Issue Date:6/23/2008
Distribution Brothers (Eau Claire, Wis.) is collecting new clothes, blankets and cleaning supplies for flood victims near Cedar Rapids and Des Moines, Iowa. These items can be sent to either of Distribution Brothers' Iowa locations: 10079 Hickman Road, Urbandale, IA 50322 or 100 30th Street Drive S.E., Cedar Rapids, IA 52403. For more information, call 800/973-9810.
Erickson's Flooring & Supply (Ferndale, Mich.) held its 15th Annual Customer Appreciation Golf Outing on June 8. More than 120 customers attended the outing; the players from Christopher Flooring (Shelby Township, Mich.) were the winners.
The company also held training seminars June 3-5 at its Ferndale, Mich.; Kentwood, Mich.; and Indianapolis branches. Participating vendors included Gregg Bethune of BonaKemi USA, and Tom Peotter and Jill Eaton of Oshkosh Designs. For information on future training seminars, call Stephanie at 800/225-9663, ext. 1129.
SeaPort Hardwoods & Flooring (Tualatin, Ore.) held a grand opening at its new 30,000-square-foot warehouse in Clackamas, Ore., on June 20. Attending suppliers included Lenmar, Norton Abrasives, Pallman, Classic Manufacturing, Bostitch, Tradelink Wood Products, Fitzpatrick & Weller, Cherrybark Flooring Inc. and Antique Collection.
Philadelphia Floor Store (Conshohocken, Pa.) held an open house to introduce the Festool line. Tom Loveless of Festool did a presentation on dust containment when sanding aluminum oxide finish, and Lynn Brinkman and Chris Fahey of Dura Seal (Upper Saddle River, N.J.) presented several new coating systems.
Importer/Exporter Mike Gagne of Gagne Global Sourcing Inc. (Kirkland, Quebec) has changed his e-mail address since it was reported in the last issue of the Hardwood Floors E-News. His new e-mail address is [email protected].
Trade Show News Domotex Middle East, held in Dubai May 25-27, attracted 6,400 attendees from 91 countries and 280 exhibitors from 36 countries. The NWFA, in partnership with the American Hardwood Export Council, occupied a 132-square-meter pavilion and lounge space. NWFA members exhibiting in the NWFA Pavilion included: Anderson Hardwood Floors, ArborCraft, Frame Hardwoods Inc., Graf Bros, Mullican Flooring, Porta-Nails Inc. and W.F. Taylor Co. Inc. Domotex Middle East 2009 will be held May 12-14.
People News Joe Dupree Sr., president of Custom Wholesale Floors (CWF) (Jacksonville, Fla.), a wholly owned subsidiary of Wood Pro Inc. (Auburn, Mass.), will retire on June 27. "Joe has been a fixture at CWF for over 35 years, and his leadership has put us to the forefront of the wood flooring industry. His retirement is a deserved reward, and we wish him all the best as he starts his new life," said Wood Pro President/CEO Tony Benvenuti. Effective immediately, Joe Dupree Jr. has been promoted to COO. Dupree Jr. has over 15 years' experience in various positions at CWF, including territory manager, branch manager and, most recently, vice president of marketing.
The Malish Corp. (Willoughby, Ohio) has appointed Fred Lombardi vice president of sales and marketing. Most recently, Lombardi was vice president of sales of Zenex International for six years.
Merle B. Smith Co. (Burr Ridge, Ill.) has named Andy Keil vice president of marketing and sales.
Philadelphia Floor Store has appointed Bob Blevin territory representative for central and southern New Jersey, Delaware and the eastern shore of Maryland. Blevin has 15 years of experience in hardwood flooring, most recently at Floor Style Products Inc. in Baltimore. He can be contacted at 856/362-3078 or [email protected].
On the Web The Dodge Cork Company (Lancaster, Pa.) has launched its new Web site at www.dodgecork.com.
Mark Your Calendar The NWFA, in conjunction with NOFMA: The Wood Flooring Manufacturers Association and the Maple Flooring Manufacturers Association, will hold a Wood Flooring Basics School at its training facility in St. Louis September 16-19. For more information, e-mail [email protected] or visit www.nwfa.org.
Distribution Brothers will host grand opening celebrations for its new locations in Urbandale, Iowa, on June 24 and Cedar Rapids, Iowa, on June 26. For more information, call 800/973-9810.
Lon Musolf Distributing Inc. (Vadnais Heights, Minn.), along with Basic Coatings, will host a sand and finish school July 1-2 at Lon Musolf's Vadnais Heights location. Attendees can learn sand and finish techniques and earn two NWFA credits. For more information, call Scott at 612/290-4855.
Additionally, the company will hold its annual golf tournament on Wednesday, July 30, at StoneRidge Golf Club in Stillwater, Minn. Several vendors will be on hand, and the grand prize will be two airline tickets to anywhere in the continental United States. For more information or to register, call 651/484-3020.
Clarke American Sanders (Springdale, Ark.), along with 3M, Dura Seal and Primatech, is hosting a sand and finish school August 6-8 in St. Paul, Minn. For more information, call 651/735-7172 or e-mail [email protected].
Decorative Flooring (Port Saint Joe, Fla.) will host a Custom Wood Flooring School August 14-16 at its location in Port Saint Joe. For more information, visit www.woodfloorschool.com or call 877/229-7720.
By the Numbers New home starts for May 2008 were at a seasonally adjusted 975,000 units, the lowest total starts number since March 1991, according to the U.S. Commerce Department. This is 3.3 percent below the revised April estimate of 1,008,000 and is 32.1 percent below the revised May 2007 rate of 1,436,000. Single-family starts declined 1 percent from the April 2008 figure of 681,000 to a rate of 674,000, the lowest since January 1991.
The overall National Association of Home Builders/Wells Fargo Housing Market Index (HMI) fell a single point to 18 for June 2008, matching the record low of 18 set in December 2007. The index gauging current sales conditions remained unchanged at 17, while the index gauging sales expectations for the next six months rose one point to 28. The index gauging traffic of prospective buyers fell a single point to 17.
Job Watch Forest Brand Floors Inc. (Louisville, Ky.), a company that develops, co-manufactures and imports a broad range of hardwood flooring products, is looking for experienced salespeople for several territories. Candidates should have excellent product and market knowledge of the hardwood flooring industry, as well as at least five years' experience in calling on distributors and large retailers. Resumes should be e-mailed to [email protected].
An established Canadian company is looking for a custom wood flooring representative to expand its U.S. and Canadian market share for Douglas fir custom wide-plank solid and engineered flooring, and its European-quality wood finishes. Resumes should be e-mailed to [email protected].
Trout River Lumber (Crewe, Va.) is looking for an experienced sales manager to serve as regional sales manager based in Atlanta. The company provides a liberal commission schedule. Resumes should be e-mailed to [email protected].
Correction In the previous Hardwood Floors E-News, Jim Terral of Terral & Associates was improperly listed as Jerry Terral. Terral is a manufacturer representative for Synteko Floor Finishes.
NWFA Member Services The Denver Metro Convention & Visitors Bureau has honored the NWFA for selecting Denver as the site for its 2007 Convention. To thank the NWFA for its business and its efforts toward green building, the Denver Metro Convention & Visitors Bureau has participated on behalf of the NWFA in the "Tree by Tree Mile High Million" program. This program is a public/private initiative to increase the canopy of shade in Denver by planting one million new trees in the Denver metropolitan area by 2025. The Tree by Tree Mile High Million initiative was launched in 2006 by Denver Mayor John Hickenlooper as part of the Greenprint Denver program and is administered by the city through the Denver Parks and Recreation Department. The NWFA's 2009 Convention will be held April 28-May 1, 2009, in Long Beach, Calif. For more information, contact the NWFA at 800/422-4556 (U.S.), 800/848-8824 (Canada) or 636/519-9663 (local and international), by e-mail at [email protected] or visit nwfa.org.
