We recently had the opportunity to catch up with Roger Stafford of Stafford’s Discount Carpet, a Karndean Designflooring retailer located in Redlands, California. Roger began his career in the industry answering phones for a flooring company and worked his way up through the ranks. When an opportunity to open his own store arose in 1998, and despite only having $2500 in his pocket, he jumped at the chance. Stafford’s Discount Carpet recently celebrated its 20th anniversary and has been one of our retailers from the beginning. In fact, Stafford's Discount Carpets was one of the first Karndean Designflooring retailers in the United States!
What is the first or most important question you ask a customer?
We like to learn a little bit about them. Do they have kids or pets? What room are they redoing? We also like to ask what they don’t like about their current flooring.
What would you say most of your customers are looking for when they come in to choose a new floor?
We carry pretty much all flooring categories, including hardwood, laminate, ceramic and LVT. LVT is popular now, which led us to open a 500 sq. ft. luxury vinyl area two years ago. Our customers come into the store asking for hardwood or laminate, but recently more and more have come in asking for LVT because they’re looking for a waterproof floor. We gravitate to the Karndean area because styling is very important, and we feel Karndean has the best style.
From a retailer’s perspective, what can a customer provide to help sales associates with product recommendations?
Paint color swatches, cabinet faces or any other samples of what else is going in the space are extremely helpful. From there, we can narrow it down and provide flooring samples for the homeowners to take home and make a final decision.
What trends are you seeing emerge in flooring? Do you have any favorites?
There are quite a few turn-of-the-century homes in our area, so we have many customers come in looking for narrow wood planks. The Karndean Designflooring Da Vinci range seems to fit that need particularly well. We’ve even had customers asking for different “blends” of Da Vinci planks. Korlok has been a good addition for us because waterproof core floors are trending too.
DaVinci blend with Blended Oak RP95, Beach Driftwood RP101 and Double Smoked Acacia RP105
What’s an unusual or favorite installation you’ve been a part of?
A volleyball center. It was a commercial job totaling about 2,000 sq. ft. The customer came in looking for ceramic tile, but saw the Karndean LooseLay product and loved it!
Our thanks to Roger and Jason Stafford for taking the time to share their experiences as a Karndean Designflooring retailer with us. Congratulations on your 20th year in business and as a Karndean Designflooring partner! For more information about Stafford’s Discount Carpet, visit http://staffordsdiscountcarpets.com/.
