LAS VEGAS—Metroflor, for the 11th consecutive year, honored its distribution network during Surfaces with its annual awards presentation.
The highest honor of the night was the The Gerald Raskin Visionary award, named for the company’s founder, which went to Santa Fe Springs, Calif.- based Tri West. “The Visionary Award honors a distributor that best demonstrates confidence
in taking on new products, predicting a product’s success and understanding the needs of the marketplace,” said Michael Raskin, president. “Tri-West is a most deserving recipient this year.”
Metroflor was founded in the late 1960s as a distributor of domestic goods in the New York metropolitan area. Over time, Gerald Raskin saw a lack of innovation in what he handled and began developing products under the Metroflor brand name.
Raskin also broke boundaries as the first to import fiberglass-backed sheet vinyl and self- adhesive tile from Germany. He was tasked with convincing buy- ers that his imported product was equal to or better than similar domestic products, and succeeded by proving it had excellent value, high performance and stylish designs.
“Those are the principles on which Metrflor was founded,” Raskin said. “Style, performance and value.”
Also honored during the awards presentation was Ohio Valley Flooring with the President’s award. Raskin said the award is based on consis- tent commitment to Metroflor products, from supporting retail sales forces to providing inventory and sampling.
Other award winners were Adleta Corp., Dallas, for Artistik and Commercial; Shannon
Sales, Milwaukee, for Technoflor; Tri-West for Metroflor, and Herregan, Eagan, Minn., for Konecto.