March is Women’s History Month — a time to celebrate those who have forged equality and equity socially, in the workplace, in the home and more. It is a way to honor the achievements of American women and for the floor covering industry, it is a true time of change.
While there has certainly been a gradual shift in what leadership looks like and what representation in every area of the business looks like, it’s more recent that stakeholders have put meaningful power behind attracting, engaging, empowering and educating women in the flooring industry. This month showed the impact of those efforts in a way that is resonating not just with women, but the men working side-by-side with them throughout the supply chain from manufacturing to distribution to retail.
First up this month, nonprofit Women in the Floor-covering Industry (WIFI) teamed up with Alliance Flooring to host a panel at its Next Generation themed convention in Orlando. Here, four women retail leaders, in various stages of their flooring career, shared their journey coming into the family business — challenges faced, how they addressed them, owning their moment and making their mark. They were real and raw and I was honored to moderate this panel. A big thank you to Tami Stahl, Ryan Dunn and Kevin Logue who are all- in with developing women talent within the organization and giving them the tools they need to succeed.
While there were many takeaways, one thing that struck me was that, not only were these young ladies taking on important roles at their family-owned business, but some were also filling the role their father, for example, held in the community. They were all hungry to learn more about the business and were fiercely committed to its success.
From Orlando, we headed to Dalton for the Beyond Balance conference co-hosted by WIFI and Shaw’s Women in Network (WiN). Just WOW. The day was packed with learning sessions designed to help women navigate everything from leadership style to decision making and even self-care. Throughout the day, attendees (nearly 400 of them, both women and men) shared some poignant “ah-ha” moments and there was plenty of networking opportunities too. The day closed with a Q&A with leaders throughout the industry who were transparent and giving, revealing how they have navigated all of these topics and the lessons they have learned throughout their careers and even at the conference.
The day was “beyond” successful.
March was indeed chockfull of industry activity and shortly after returning home from these two events, I headed to Banff to attend the NFA Spring Meeting. This group of elite dealers includes some of the industry’s finest leading ladies — retail executives who are sharp and insightful. And there are a good number of women at the vendor tables as well. They are all tough (in the very best way), tender and tenacious and I for one continue to learn from each of them.
It is also exciting to watch the next generation of NFA leadership making their way as well. As Sam Roberts transitions from his role at Roberts Carpet & Fine Flooring, his daughter Alex is taking the helm. She is smart, talented and an all-around lovely person. I look forward to watching her grow into her role and take charge.
This issue of FCW is also the annual Top 50 Retailer Issue which lists not only the top floor covering retailers nationwide but the next set of stores pushing ahead in the rankings. It also reveals performance for home centers and shop-at-home formats as well. It is an industry benchmark and one we spend a lot of time to get just right. Each year, particularly as we continue to see market shifts — consolidation, acquisitions, etc. — we have to make decisions on the cleanest way to report the numbers. So there are notations and boxes, all meant to give you the best view of the market.
We conduct an aggressive email campaign and run alerts in print to make sure we are able to capture as much data as possible. If you didn’t fill out the form this year and would like to be counted, please let us know. As always, we are here to serve you.