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Carpet Co-Op of America Acquires Majority Stake in FloorExpo
Atlanta, GA (October 4, 2000) - Carpet Co-Op of America has acquired a majority interest in FloorExpo, Inc., in exchange for cash and other considerations. Specific terms of the deal were not disclosed.
Founded in Atlanta less than two years ago, FloorExpo today has member sales of over US$1 billion and operates in the top 25 builder markets across the country under the Home Solutions™ brand. “Carpet Co-Op of America has had a remarkable impact as the clear leader in consolidating this piece of the flooring industry,” Dave Gheesling, FloorExpo chairman and CEO stated. “And as we are still in the early stages of growth, we are thrilled to have them as a key strategic partner. We have a shared vision of adding value to the chain through our memberships, and this alliance will strengthen both of our organizations.”
Alan Greenberg, Carpet Co-Op of America co-founder and co-CEO, said, “Our purchase gives us an immediate lead position in an important market segment in which we have not previously had a strong presence. FloorExpo is clearly the dominant player in the residential flooring contractor arena. We are pleased that FloorExpo management, including Dave Gheesling, Tim Joyce (president and COO), and Andy Hogan (executive vice president and CMO), have agreed to remain in place so we can work together to build on their early successes and carry their vision forward.”
The residential builder’s segment is a growing piece of the flooring marketplace, representing US$9 billion in annual revenues in 1999. FloorExpo specializes in the single-family, production portion of that segment, which accounts for approximately US$4 billion of those revenues. The FloorExpo organization also services regional, custom, and local builder business in markets where their members operate.
“There are enormous synergies between the residential contract market which FloorExpo has led and the retail replacement market in which Carpet Co-Op of America has been dominant,” stated Howard Brodsky, co-founder and co-CEO of Carpet Co-Op of America. “Our partnership gives us the ability to serve the residential floor covering customer from start to finish. We expect to achieve greater efficiencies in everything from buying product to training and marketing.”
Tim Joyce added, “We are installing well over 1000 units per day across the country, and our partnership with Carpet Co-Op is a natural tie-in to a customer-for-life strategy. Their retail network is second to none.”
ABOUT CARPET CO-OP OF AMERICA
Carpet Co-Op of America, founded in 1985, is North America’s largest floor covering group, with more than 1,400 locations in the United States, Canada, Australia, New Zealand and Guam, with an annual sales volume of more than US$3 billion. Carpet Co-Op of America Association is headquartered in Manchester, New Hampshire; St. Louis, Missouri; and Atlanta, Georgia.