Carpet Express & The 2010 International Builders’ Show
Las Vegas is an exciting place for a convention and the 2010 International Builders’ Show held Jan 19th -22nd was no exception. Outside the Las Vegas Convention Center, Sin City was just good ‘ole Las Vegas. Every year there seems to be more and more hotels, people from all walks of life, and of course – expensive taxi rides. The place is truly amazing, but inside at the builders’ show it was business as usual.
I’ve heard it said that, “What happens in Vegas stays in Vegas”, but today I’ll give you the rundown on all the Carpet Express highlights and experiences at the largest builders’ tradeshow event of 2010. The West Coast downpour of rain didn’t deter the hordes of attendees, nor did it affect our excitement as we set up the Carpet Express exhibit booth alongside top notch flooring brands such as Shaw Industries, Armstrong Flooring Products, and others. We showcased our wide range of flooring options including carpet, laminate, vinyl, hardwood flooring and more to lots of potential customers looking for the best and latest building materials.
Our luxury vinyl tile “Gemstone” stole the show. A strikingly beautiful tile manufactured in the USA exclusively for Carpet Express, Gemstone’s appeal surpasses aesthetics, it’s also affordable. Several years ago Congoleum, Inc. jump start the LVT (Luxury Vinyl Tile) industry with the introduction of Duraceramic. Since then the popularity of LVT products have revitalized vinyl across all channels. Mannington’s Adura and Armstrong’s Alterna have both come on strong. Our introduction of Gemstone into the LVT market place affirms our committment to low prices and quality product. We’re hyped on the excitement Gemstone generated at the 2010 International Builders’ Show, but there’s even more to share.

Besides tile, builders were eager to see the latest carpet styles, hardwood flooring, vinyl, ceramic tile, and laminate. Here’s my take on the rest of the most popular and best received products at the show.
Carpet
There’s no doubt that Bob Shaw’s new PET extrusion and manufacturing facility in Calhoun, GA makes for the most exciting news in carpet. All of their residential staple polyester carpet styles use recycled PET (polyethylene terephthalate) chips, which are made from recycled plastic containers. The plastic is ground into flakes and cleaned, extruded into fiber, spun into yarn, and finally tufted into carpet. It’s all about a better product at a cheaper price and that’s good news for everyone except the competition. Our new exclusive carpet styles made from this fiber are about $2.00 a sq. yard LESS than comparable styles from the major mills.
Vinyl
Vinyl continues to look better and better. The new technology is innovative. Our signature lines are probably the best in value. Builders can now purchase a broad selection for about $1.00 a sq. ft. and really quality products from $1.79 to $2.79 a sq. ft. For the most part, picture quality and core boards continue to improve. I’m sure laminate will be a popular choice for years to come.
Carpet Express was a great success at the 2010 International Builders’ Show. We had the opportunity to mingle with old friends and earn new customers – all the while globally expanding the Carpet Express brand. A great time was had by all, and we look forward to attending the IBS in 2011 show in Orlando, FL. We hope to see you there. If you’ve never been to the show, make it a point to go. It’s an event you don’t want to miss.




At Carpet Express, we try to bring our customers the best values in the flooring industry. 