DALTON—From industry knowledge and trust to reputation and contacts, there is something to be said for experience. And that is exactly what the people behind Woodpro.US are banking on as they officially unveil the brand following months of inventory build-up and a soft launch.
Woodpro.US is one of the family of brands associated with Lamipro, and Trimpro.US, which have seen a wide array of success since being introduced in the U.S. The people behind it, such as Martine Van Hulle, CEO; Jeffery Goeman, president; Pete Ciganovich, COO, and Gordon Lundee, executive vice president, have more than 165 years collective flooring experience, stretching across the entire industry.
It is with this resume upon which Woodpro is built, and it is that experience that allowed them to join forces with one of the world’s top wood companies: Sino Forest Group. Its engineered wood flooring division, Sino-Maple, is considered one of the top three engineered wood companies in China and is widely known for high quality and style. Proof of its success lies in the fact Sino-Maple manufactures in excess of 100 million square feet each year. In addition, the company owns several million acres of land where wood is legally harvested following international rules and laws.
Ciganovich recently sat down with Floor Covering News to discuss the venture and why retailers can benefit from taking on Woodpro.
To start, the company is following the same mantra as its Lamipro and Trimpro sisters: Provide high quality products at price points from which dealers can profit, and service they can depend on.
“Our goal is zero back orders,” he explained. “We understand how important it is for the dealer to have the product right away. So we have five distribution points in major areas of the West, Central and Southeast parts of the U.S. And we’re working with mid-size, distributors to ensure servicing the entire U.S.”
He added similar to Woodpro’s management, these distributors are “well entrenched in flooring—minimum 30 years.”
This network of warehouses and distributors means 30% of the country’s dealers can get their Woodpro order next day with the rest no more than three days.
As already noted, Woodpro has actually been preparing for its official launch, which will take place during Surfaces in booth S5911. “We began stocking in October,” Ciganovich noted. “We also had presentations with multi-store chains as well as bringing in key people to our headquarters here. In November, we had agents hit the field with samples.” This initial launch included 15 SKUs, mainly in hickory, birch and maple, as well as one oak. Products varied from 3⁄8- to 9⁄16- inch thick and 3- to 5- inches wide and from 7- to 9-ply construction. Each carton includes random lengths from 18 to 48-inches, with only 10%
at the shortest length. To increase environmental friendliness, he said lower layers are made with eucalyptus and some poplar from Sino-Maple’s managed forests. The 15 SKUs are being complimented at Surfaces with an additional 10. Among them is one with an HDF core to separate it from the others.
In total, products range in style from the high, elegant design to hand scraped looks that are “actually done by hand, not machine,” he pointed out. One of the aspects of having Woodpro’s experienced team is in how much detail was paid to each product. For example, the finish itself is “pristine, especially when compared to like species,” he said. “It doesn’t just make the product stand out; Sino-Maple’s process allows for a deep saturation which is why we confidentially offer extended warranties.”
Woodpro has a 50-year finish guarantee on the initial 15 SKUs and “we will mostly likely offer the same for the new 10 SKUs,” Ciganovick explained. “We’re doing the final tests now.”
There is also matching engineered molding that will be displayed on its own deckboard. The flooring itself is being showcased in two compact units—one for the first 15 SKUs and the other for the additional 10.
“Our goal is to provide high quality products with in-demand styles at prices that make everyone happy—down to the consumer,” Ciganovich concluded. “We’re never going to be the most expensive, but we’re also not going to be the cheapest. Our guarantee is a high quality product and professional service.”
To learn more about Woodpro, visit its booth at Surfaces. A website was in development at press time. Or call 888.262.3396.