Retail

Selling traditional in Texas

Tuesday, February 6, 2018

The view from inside the S&H showroom. Stacy said that many products sold at S&H have a tradition style, which appeals to the Southwest crowd.

By Ryane DeFalco

[Dallas] When John Stacy, owner of S & H Flooring, goes to work, it’s a family affair. Stacy's sons and daughter work there, as well as his granddaughters. Since its helm, the company has been a family owned and operated business.

The company will celebrate its 30th anniversary next year, and has come a long way from its beginnings in 1988. S&H offers a large selection of products which include engineered & custom wood, carpet, tile, laminate, granite and vinyl plank. They also offer custom wood floors as pre-finished or unfinished hardwoods.

And the business keeps getting bigger—S&H recently merged with Dallas Flooring Warehouse and even acquired Peek’s Floor Co. in November. S&H runs five Peek’s Floor Co. stores in Texas, bringing S&H’s total number of stores to 11. (Six of its stores are located here in Dallas, including company headquarters).

When it comes to trends, Stacy told FCW that he often sees popularity in soft surface. Stacy added that lately, he’s seen, "dramatic growth in LVT (luxury vinyl tile) and WPCs (wood plastic composite), which has cut into laminate sales." When asked if a resurgence in laminate sales is likely in the future, Stacy isn’t as confident.

"Vinyl products outweigh laminate," he stressed. "LVT has grown their visuals—it used to be plain Jane!" Stacy’s advice for laminate is to follow suit from LVT visuals. "The more realistic you can make it, the more consumer appeal."

The biggest names in the industry can be found and bought at S&H locations. Stacy said that when the company began, it had, what he called, "a short romance with Tarkett." Now, Shaw is the biggest supplier for the S&H stores, while Couristan is the biggest supplier in Peek’s Carpet stores. S&H also has a partnership with Mohawk, but its most unique relationship is with Abbey Carpet—S&H is the only Abbey Carpet account in Dallas. They have been partnered with Abbey Carpet for 11 years.

When it comes to reaching potential consumers, Stacy revealed that S&H drives most of its business from its website, which has made huge growth in the last five years. The company also aims to maintain high Google ratings, following the high evaluations it received in the past on Craigslist. Stacy shared with FCW what he considers to be the biggest draw for consumers.

"It just has to be managed," he said. "Sales people need to know the importance of reviews."

But he assures consumers that when they shop at S&H, "Satisfaction is going to be taken care of."

Still in the Game
Chester Hollingsworth is the oldest S&H employee — and one of the oldest employees in the industry. Just last month, S&H celebrated Hollingsworth’s 100th birthday. "Chester is a legend in the industry," Stacy said.

Hollingsworth is a veteran, who enlisted during WWII the day after the attacks on Pearl Harbor. He started Vickery & Co in 1946 alongside Troy Vickery and became executive vice president. Hollingsworth retired in 1984 — or so he thought. When he began to miss flooring, Hollingsworth re-entered the industry as a founding member of S&H Flooring in 1988. Even today, he works two days a week doing pricing, getting samples on the floor, inventory and even selling.

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