Specialty flooring retailers are the drivers of this industry. Their success fuels every channel, from residential retail to commercial. To honor these businesses, FCNews is publishing its inaugural Retailers of the Year issue. It’s an effort to call attention to those retailers who are excelling or differentiating themselves in some aspect of their business. In this issue, suppliers and vendors nominated retailers who they believe deserved to be featured and why they stand out from the pack.
FCNews’ Retailers of the Year issue features some of the industry’s most accomplished dealers from influential buying groups as well as smaller retailers with no group affiliation. In other words, it reflects the retail industry as a whole.
In choosing their top retailer partners, suppliers looked beyond sales volume to other key attributes such as communication skills, trust, company culture and even benevolence as differentiating factors. Suppliers/vendors nominated up to four retailers (or distributors, in some cases) for consideration and explained why they stand out. FCNews then narrowed down the winners based on the scope of merit attributed to each.
Throughout this week and next, please visit FCNews.net each day as a new winner from the Retailers of the Year issue will be showcased. Today’s highlight is Tarkett’s nominations and winners: Hammond Lumber and Darlene Flooring.
Hammond Lumber
Belgrade, Maine
What Tarkett had to say:
Hammond Lumber is one of the strongest supporters of Tarkett Home. Hammond quickly recognized Tarkett Home Pro-Gen Plank, ProGen Stone and NuGen Click would be a great collection of products to display in their showrooms and stock inventory. Delivering great customer service and beautiful flooring products for Tarkett customers is important to Hammond Lumber and has been a contributing factor in growing this successful relationship.
About Hammond Lumber:
Founded in 1953 by Skip and Verna Hammond with a single sawmill in Belgrade, Maine, Hammond Lumber today is a fourth-generation family business that carries a full line of building materials, millwork, kitchen/bath/flooring, home planning design centers and a quality manufacturer of eastern white pine sawing more than 6.5 million board feet annually. Hammond is one of the largest independent building material retailers in the Northeast with 22 locations; and its commitment to workplace safety is evidenced by its numerous accolades including the National Safety Council’s 2019 Occupational Excellence Achievement Award. “Our employees’ dedication and daily commitment is what continues to make us one of the best places to work,” said Mike Hammond, president and CEO. “The Hammond team consists of employees who consistently provide exceptional customer service, demonstrate remarkable teamwork and serve our communities daily.” Hammond Lumber is committed to public service and to contributing to the local and regional communities
Darlene Flooring
South Windsor, Conn.
What Tarkett had to say
Dalene is a strong supporter of Tarkett Home and a well-respected business with customers at the front of their priorities. Dalene Flooring Carpet One supports and displays many Tarkett Home products in each of their locations including Tarkett ProGen Plank, Pro-Gen Stone, Tarkett Fiber Floor and the Tarkett Home carpet collection. Our partnership has consistently grown each year and remained strong even through the uncertainties of the last few years.
About Delane Flooring
When Dalene Flooring was established in 1949, it was a dream come true for Arne Dalene who enlisted his father, Herman Dalene, to help make Dalene Hardwood Flooring a reality.
In its infancy, Dalene specialized in hardwood floor installation as well as sanding and refinishing wood floors. In those days, many Norwegians came to work for Dalene Flooring, staying in the Dalene home. It was a very humble beginning full of family and friends working together to create a unique flooring experience for their customers.
Today, Dalene Flooring Carpet One Floor & Home remains committed to providing its customers with a wide selection of flooring and services from design to installation—all backed by Carpet One’s Beautiful Guarantee. “As our team has grown, we strive to maintain the high-quality customer service and family-friendly environment that got us where we are today,” said Steven Dalene, owner.
For eight consecutive years, Dalene Flooring was voted “#1 Best in Flooring” by the readers of Best of Hartford magazine, which honored the retailer for its showroom design and customer service.
As a retailer with decades of experiencing serving the local market, community outreach has become part of Dalene’s DNA. As such, the business has sponsored many youth organizations including Chamber of Commerce, Salvation Army and the Susan G. Komen Foundation. In addition, it has actively participated in the (Home Builder’s Association) HBA, which helps organizations like Habitat for Humanity and the Channel 3 Kids Camp.
