At summer convention CCA Global — parent to Carpet One, Flooring America/Flooring Canada, Floor Trader and IDG — took its retail members through the plan and process to transform showrooms to Retail 2.0. The strategy simplifies the shopping experience and creates a journey that matches how the consumer shops from online to in store at Carpet One and Flooring America/Flooring Canada.
“We are consolidating from multiple private labels per division to basically one core private label brand per division,” explained Keith Spano, president, Flooring America/Canada, IDG & Floor Trader. “This strategy has proven effective at other major world-class retailers. Our supplier partners have been extremely supportive of Retail 2.0. Early results have showed more transactions on fewer sample SKUs leading to increased sample productivity and efficiency with less money wasted on styles sampled that don’t sell.”
Here, Spano and John Gilbert, president, Carpet One Floor & Home, share with FCW how onboarding is going and the fruits of the transition to Retail 2.0.
FCW: Retail 2.0 fully launched at summer convention. How has onboarding gone?
Gilbert: We exceeded expectations with our member response to the program. Nearly every member picked their desired launch window and our first window was oversubscribed by a significant amount.
FCW: What results have you seen?
Gilbert: Impressive sales increases. Showrooms with Retail 2.0 continue to exceed those without.
FCW: We visited Carpeteria Carpet One in San Diego and hard surface transformation was complete. When will soft surface be ready to roll?
Spano: Soft surface for our first wave will be ready in the second quarter of 2023.
FCW: The new website was a heartbeat of the transformation. When will your members reap the benefits of that?
Gilbert: Carpet One members transitioned to the new websites as of early December and the feedback has been terrific. The Flooring America/Canada members will transition to their new websites in Spring 2023.
FCW: Talk about the importance of marrying the website with the in-store merchandising and shopping journey?
Gilbert: Today’s consumer has come to expect a logical and coherent experience across all touchpoints. Our customers are connected to their physical showrooms in unprecedented ways within the flooring industry.
FCW: John, you talk about data driven decisions often. Where are you in driving that strategy with members?
Gilbert: Facts replace conjecture and opinion as a way of making important business decisions. We’re committed to relying on these facts, sourced from our members data, to do a better job improving the quality of our decisions. Members have embraced this approach.
FCW: Keith, you’ve long preached simplifying the showroom floor to avoid consumer paralysis. How does Retail 2.0 make for a good consumer journey?
Spano: The consolidation of brands through Retail 2.0 has proven to accelerate the selection process and reduce confusion for our customers. Everything is in one place and merchandised with other like products so the customer can see everything at once versus traversing the showroom to various disparate displays creating more confusion. Additionally, consumers have the ability to compare products side by side with the touch of a button. Our digital product experience platform houses warranty information, our room visualizer and many other tools to provide transparency and help customers make a great decision on the floor of their dreams.
FCW: What will the key messaging be for members attending the Phoenix event in January?
Gilbert: Making Connections is our convention theme; connections between members, connections between members and their customers. Retail 2.0 is the enabler of better customer connections and will still be our primary convention content.
FCW: Is there anything that came out of the summer convention that will help shape conversations you’ll have with members in January?
Spano: Absolutely. One comment I heard from members over and over is they appreciated our laser focused messaging at summer convention, obviously around Retail 2.0. At this convention in Phoenix, we’ll continue the focus but turn it toward retail execution and our suite of industry leading digital tools created exclusively for our members.
FCW: 2023 could bring more volatility. What are you telling members when it comes to all the things that could impact their business?
Gilbert: We have a comprehensive set of recommendations for our members to help them manage through economic headwinds. We’ll be sharing them at the convention.
FCW: What positives do you see in play with your members that will help them succeed in 2023?
Spano: Our keynote speaker is an NFL Hall of Fame, Super Bowl-winning quarterback, so I’ll give you a sports analogy: it’s a lot easier to win at retail when you have an all-star team executing the plays versus trying to run the same plays with the junior varsity. The CCA Retail Group is a collection of world-class retailers who understand the need to invest in good times and bad to stay ahead of the curve and they understand the need to execute, to diversify and the need to change with a changing consumer. Bottom line … we’ll take market share in 2023.