | TISE Edition 2021

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FLOOR ED

How the Beautifully Responsible™ Campaign Covers all the Bases for Selling Resilient Flooring

T

Lisbeth Calandrino Flooring Specialist and Associate Publisher and Director of Social Media for Fabulous Floors Magazine

he pandemic has made us more aware of our planet and our environment.

COVID-19 has brought about a global disruption that has affected our entire world. We are aware that less traffic has improved the air quality in many cities and other environmental and climate effects. Buying locally, supporting the independent shop owner, and buying online continues to increase.

Several studies support the theory that consumers have adapted to more sustainable behaviors. According to a study by The Boston Consulting Group, 40% of consumers plan on integrating other sustainable behaviors in the future and increase recycling and buying locally. Consumers are more aware now than before COVID-19 that there is a need for environmental action.

According to Suzanne Shelton, President, and CEO of the Shelton Group, the leading marketing communications agency focused on sustainability and corporate social responsibility, noted, that health was the key driver in home improvement today.

According to Shelton, 63% of Americans said they were concerned about indoor air quality. And 41% of Americans want to be someone who buys eco-friendly products.

What are the Components of the Beautifully Responsible™ Campaign?

The campaign has been divided into three categories, easily explained to your consumer. Mindful Manufacturing™, Living Well,™ and Made for Life.™ Mindful Manufacturing™ is about manufacturers taking responsibility to create sustainable products. Simply for consumers, it starts with manufacturing, the life cycle of the products, and eventual discarding of these products.

Several studies support the theory that consumers have adapted to more sustainable behaviors.

Living Well™ has to do with how products perform and see they function according to expected standards. Poor indoor air quality can give us breathing problems and headaches; this results from chemicals called VOCs or volatile organic compounds, dust, and allergens.

Through Living Well™, products are tested and approved through third-party endorsements. Through FloorScore® and the ASSURE CERTIFIED™ (for rigid core), these products are certified to promote indoor air quality due to the reduced VOC content.

Made for Life,™ relates to durable floors that will be long-lasting, with advanced scratch and stain resistance. Resilient floors have a lifespan of at least 20 years or longer if cared for properly.

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According to a study by The Boston Consulting Group, 40% of consumers plan on integrating other sustainable behaviors in the future and increase recycling and buying locally What Does this Mean to You? Customers Will Buy Responsibly if You Explain What’s in It for Them, and You Make It Easy!

In reality, we don’t make it easy. You have just finished a bottle of water, and the sign on the store says, “We recycle.” You look for the proper trash bin, but nothing is labeled.

You’re not sure if you should take the cap off, leave it on and rinse out the bottle. Since you’re feeling a little embarrassed, you stick it in your pocket or purse and leave. Maybe we don’t make it easy for our consumers to participate or understand all the jargon.

What about your store? Does it show environmentally responsible practices? Do you have signs on the wall about recycling and practices that your company follows? For instance, do you use recycled paper in your bathroom, posters on the wall about your environmental practices, is your garbage mixed with recyclables?

What about your social media? Do you brag about your products and practices?

Since we are all disinfecting, we have become more aware of indoor air quality. What will kill the germs? Is this bad for my hands? Is the odor harmful to my lungs? We buy kitchen appliances, and there’s a label about their energy efficiency. We’re concerned about their efficiency.

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For instance, now we know that many consumers recycle, buy appliances that have information about energy efficiency, and if you’ve purchased a car recently, you’re familiar with fuel efficiency.

The signs are out there in other industries.

It’s your job to educate your consumers.

Help Consumers Deep Dive into Their Psyche and Get Them to Talk About Their Environmental Concerns and Changes in Buying Habits Previous reasons for not buying green products were pricing, consumer concerns about whether the products were as good as those they were used to, or not knowing.

For instance, now we know that many consumers recycle, buy appliances that have information about energy efficiency, and if you’ve purchased a car recently, you’re familiar with fuel efficiency. The signs are out there in other industries. It’s your job to educate your consumers.

Remember, we say that long-term effects are significant, but consumers buy because of “what’s in it for them right now.” They want to recoup their investment right away. Surveys tell us that consumers want a two-year return on premium prices, but 70% of green appliances take much longer.

The Growth of Resilient Flooring is Exploding.

According to RFCI President and CEO Dean Thompson, “The growth has been fueled by design innovation, installation, and the value of the category. (Value is based on total system cost: it costs more to buy and install other categories.) It has not always been known as the most environmentally conscious format. This campaign will help change this perception.”

Let’s face it; LVT is hot and easy to sell, but when I listen to online group conversations, almost all the comments are about how vinyl is not recyclable. Vinyl can be recycled pre-installation; post-installation presents a challenge separating the glue from the product, but manufacturers are working on it. You can explain to your customers that recycling issues will be conquered with a product life span of 20+ years. For post-installation recycling to be completed, we must collect it and have someone who can recycle it.

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How Does the Beautifully Responsible Campaign Add Value to Your Sale and the Consumer?

1. C ommit to educating your customers on resilient products and how the campaign has impacted the industry. Customers don’t know what questions to ask, so YOU will have to take the lead.

2. C ommit to educating yourself on what the campaign means and the changes that are taking place in our industry. Let consumers know that resilient flooring is an environmental leader in our industry.

3. P eople buy from people who they like, who are trustworthy, and who have expertise. This is your opportunity to grow your industry knowledge and become an expert.

4. T he only way we will be able to move the recycling issue forward is to educate ourselves and the consumer. Salespeople need to help their consumers change their behavior. Remove the barriers between “I want to, and yet I don’t.”

5. R ealtors are becoming certified through the National Association of Green Realtors®; green products have value. This would be an excellent group to invite in and introduce the Beautifully Responsible Campaign or offer to be a speaker at one of their meetings.

6. L ook for opportunities to share your knowledge and grow your business with architects, interior designers, and builders who are unfamiliar with industry changes.

If the consumer buys a resilient floor, we must educate them on the Beautifully Responsible Program and thank them for their commitment to the environment and our world. If it were my customer, I would make sure they received a certificate thanking them for buying resonsible. ❚

Commit to educating your customers on resilient products and how the campaign has impacted the industry.

Customers don’t know what questions to ask, so YOU will have to take the lead.

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SHOWIN’ OUR STUFF

Innovations in Metroflor’s Metrostone Provide New Opportunities in Tile

Stone, Tile & Plank Looks with Grout Effect™ Edge

M

etroflor is taking SPC tile to the edge with a strategic new product innovation: Metrostone. A quality manmade natural, Metrostone replicates stone and porcelain tile in

an SPC format with a simulated grouted edge instead of the painted beveled edges popular in SPC plank formats. The proprietary Grout Effect™ edge treatment replicates the look of a traditional grout line without the staining, cracking and maintenance associated with traditional grouted floors. This new technology has opened a new window of opportunity for Metroflor: more natural-looking, high-performing tile designs that can compete with ceramic and stone in visuals and color, yet at an affordable price point with easier installation without messy mortar.

The proprietary Grout Effect™ edge treatment replicates the look of a traditional grout line without the staining, cracking and maintenance associated with traditional grouted floors.

With a curated portfolio of designs—ranging from stone visuals and marble tiles, to woodgrain planks and even a textile-inspired linen look—Metrostone creates a strong, competitive entry into the tile space. The Grout Effect edge has elevated Metrostone to a more realistic look that will strike a resounding chord with consumers.

Given the enduring COVID concerns about cleanliness and hygiene, Metrostone creates functionally beautiful mudrooms that create a separate, easy and safe space for disinfection when the need arises. It also lays down an inviting, waterproof foundation for foyers,

Metrostone 16" × 32" Organic Slate Natural Brown 9642GE32

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SEE THE STAIN PERFORMANCE OF FX2 SURFACE PROTECTANT

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39

bathrooms, basements, kitchens and laundry rooms. Beyond residential settings, its performance attributes and great looks have great potential for wide range of commercial market applications: Hospitality, Retail, Multifamily, Builder, and Assisted Living.

Installing Metrostone is much faster than ceramic tile or stone. Thanks to the Droplock 100 technology, as a click floor it can be installed in one day—a key feature for both residential and commercial markets. The Grout Effect edge has enhanced the value proposition of this SPC tile collection when added to the feature-rich performance benefits and heightened realism.

All tile designs are formatted to a large-format 16" × 32", or the more traditional 12" × 24", tile format. The coral embossing provides a texture that mimics the texture of natural stone or marble. The curated designs also feature woodgrain planks in the 9" × 48" format. With

Installing Metrostone is much faster than ceramic tile or stone.

Thanks to the Droplock 100 technology, as a click floor it can be installed in one day — a key feature for both residential and commercial markets.

a 5.2 mm overall gauge, 20 mil wear layer, and the Grout Effect edge treatment, all designs also feature industry-best abrasion and stain resistance provided by FX2 Surface Protectant™ and a sound-abating HDPE underlayment. Metrostone comes with a lifetime residential and 15-year commercial warranty.

Metrostone’s point of sale display features large 24" × 32" samples, giving it better visibility for the retailer, consumer and specifier.

Metrostone 12" × 24" Aqualine Marble Uptown 9632GE24

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A curated range of exciting new designs in the Metrostone portfolio.

Marble designs

Organic Slate—Designed in response to the back-to-slate movement, but with more subtle appearance and color,

Terminal Moraine—Furthering the natural history influence

Organic Slate is visually smoother with a soothing grey palette.

in stone designs, Terminal Moraine evokes the phenomenon of loose rock and pieces of bedrock that are picked up and

Woodgrain Plank Designs

transported by glaciers to their ultimate destination. Milky grey combines with greige undertones in this subtle yet

Deck Stone—For those who want to maintain a woodgrain

transformational design.

theme throughout, this plank format brings the outdoors in with a classic deck motif that mimics a reclaimed,

Amulphi—This Carrara-style design fulfills the desire for a

weathered look. Commercially, Deck Stone allows for

timeless black and white marble tile floor with large-scale

mixing colors to create a unique graphic effect.

black veining against a white background. Simply stated, it’s a classic marble motif.

Scandia—Influenced by the current trend towards woodgrains offered in ceramic tile formats, Scandia’s

Aqualine Marble—A modern interpretation of classic blue-

excellent color range is ideal for virtually any application:

gray Carrara marble, used in countless historic buildings,

residentially, in kitchens, family rooms, basements and other

Aqualine infuses subtle hints of brown-grey undertones,

renovated areas, while also relevant commercially.

one warmer and one on the cooler side, to broaden the traditional spectrum.

Textile Designs:

Stone Designs

Hampshire Linen—Recalling a more urban influence, Hampshire Linen’s neutral design focuses more on

Rohan—This statement floor offers a more upscale

color and is ideal for commercial markets: builder, retail,

refined look, with a palette that’s perfect for contemporary

hospitality and assisted living. The neutral and tinted bluish-

residential settings as well as many commercial applications

grey hues complement a wide range of interior colors. ❚

(retail, hospitality, restaurant, commercial entryways, corporate). Crisp graining gives Rohan a more abstracted, versatile appearance.

Romano—This classic travertine look captures the fossilized detail of stone cut from receded, ancient seabeds: a design reflecting the continuing desire for a natural influence at the floor. Color range was created to be compatible with today’s current design trends.

All tile designs are formatted to a large-format 16" × 32", or the more traditional 12" × 24", tile format.

Metrostone 12" × 24" Terminal Moraine Opal 9621GE24

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BECAUSE TOGETHER WE HELP SHAPE THE FUTURE OF OUR INDUSTRY. B B EE C CA AU US S EE O O FF YY O OU U

BECAUSE OF YOU

BECAUSE OF YOU

Because of You, the WFCA was ready when retailers needed them the most. In a year of unprecedented adversity, the WFCA led the industry in providing guidance and resources for understanding how the PPP, CARES Act, layoffs, shutdowns, safety, and reopening guidelines and so much more impacted our members. Real change happens when we work together. #BecauseofYou Stop by T.I.S.E booth #3007 to learn how your voice can help shape the industry.

Please support the WFCA to help shape and secure our collective future by joining today. Please visit wfca.org or call 855.330.1183.

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BECAUSE SPEAKING WITH ONE VOICE CAN MAKE A DIFFERENCE. BECAUSE OF YOU

BECAUSE OF YOU

Because of You, the WFCA fights for the industry in Washington, D.C., leveraging its industry-wide voice to make sure the independent flooring retailer is heard on the Hill. There is no one else to take up this fight and no one else with the resources to ensure our collective voice is heard.

Membership in the WFCA matters. #BecauseofYou

Please support the WFCA to help shape and secure our collective future by joining today. Please visit wfca.org or call 855.330.1183.

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BECAUSE WE ARE PART OF THE SOLUTION. BECAUSE OF YOU

BECAUSE OF YOU

Because of You, the WFCA has a unique industry position as an advocacy group to pour their resources and leverage their position into helping solve the installation crisis. From the acquisition of CFI to the formation of FCEF, to our many industry partnerships, the WFCA has been ahead of this issue and is working with industry partners to create a lasting, long-term solution. Join us. #BecauseofYou Please support the WFCA to help shape and secure our collective future by joining today. Please visit wfca.org or call 855.330.1183.

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BECAUSE WE ARE STRONGER TOGETHER. BECAUSE OF YOU

BECAUSE OF YOU

Because of You, the WFCA champions the people and policies that fuel success for our members, the jobs they create and the lives they impact.

Membership in the WFCA means that you and your company are part of a 10,000+ member community. #BecauseofYou

Please support the WFCA to help shape and secure our collective future by joining today. Please visit wfca.org or call 855.330.1183.

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Faces of the Industry

Would you like to be featured as one of the Faces of the Industry?

The driving force behind WFCA is connection. Our community gives us the strength we need to fight for our members on Main Street and our industry in Washington D.C. On our website, wfca.org, we highlight many of the faces of our industry from our members, to our industry partners, to our staff, sharing pictures and information and connecting our community.

Would you like be featured? Please visit wfca.org/content/faces-industry and submit your information. If you know someone you would like to nominate, you can share their name and contact information with us there as well! #FacesoftheIndustry

Stop by T.I.S.E. booth #3007 and learn how you can join us.

B B EE C CA AU US S EE O O FF YY O OU U

Please support the WFCA to help shape and secure our collective future by joining today. Please visit wfca.org or call 855.330.1183.

46 Premier Flooring Retailer | TISE Edition 2021

BECAUSE OF YOU

TAKING THE LEAD

Do you fully use fcB2B?

D

Lewis Davis Senior Director of Technology and Research

o you utilize the entire process that fcB2B provides? What do you mean, you may ask? Are you a retailer that is only receiving the product catalog? I am sure you see the benefit of keeping your prices and products updated automatically, but what about PO’s, receiving, and invoices. Were you aware that there is an average of 1 to 2 percent error rate when placing orders manually? What do errors cost your business, and what if you could reduce that percentage by entering the order once and submitting it electronically? Computers typically do a great job of processing exactly what they are provided. Whether you submit one order a day or 1000 a week, you can still benefit from automating that process.

Now let us talk about receiving and how that process can be improved using the Advance Ship Notice. Are you manually entering everything received into your system and then matching back to what was ordered? What if your computer already knew what was on the truck and could tell you what was ordered but not received?

Your process of receiving could be reduced to verifying the product and determining where to locate the inventory.

Now that the order has been placed and received, are you waiting for the mail to deliver the invoices? Once you receive the invoices, are you having to manually match the order to the receiving and the invoice to confirm everything ordered was received and invoiced? Imagine having the invoices in your system within 24 hours after the shipment was received and automatically matched to the PO and receiving.

I have heard of a retailer that had one person spending 40 hours a week submitting PO’s and processing Invoices. After adding fcB2B to their process that one person was able to process PO’s and invoices in only a few hours a week and assist with other processes.

If you are currently using one of the flooring-specific software packages, check with support to see about adding fcB2B to your setup. Not utilizing a flooring-specific software package but still interested in benefiting from fcB2B? Contact Lewis Davis at ldavis@wfca.org and discuss options you have for your current setup.

Were you aware that there is an average of 1 to 2 percent error rate when placing orders manually?

What do errors cost your business, and what if you could reduce that percentage by entering the order once and submitting it electronically?

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FLOOR ED

Plan for Concrete Slab Moisture Testing or Plan for Failure

E

xcessive moisture in concrete remains a costly challenge for flooring installers. These costs are estimated to be nearly $1 billion each year in the United States alone due to

moisture-related failure in commercial concrete flooring.¹ Many causes of moisture-related concrete flooring failure can be avoided or mitigated by properly testing the concrete’s moisture condition before installing the flooring.

Jason Spangler Wagner Meters’ Flooring Division Manager Jason Spangler, Wagner Meters’ Sales Manager, has more than 25 years’ experience in sales and sales management across a broad spectrum of industries. He has successfully launched a variety of products to the market, including the original Rapid RH® concrete moisture test.

Jason, who received an MBA from West Texas A&M University in November 2018, has extensive industry involvement, including the National Wood Flooring Association (NWFA), the International Certified Flooring Installers Association (CFI), and is Vice Chairman of Associations for The Flooring Contractors Association (FCICA). Call Wagner Meters today at (844) 533-9100 and ask for Jason or www.wagnermeters.com.

Unfortunately, the defensive value in concrete moisture testing is often undermined due to indifferent or nonexistent test planning or poorly performed moisture testing. Poor planning or specifying can result in using a second-tier, unreliable testing method. The most scientifically validated and reliably accurate method of measuring moisture conditions in concrete is in situ relative humidity (RH) testing.

Improperly testing a slab’s moisture condition will similarly yield erroneous readings even if using an otherwise accurate test method. Consequently, RH testing must be done in compliance with ASTM F2170 (Standard Test Method for Determining Relative Humidity in Concrete Floor Slabs Using in situ Probes)² and must be done using a reliable RH testing system.

The exact concrete moisture test method to be used may or may not be specified in the project documentation. Even so, failure to specify proper testing leaves everyone who

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touched the concrete or the flooring vulnerable if a mois-

condition. It doesn’t provide a measure of the slab’s mois-

ture-related flooring failure occurs. Ensuring that the ASTM

ture condition, nor certainly, any reading that correlates to

F2170 testing standard and specific RH test to be used is

what the slab’s future moisture condition will be once sealed

specified in the project documentation is the most effective

below the flooring.

way to protect yourself and your team.

A concrete moisture meter doesn’t provide a quantitative measure. Also, it is only reading the moisture conditions

Concrete Slab Moisture Testing Options

within the top one inch of the slab. Concrete’s moisture isn’t

● Calcium chloride (CaCl) testing

consistent throughout a slab, both because of how moisture

● In situ RH testing

moves through concrete and due to variations in concrete mix that could be found even within the same slab. Reading

As noted above, RH testing is the only scientifically vali-

only the top layer in one spot on the slab can’t accurately

dated method providing actionable, accurate readings that

measure the slab’s true moisture condition.

help flooring installers make informed choices about when

ASTM F2659 governs the standardized use of concrete

to install flooring or take remediating steps. However, it’s

moisture meters (Standard Guide for Preliminary Evaluation of

instructive to review both common concrete slab moisture

Comparative Moisture Condition of Concrete, Gypsum Cement

testing methods to understand how they work and what

and Other Floor Slabs and Screeds Using a Non-Destructive

value they do or do not provide.

Electronic Moisture Meter).³ The ASTM F2659 guidelines specifically state: “This guide is not intended to provide quantitative results as a basis for acceptance of a floor for installation of moisture-sensitive flooring finishes systems. Test Methods F1869, F2170, or F2420 provide quantitative information for determining if moisture levels are within specific limits.”

ASTM F2170 refers to in situ RH testing, and ASTM F1869 pertains to calcium chloride (CaCl) testing. (ASTM F2420 governed certain uses of RH testing but was withdrawn in 2014.) I’ll go over ASTM F2170 and F1869 further down in this article. But ASTM made its point: electronic moisture meters shouldn’t be used to determine if the slab is ready for

Concrete Moisture Meter and ASTM F2659

flooring installation.

A concrete moisture meter is a useful tool to conduct an initial check of the relative moisture condition of areas on a slab.

Used this way, it enhances the effectiveness of in situ RH testing, for reasons I’ll detail in the discussion on RH testing below.

However, moisture meters don’t provide quantitative moisture measurement at all. For this reason, a concrete moisture meter isn’t a tool that can assist you in making decisions about whether a slab is ready to have flooring installed upon it.

A concrete moisture meter takes a qualitative measure of a specific area on a slab relative to the slab’s overall moisture

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Calcium Chloride Test and ASTM F1869

Construction Technology Laboratories (CTL) Group conducted decade-long testing on the CaCl test to quantify how accurately the MVER standard reflected the moisture in con-

The earliest documented reference we have to the calcium

crete slabs. According to CTLGroup’s principal scientist,

chloride test is from an Armstrong installation book on lino-

noted concrete expert Howard Kanare, the CaCl test “can be

leum published in 1941. The installation book called it the

unreliable; capable of producing both false high and low results.”

“dampness test.” Flooring installers would place covered

In one of the tests CTLGroup conducted, they measured

crystals on the slab and inspect them the next day to see if

four concrete slabs that had stabilized at 50% humidity for

they looked like they’d absorbed any moisture.

years. Following ASTM F1869 guidelines, the results of the

In the 1960s, engineers decided to standardize how

CaCl tests returned MVER ranging between 2.5 – 4+ pounds.

moisture measurements were determined using the CaCl

These results indicate that “The desiccant in the CaCl2 kit was

test instead of relying on a visual assessment of how much

sucking out more moisture than was coming out of the concrete,

moisture the crystals had absorbed. The formula devised

giving a false-positive result.”

used weight differentials in the crystals to calculate the

This was one of numerous tests, including laboratory

moisture vapor evaporation rate (MVER) coming off the

and field testing, the CTLGroup conducted on the CaCl

slab. Documentation from the 1960s often specified an

test, and the MVER measurement as a reliable indicator of

MVER rate of two to three pounds, while many flooring

moisture levels in concrete. According to Kanare, the CTL-

manufacturers increased the acceptable MVER rate to five

Group outlined six reasons why MVER “suffers from serious

pounds by the 1990s.

deficiencies.”

The CaCl test was standardized in 1998 with the adoption of ASTM F1869 (Standard Test Method for Measuring Moisture

1. No scientific basis existed for the standards when cre-

Vapor Emission Rate of Concrete Subfloor Using Anhydrous

ated; thus, MVER as a reliable measure of moisture has

Calcium Chloride).

no quantitative foundation.

According to ASTM F1869, the crystals need to get weighed before being placed on the slab and covered. The

2. M VER kits themselves can’t be calibrated, making it impossible to determine accuracy.

crystals should then be weighed 60 to 72 hours later to

3. T he test only measures moisture content on the slab’s

determine the slab’s MVER. Per F1869 guidelines, “quan-

surface and provides no information about the slab’s

tity of moisture shall be expressed as the rate of moisture

moisture content below the surface.

vapor emission, measured in pounds of moisture over a 1000

4. C aCl testing doesn’t measure MVER accurately; both

ft area…” Manufacturer instructions that reference ASTM

false positive and false negative readings are common.

F1869 specify what MVER rate range is acceptable for the

5. A mbient conditions easily interfere with the results. This is

flooring installation. Absent manufacturer instructions, the

one reason why CaCl testing often returns false positive

industry standard is three pounds. An update to ASTM F1869

or negative readings. The crystals will attract humidity out

prohibits the use of the CaCl test on gypsum-based or light-

of the air, which then gets falsely attributed to moisture

weight aggregate concrete.

within the concrete.

2

The earliest documented reference we have to the calcium chloride test is from an Armstrong installation book on linoleum published in 1941. The installation book called it the “dampness test.” Flooring installers would place covered crystals on the slab and inspect them the next day to see if they looked like they’d absorbed any moisture.

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The other critical issue is that measuring surface moisture can have little correlation to the level of moisture that will remain in the slab after the flooring is installed over the concrete.

6. C ertain limitations on MVER don’t account for the impact

remaining moisture will equilibrate throughout the slab. Thus,

adhesives have on the flooring’s performance over the

the amount of moisture left to equilibrate underneath a sealed

long run.

floor has the greatest impact on whether the floor suffers

The third deficiency on this list that a CaCl test only mea-

moisture-related damage in the future. Any excess moisture

sures surface moisture reflects that other research on mois-

that remains in the slab will rise without evaporating, carrying

ture in concrete shows that moisture moves through concrete

moisture vapor and chemicals that get trapped between the

and doesn’t level out until the concrete slab is sealed. Conse-

slab’s surface and the flooring. A reading that only reflects this

quently, measuring the moisture condition of a slab’s surface,

at the point of time when the test was taken provides little use-

even if done accurately, still doesn’t tell us anything useful

ful predictive information about what the slab’s moisture con-

about the moisture below the surface. And it’s any excess

dition will be once the floor is sealed.

moisture below the surface that will move up and impact floor coverings that were installed too soon.

The CaCl test continues to be used, despite its documented shortcomings. This may be due in part to the belief

The other critical issue is that measuring surface moisture

that CaCl testing is less expensive than RH testing. The cost

can have little correlation to the level of moisture that will remain

of the CaCl test is less expensive than an RH test kit. How-

in the slab after the flooring is installed over the concrete. After

ever, CaCl testing is far more labor-intensive than RH testing.

the flooring installation, no more moisture can evaporate. The

As a result, conducting CaCl testing has higher direct costs than RH testing and higher indirect costs due to its inefficient use of time and labor.

Another reason that CaCl continues to be used may also be because the CaCl has a longer field history than the RH test, which some may confuse with greater credibility. Many flooring product manufacturers continue to specify acceptable MVER rates for warranty coverage, giving the CaCl test a sheen of credibility.

In Situ RH Test and ASTM F2170 The work from the Technical University of Lund in Sweden in the 1990s was critical in developing the in situ RH test method known today. These researchers looked at RH levels within the slab, and its relation to the slab’s EMC after the flooring is installed. They determined the precise slab depths at which an RH sensor needs to read the RH percentage reflecting the slab’s EMC once sealed. For concrete floor slabs poured on grade, the depth is 40%; for slabs drying from both sides, the proper depth for the in situ RH sensor is 20 percent. Unsur-

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Any excess moisture that remains in the slab will rise without evaporating, carrying moisture vapor and chemicals that get trapped between the slab’s surface and the flooring. prisingly, the first industry associations to issue standards for in situ RH testing were in Sweden and Finland. These professional standards, colloquially called the “Nordtest,” were published in 1995. ASTM used the Nordtest as the basis for writing F2170, which was first approved in 2002.

The scope of scientific validation is a notable distinction in the contrasting histories of F1869 and F2170. The CaCl test and standardization were developed from anecdotal experience, with subsequent controlled testing revealing its weaknesses. The in situ RH was born and refined through scientific testing, and the field use standards then followed.

Continued scientific testing on the in situ RH method has improved our understanding of it, resulting in a recent update to F2170. The original F2170 standard required waiting 72 hours for the air in the concrete hole to equilibrate, and only then could an ASTM-compliant reading be taken. A precision and bias study, commissioned by ASTM and conducted by an independent laboratory in 2014, tested the efficacy of the 72-hour waiting period. The researchers took readings at multiple intervals before 72 hours to track the differential to the F2170 required 72-hour reading.

Through this process, the researchers uncovered that readings taken at the 24-hour mark were statistically equivalent to those taken at the 72-hour mark. Any occasional deviations found between the two readings were consistently and sufficiently minor to have no statistical impact. All of this is to say that the 24-hour reading was functionally identical to the 72-hour reading, making the 72-hour reading requirement moot. As a result of this research, ASTM updated the F2170 standard to allow ASTM-compliant readings to be taken 24 hours after the sensor is inserted into the hole. With the revised standard, in situ RH testing method is now the fastest concrete moisture test method available, as users of F1869 must still wait at least 60 hours before taking a standard-compliant reading.

The work from the Technical University of Lund in Sweden in the 1990s was critical in developing the in situ RH test method known today. These researchers looked at RH levels within the slab, and its relation to the slab’s EMC after the flooring is installed.

The most significant distinction between the in situ RH and CaCl test methods is what they’re testing. As noted above, one of the most serious deficiencies of the CaCl test is that it only measures surface moisture, while it’s the moisture condition below the surface that’s most telling. Only an in situ RH sensor measures the RH and temperature within the concrete slab, making it the only test method that can accurately tell us anything about the future moisture condition of the concrete once the flooring is installed.

The most significant distinction between the in situ RH and CaCl test methods is what they’re testing.

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Validated Reliability of RH Test Kits The science behind in situ RH testing also ensures that RH test kits can be calibrated according to traceable national standards. The lack of ability to calibrate the tools measuring MVER as part of a CaCl test was one of the test’s main weaknesses, as outlined by Kanare in the CTLGroup research. Without calibration, it’s impossible to verify that the testing equipment is returning an accurate reading.

In Situ RH Testing: The Most Accurate and Easiest Testing Method

It’s not always that we get the happy coincidence that the most effective and reliable option is also the easiest and fastest option.

When it comes to concrete moisture testing, that is exactly the case.

It’s not always that we get the happy coincidence that the most effective and reliable option is also the easiest and fastest option. When it comes to concrete moisture testing, that is exactly the case.

First of all, it’s worth emphasizing that the newest scientific research into in situ RH testing resulted in ASTM revising the F2170 standard to require only a 24-hour waiting period. F1869 still requires a minimum of 60 hours before you can take actionable moisture readings. In addition, you can find in situ RH test kits that simplify the installation and data collection ends of in situ RH testing, speeding up the entire concrete moisture measuring timeline within a project.

For example, there are easy to install in situ RH sensors, like the ones that are part of Wagner Meters’ Rapid RH® L6 concrete moisture measurement system. Unlike CaCl tests, which require a lot of set up to ensure the seal over the crystals is well-secured, in situ RH sensors install in minutes. All it requires is drilling a simple hole, cleaning it out, and inserting the RH sensor. The Rapid RH L6 system also includes various optional accessories and free mobile apps that streamline or automate the data collection and F2170 reporting processes.

Enhanced data collection accelerates the schedule and provides a quantitative foundation for better understanding the drying process of a specific slab through trend analysis graphs.

F2170 stipulates a certain number of sensors be installed based on the square footage of the slab, including specifying places where some sensors must be placed. A concrete moisture meter is helpful as a targeting device that can find trouble spots within a test location to ensure they get the attention they deserve. Look for a moisture meter that gets below the surface, like Wagner Meters’ C555 pinless concrete moisture meter that reads ¾” into the slab.

It returns a reading showing the spot’s comparative moisture condition, which helps identify where the slab retains the most moisture.

Ensuring Project Documentation Specifies the Right Concrete Moisture Test While in situ RH testing is the more reliable and faster moisture test, the CaCl test still has its adherents. General contractors or flooring installers usually default to whatever test they’re most comfortable using, even if it’s not the best test to use. Nobody on a project wants to waste time after the slab has been poured arguing about which concrete moisture test to use.

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The time to insist on using an F2170-compliant in situ RH test is when the project is getting specified. Doing your due diligence to validate the enhanced utility of in situ RH testing and specifying the most effective RH testing system according to your criteria for the project is a foolproof way of bringing down your stress levels — at least as it pertains to concrete moisture testing.

To learn more about Wagner’s comprehensive Rapid RH L6 system, including its extensive array of data logging tools, visit wagnermeters.com or call (844) 533-9100. ❚

Resources: 1. IFTI Solutions/ Flooring Failures. (n.d.). Retrieved from Independent Floor Testing & Inspection (IFTI) https://ifti.com/solutions/flooring-failures/ 2. A STM F2170 — 19a Standard Test Method for Determining Relative Humidity in Concrete Floor Slabs Using in situ Probes https://www.astm.org/Standards/F2170.htm 3. A STM F2659 — 10(2015) Standard Guide for Preliminary Evaluation of Comparative Moisture Condition of Concrete, Gypsum Cement and Other Floor Slabs and Screeds Using a Non-Destructive Electronic Moisture Meter https://www.astm.org/Standards/F2659.htm 4. A STM F1869 — 16a Standard Test Method for Measuring Moisture Vapor Emission Rate of Concrete Subfloor Using Anhydrous Calcium Chloride https://www.astm.org/Standards/F1869.htm 5. S LABS ON GRADE CONCRETE FLOOR MOISTURE TESTS https://www.concrete construction.net/products/decorative-concrete-surfaces/concrete-floor-moisture-tests_o 6. Moisture measurement in concrete floor slabs https://www.constructionspecifier.com/moisture-measurement-in-concrete-floor-slabs/2/ 7. Rapid RH L6 Concrete Moisture Test https://www.wagnermeters.com/rapid-rh-l6/

While in situ RH testing is the more reliable and faster moisture test, the CaCl test still has its adherents. General contractors or flooring installers usually default to whatever test they’re most comfortable using, even if it’s not the best test to use. Nobody on a project wants to waste time after the slab has been poured arguing about which concrete moisture test to use.

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By Geoffrey Colon

FLOOR ED

What Do Consumers Want To See On A Company Website?

F

Charles Stiles, Business Evaluation Services Business Evaluation Services was founded by the current President, Charles Stiles. Charles comes from a background in retail; owning several retail gourmet food and gift stores in national malls for over 8 years.

Quickly realizing the only way to differentiate his stores and stand out from the competition was to develop a consistent service culture and create a process for measuring the success of the training that was implemented.

Through this process in 1996, Business Evaluation Services was founded. Today, BES is an International Mystery Shopper Company with over two decades of experience, serving a variety of industries.

or many businesses, a website is undeniably critical for reaching new audiences — and is often the first impression someone will have of your brand.

But having a website alone isn’t enough to reach and convert new customers.

It’s equally vital that your website is well-designed, or you risk losing valuable leads.

Website design plays a huge role for a few reasons: First, web design can impact your website’s ability to rank on search engines for keywords related to your products or services. Additionally, web design can influence whether a user stays on your site once they find it.

And, lastly, web design will ultimately impact how many leads and prospects you’re able to convert into customers.

Good website design always begins with the question, “What is the main action we want someone to take when they visit our site?”

However, “good” website design can seem vague — what exactly do marketers mean when they say, “That’s an impressive website design”?

To uncover key design features you’ll want to include in your website in 2021, and beyond, we asked 285 people around the U.S. which elements they feel are most important for a company website.

On the nxt page are their responses.

Which element do you feel is most important for a business to have on its website?

62%

26%

10% Newsletter Sign-up

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19% A Blog

27%

28%

30%

31%

20%

Case Studies

Physical Address

Product Images & Videos

Live Chat

Social Media Icons

About Us Page

Contact Us information

essential element on a business’s website.

Your blog should be listed under your domain (something like www.yourcompany/blog) instead of off-site through a third-party service.

Ultimately, a blog can help you reach new audiences, increase brand awareness, and convert prospects through educational, valuable content.

3. A n “About Us” page is a vital element and can help your brand share its story.

1. According to 62% of those polled, including contact information on your website is critical.

Including contact information seems simple, but a lot of companies miss this. And it’s undeniably important — in fact, those surveyed rated “Contact Us Information” as the most important element you can include on your company’s website.

You’ll want to include the phone number, email address, or another contact medium you want people to reach you for sales inquiries — preferably in an easyto-find location, like the page’s header.

Also, consider including a clickable “Email us!”

CTA that either opens an email client or links to your contact form. And, speaking of forms, you might want to embed “Contact Us” forms throughout your site.

Visitors don’t need to go on a scavenger hunt to find out how to get in touch with you.

2. 19% believe a blog is most important.

All digital, social, and other online marketing require quality content. And a blog is one of the most effective opportunities you have to create and distribute high-quality content related to your products or services. Of those surveyed, 19% believe it’s the most

Sharing your story and highlighting core values is critical for your brand’s long-term success. 85% of consumers say they’ll only consider a brand if they trust the brand.

As shown in the poll we conducted, an About Us page is the second-highest rated element, with 31% ruling an About Us page the most important element — overshadowing live chat, product images/video, and even case studies.

Simply put, people care about who they do business with, so tell people who you are and why your work matters. That said, keep it brief. Customers don’t have time to read a research paper.

4. Y ou’ll want to include social media icons to drive traffic to your social pages.

We know social media icons are important, but I was surprised to see this element overshadow live chat, customer case studies, and blog as the most important element of a company’s website, according to 30% of those surveyed.

Once your website is regularly bringing in traffic, it’s important you link out to your social media pages so prospects and customers can follow you.

However, it’s important you don’t overdo it — when in doubt, go for simplicity over scale. For instance, if you work for an eCommerce company, consider linking to a few visually appealing pages, such as Instagram, Pinterest, or YouTube.

Of course, don’t add platforms that you don’t

Sharing your story and highlighting core values is critical for your brand’s long-term success.

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update regularly. You’re building trust, and that comes by regularly having updated and relevant content and answering queries from customers and leads.

5. According to 20% percent of those polled, customer testimonials can effectively take your website to the next level.

Potential customers need to trust you before choosing to work with you. Fortunately, customer testimonial pages can help you effectively build that trust with prospects.

Use your website to build your credibility by sharing your expertise and successful track record with clients and customers. When you do get testimonials, ask your clients for permission to use their real names. Real endorsements from recognizable businesses and organizations mean a lot more than an anonymous testimonial or a quote from a fictional persona.

Case study pages should have a consistent, concise format and template to explain what problem a customer had, how your company solved it, and what process you used to get to a resolution.

6. Geographic details are invaluable for local search SEO. 46% of all Google searches are looking for local information — which means if your business isn’t optimized for local search, you could be missing out on potential customers who are searching for products or services within your geographical region.

And, as shown in our research, 26% feel a business’s physical location is a key component of an effective website.

The pandemic has made many of us forget a physical world exists. Most businesses with brick-and-mortar locations rely on customers within a certain geographic area. Fortunately, when many people search for a product or service, they include a location.

Including your location information will help your SEO strategy and help people unfamiliar with your region find your business.

For instance, if you need a locksmith, you might search “locksmith in Maplewood, NJ.” This is why you should use your location in page titles and other metadata, as well as in the text that appears on your website.

If you have several cities you serve, you should consider creating landing pages on your site for each location for easier navigation.

7. L ive chat is an important element of a business’s website in 2021.

According to 28% of our respondents, live chat is a necessary component of a successful website.

Chatbots can’t replace real people with customer service, but they are a good alternative for those who don’t want to call or email and maybe inquiring about services or simple FAQs. To meet customers where they are and provide the instant feedback they require, consider installing a live chat option on your website.

Chatbots are easy to program, and many don’t even require code. Artificial intelligence has made this functionality much more feasible for companies of all sizes. In fact, many companies offer live chat as a simple plugin for your CMS platform.

Other reasons to consider a chatbot: ● 4 4% of online consumers say having questions answered by a live person while in the middle of an online purchase is one of the most important features a website can offer. ● 6 3% said they are more likely to return to a website if it offers live chat. ● 38% said they made their purchase due to the chat session itself, and 62% reported being more likely to purchase from the site again.

Potential customers need to trust you before choosing to work with you. Fortunately, customer testimonial pages can help you effectively build that trust with prospects.

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Customers like images — but they are wary of stock photos, particularly of products or services. This is where authentic behindthe-scenes videos and photos can help. For instance, if your company provides a service such as landscape design or IT maintenance, show before-and-after pictures of your work.

8. 27% of people say it’s most important to use original videos and images of your products or services on your website.

Customers like images — but they are wary of stock photos, particularly of products or services. This is where authentic behind-the-scenes videos and photos can help.

For instance, if your company provides a service such as landscape design or IT maintenance, show before-and-after pictures of your work.

If your service is less tangible, such as insurance or life coaching, show pictures of your friendly staff and your belief system using visuals. Or, better yet, include video. Videos where you explain your business’ purpose are powerful opportunities for increasing trust with potential customers.

9. According to 10% of those polled, a newsletter sign-up button is a valuable component of a company’s website.

Offering visitors to your site a chance to stay up-todate via a subscription to your blog posts, newsletters, or product releases is a great way to stay top-of-mind for prospects and customers and increase brand loyalty.

A subscription will let you share information about your company through email marketing and build your email list at the same time. Use this list to share information you think your clients and prospects will find valuable whenever you have it.

Finally, Don’t Forget About Analytics Should you simply limit your web design to just these nine important design elements? Of course not.

Depending on your industry and business needs, there are a number of other design integrations that should be considered a priority.

And, of course, we can’t forget the value of a compelling homepage, effective site navigation, mobile responsiveness, and more technical aspects like readability and accessibility.

There’s also one other critical element you should consider when designing your website: Analytics. Analytics can help you determine how your website is currently performing, the pages that attract the most visitors, and how you might improve and iterate on your web design for the long haul.

Ultimately, it’s important to continue testing your web design over time to ensure it continues to meet — and exceed — consumers’ expectations. ❚ We are here to help you track your customer’s experience at all touchpoints, whether it be online, onsite, or telephone.

Mystery Shopping • Customer Surveys Online Reputation Management Call our sales team today. We look forward to answering your questions.

You Can’t Move What You Don’t Measure

Business Evaluation Services, PO Box 507, Arroyo Grande, CA 93421, 888-300-8292 Premier Flooring Retailer | TISE Edition 2021

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SHOWIN’ OUR STUFF

Carpet Padding or Carpet Cushion. There’s a difference

W

hen it comes to carpet, people tend to focus on what they see and feel—that is the top side of the carpet. After all, it's why we select carpet, right? Well, not entirely. Carpet, unlike any other type of floor covering, provides a cushiony softness underfoot. But that cushiony softness is not totally attributable to the fiber, pile density, or tufting style. A lot of that enjoyment of carpet actually emanates from beneath it — from the carpet cushion itself.

To be sure, carpet cushions aren’t the glamor part of choosing and buying a new carpet, but they are every bit as important. However, most carpet customers (and surprisingly carpet retailers for that matter) don’t give carpet cushion its just due. To them, all carpet cushions are pretty much the same. They believe they are begrudgingly necessary but certainly not worth much attention (out of sight, out of mind). Even the term "carpet padding" still persists, just like those bizarre multi-colored recycled bits and chips of foam (and whatever else) welded together with heat, pressure, and glue. Thank goodness those things are hidden under a beautiful carpet!

Because of this common under-appreciation for the benefit of carpet cushions (stemming from an uninformed consumer and a retailer anxious to make a quick sale), significant opportunities are often missed. A REAL carpet cushion, like the kind made with high-density memory foam by Healthier Choice, creates several advantages for the carpet retailer. Here are just a few:

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A REAL carpet cushion, like the kind made with high-density memory foam by Healthier Choice, creates several advantages for the carpet retailer.

Increased customer satisfaction. Perhaps no greater, long-lasting advantage to the retailer is a happy, satisfied customer. Memory foam carpet cushion ensures a better installation, a longer-lasting and easier to clean carpet, as well as luxurious comfort your customer will brag about.

Easier customer education. Most people understand the concept of memory foam and equate it with the unrivaled comfort of premium mattresses and pillows. Using the same technology for unrivaled comfort underfoot is an easy “dot-connecting” moment in the sales associate’s presentation.

Opportunity for customer up-sale. So the customer has already invested in a beautiful, quality carpet. For just a little more, that customer can now protect their enjoyment and purchase with a state-of-the-art carpet cushion worthy of their new purchase.

Empathizing with customer quality concerns. As people spend more and more time in their homes during the COVID-19 pandemic, there is a growing consciousness of the quality of flooring and other home improvements that go into the home as they relate to general health and wellbeing. A quality, U.S. made memory foam cushion-like Healthier Choice is the ultimate, responsible choice. Not only does the memory foam cushion provide comfort and softness, but Healthier Choice also prevents mold and mildew growth with Ultra-Fresh … and it’s even sustainable and recyclable!

There are carpet pads, and then there are carpet cushions like the kind made by Healthier Choice. There is a big difference. You owe it to yourself to offer this difference to your valued carpet-buying customers. ❚

There are carpet pads, and then there are carpet cushions like the kind made

by Healthier Choice.

There is a big difference.

You owe it to yourself to offer this difference to your valued carpet-buying customers.

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100% HIGH DENSITY MEMORY FOAM CARPET CUSHION

The World’s Best Carpet Cushion 62 Premier Flooring Retailer | TISE Edition 2021

100% HIGH DENSITY MEMORY FOAM CARPET CUSHION

Made of 100% high density memory foam, Healthier Choice Carpet Cushion offers the luxurious comfort you want while providing the support your carpet needs.

Healthier Choice Cushion’s dense, micro-cellular structure cushions every step by acting like millions of tiny shock absorbers, allowing your carpet to look newer and last longer.

NEVERCRUSH

TM

The appearance retention warranty for any brand of residential carpet is instantly doubled when installed over Healthier Choice Carpet Cushion.

The only carpet cushion to be awarded the UL GREENGUARD® Gold Certification for indoor air quality as an extremely low VOC emitting product.

Healthier Choice Cushion is infused with Ultra-Fresh® antimicrobial protection to prevent the growth of harmful mold, mildew and bacteria.

A revolutionary Breathable Moisture Barrier keeps liquid spills from penetrating down into the cushion while allowing moisture vapor to escape.

The only carpet cushion made with more than 50% soybean oil and natural minerals which reduces the use of fossil fuels while supporting sustainable alternatives.

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SHOWIN’ OUR STUFF

Color, Style, and Fashion for Floors

DW

Select brings five new introductions of beautifully styled carpet patterns, textures, and colors to the Dream Weaver product family. These are all created using our PureColor solution-dyed fiber. ●C helsea — Chelsea introduces a hand crafted woven texture in a loop block pattern adding a clean and elevated aesthetic to complement the soft, muted color palette. ● Mojave — Mojave introduces a new larger scale wave pattern that offers a relaxing coastal vibe and visual dimension that can complement any aesthetic theme. The influence of blues and teals invites natural harmony into homes that are now busier than ever.

Chelsea Addlestone

● Coastal Escape — Coastal Escape introduces a small scale artistic pattern complementing contemporary or traditional styling with a subtle striated color palette to support all designer needs. ● Davos — Davos introduces a soft, subtle pin dot pattern showing off striated colorations that are accentuated by an earth tone pallet offering an uplifting cozy feel for any room ● Westminster — Westminster introduces a ribbed loop construction with a color palette that creates a warm ambiance focusing on layered textures and organic neutrals that maximize natural light. ❚

Coastal Escapes Off Shore

Davos Avalanche

Mohave Hillside

Westminster Abbey

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Home. Grown.

When it comes to quality and service, American made products rise above the rest. We are proud that 100% of Engineered Floors soft surface flooring is made in America. Our commitment to northwest Georgia and the surrounding areas will continue to ensure that EF lives up to the reputation of quality and craftsmanship that is Made in the U.S.A.

09

PC

Scan to discover DW Select®

Scan to discover Pentz®

•

engineeredfloors.com

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PREPARE TO BE

FLOORED

Join us in sunny Las Vegas at TISE 2021 June 16-18.

Register Now & Save 25% Off an Exhibits or Virtual Pass >>

intlsurfaceevent.com | Use Promo Code TLVV4 What to Know Before You Go The International Surface Event Health & Safety Plan

66 Premier Flooring Retailer | TISE Edition 2021

IT IS ALL

INCLUDED IN YOUR PASS 3 Days of Industry Networking

Over 150 Vendor Booths & Profiles

Thousands of Products

TISE Live Main Stage Education Sessions

TISE Live Demo Stage Presentations

The CAGE Stone Fabrication Demos

Installer of the Year Semi-Finals

Full Access to the TISE Live Virtual Event | Vegas Edition

Special Events & Experiences

Sponsor

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GET WITH THE

PROGRAM

View the schedule online for full details, times and bios.

TISE Live Main Stage Education Programming Wednesday to Friday June 16-18

Speaker(s)

Circling The Drains - Preparation and Drain Types

NTCA

Activating Your Social Channels for Huge Impact at a Trade Show

Shannon Vogel

Increase Quality and Reduce Liability in Your Projects by Specifying Qualified Labor

Amver Fox, Mark Meriaux, Brett Miller

Advocating for Natural Stone and Global Initiatives in North America: A Perspective from the Natural Stone Institute

Jim Hieb, Katie Jensen, Duane Naquin

Launching a Podcast to Generate New Business Leads

Kyle Hedin

Charge Your Worth: Installers Advocating Their Value

Kyle Hedin

Identifying and Targeting Your Key Audience in Facebook Advertising

Shannon Vogel

Where’s Waldo? Finding and Retaining Employees

Jon Namba, Bart Bettiga, Jim Hieb, Michael Martin

Developing Goals, Setting Trajectories, and Guiding the Paths for Women in the Floorcovering Industry

Tanja Kern, Brenda Knowles, Emily Morrow, Jill Robinson, Dana Teague

Calibu: A Masterful Renovation from the Floors Up

Jennifer Farrell

Flooring Trends for Real Estate Professionals

Lisbeth Calandrino

Overlooking the Obvious: How Floor Covering Stores and Real Estate Professionals Can Drive New Business

Lisbeth Calandrino

TISE Live Demo Stage Presentations Wednesday to Friday June 16-18

Speaker(s)

Circling The Drains - Preparation and Drain Types

NTCA

Trusted Technology and New Innovations for Installing & Finishing Tile Floors

MAPEI

Natural Stone Sustainability Standard

Natural Stone Institute

High-Moisture Solutions for Sub-Floor Preparation & More

MAPEI

Natural Stone Standards at Your Fingertips: Finding Standards Documents and Technical Information

Natural Stone Institute

High-Performance Grouting and Care & Maintenance Solutions

MAPEI

Circling The Drains - Drainage System and Flood Testing

NTCA

Trusted Technology and New Innovations for Installing & Finishing Tile Floors

MAPEI

High-Performance Grouting and Care & Maintenance Solutions

MAPEI

Quarry Discussion Group

Coldspring Quarry

Circling The Drains - Water Management Membranes and Tile Installation

NTCA

High-Moisture Solutions for Sub-Floor Preparation & More to Think About Culture

MAPEI

Innovative Flooring Installation Solutions

MAPEI

68 Premier RetailerStage | TISE Edition 2021 TISEFlooring Live Demo Sponsor

CAN’T TRAVEL TO

LAS VEGAS? The industry has the opportunity to join everyone in Las Vegas ‘socially’ even if they cannot travel to the in-person event. Bridging the gap between the on-site Las Vegas event is an invite-only Facebook event, the TISE Live Virtual Event | Vegas Edition, offering content and programming directly from the show floor, as well as exclusive content only for the virtual event. It will almost be like you are there!

Register Now & Save 25% Off an Exhibits or Virtual Pass >>

intlsurfaceevent.com | Use Promo Code TLVV4 Premier Flooring Retailer | TISE Edition 2021

69

70 Premier Flooring Retailer | TISE Edition 2021

Realtors Make Good Partners!

For the Very First Time: Realtors Are Invited to TISE 2021— The International Surfaces Event

TISE

is a B2B floor covering event under The International Surface Event (TISE) brand, SURFACES is the largest North American flooring event serving ALL of the floor covering industry, bringing together buyers and sellers from around the world to see the latest floor covering products, tools, trends, services and technologies.

LAS VEGAS IN-PERSON EXHIBITS 16–18 JUNE 2021 + VIRTUAL 16–18 JUNE 2021 Mandalay Bay Convention Center 3950 S Las Vegas Blvd, Las Vegas, NV 89119 Lis Calandrino will be delivering two seminars specific to Realtors and Retailers: “ Flooring Trends for Real Estate Professionals”, June 18,2021, 11:00 AM to 11:30AM

“ Overlooking the Obvious: How Floor Covering Stores and Real Estate Professional Can Drive New Business”, 11:45 AM to 1:15 AM To learn more about flooring education for realtors, click this link: https://bit.ly/3bROYZw. If you’re unable to attend in person, you can attend the virtual show. “I’m so excited that Realtors are being invited to the show. We’ve talked about trends and new products through the classes and I know if they can attend they will be ‘blown away’ by the beauty and the level of sophistication of the show. I have been attending for the past 20 years and am still in awe of the new products every year.” ❚ If you want more information reach out to Lis Calandrino via email, Lcalandrino@nycap.rr.com or text or call 518.495.5380

Educational Classes Being Held at Surfaces for Realtors For the first time, Realtors have been invited free to attend Surfaces. There are also two seminars specifically for them: “Flooring Trends for Real Estate Professionals”, and “Overlooking the Obvious: How Floor Covering Stores and Real Estate Professional Can Drive New Business.” I’m so excited that this new group of “influencers” have been added to our attendees. For more information, click on this link: https://www.lisbeth calandrino.com/first-timerealtors-are-invited-to-tise2021-the-international-surfaces-event/.

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