by Steven Feldman
New York–Mohawk’s quest to find the Messiest Kid in America is down to three finalists. After receiving more than 200 submissions over the contest’s three-month run, America is now in the process of determining the winner through its votes on Mohawk’s Facebook page through July 15.
The grand-prize winner will be announced Aug. 1 on “The Better Show,” a syndicated lifestyle television show that airs weekdays in 155 markets across the U.S. with which Mohawk is partnering.
The Messiest Kid in America contest was launched this spring, where Mohawk invited anyone in the U.S. to post a “messy kid” on its web page. The contestants were whittled down with a winner chosen each month. The three finalists were then brought to New York on June 22, where they participated in a taping of “The Better Show,” putting SmartStrand carpet to the test as only a messy kid can.
“I got to write my name on the carpet with my ketchup bottle,” boasted Adeline from Michigan, the contest’s only female finalist. “And it cleaned right up!” Twins Fletcher and Cruz from South Dakota enjoyed throwing food on Mohawk’s SmartStrand carpet because “we don’t get to do that at home!”
HGTV personality and Mohawk spokesperson Chip Wade was on hand to co-host the segment with “The Better Show’s” Audra Lowe. “This contest has been a lot of fun,” he said. “It’s been the perfect forum to demonstrate how the largest of messes can be quickly and easily cleaned using only water. We had the kids penetrate a very light-colored SmartStrand carpet with substances that would stain other carpets, such as ketchup, colored icing and punch, and the carpet performed beautifully.”
Lowe admitted she was a bit leery whether the stains would come out. “Once we put the water on the carpet and rubbed it with a damp cloth, everything came up immediately. And these kids really tried their hardest to get this carpet messy.”
Elise Demboski, Mohawk’s vice president of creative services, said the company has had a tremendous response to this campaign. “Today is July 9 and we’ve already had over 800 people vote for their favorite messy kid.” The finalist with the most votes will receive their choice of a five-day/four-night trip for four people to Disney World or a room makeover by Taniya Nayak worth $10,000.
Mohawk formulated a partnership with “The Better Show” this year as a “fun way” to promote its SmartStrand carpet and drive traffic to its aligned dealer stores, according to Demboski. The carpet not only adorns “The Better Show” set, but every month celebrities are taped walking down a red SmartStrand carpet as part of Mohawk’s Red Carpet Week. A recap video is then made available to aligned dealers.
“SmartStrand is a perfect fit for this show because we know the carpet truly makes life better for those who install it in their home,” Demboski said. “Only SmartStrand has the lasting stain and soil protection to make life with kids and pets worry-free while still being incredibly soft and durable.”
Produced and distributed by the Meredith Corp., The Better Show reaches more than 1 million of Mohawk’s target customers each weekday. Video recaps of the SmartStrand segments are posted on Mohawk’s website, facebook and YouTube pages and made available to Mohawk’s aligned dealers though MohawkToday.com
Melissa McGuire contributed to this story.