SLCC Flooring, under the guidance of Jan Luan, owner/president, is embarking on a major expansion nationally, leaving its West Coast roots to venture to other untapped markets.
In advance of its expansion, SLCC tapped two industry executives—Ted Rocha, executive vice president, and Vincent Circosta, chief influence officer—to join Luan in this effort. “We’re excited for our growth plan and have the right team to execute it,” Rocha told Floor Covering News. “The people we have in place today, and those who are coming online now, are part of something very special.”
Rocha called SLCC “a winning organization with a well-curated and thoughtful product offering. We do not cut any corners when it comes to manufacturing or service.”
SLCC is taking a multi-pronged approach to its expansion, locating direct representatives around its distribution hubs in California, Arizona and Texas. As Circosta explained, “We have strategic distributor partners around the country as well as key flooring agencies that work with us to sell and promote the SLCC brand. We continue to analyze our footprint and where we can be stronger. The obvious next phase would be adding an East Coast distribution center to better service that part of the country that will allow us to be more price competitive and important to the dealers there. Our goal is to find a way to be meaningful to all markets around the country.”
At its core, SLCC considers itself a hardwood manufacturer that can leverage its strength there to enhance its resilient and laminate businesses. It does so by digitally scanning its best-selling hardwood lines to create the film and paper for SPC and laminate. “Suppliers are all looking for ways to have exclusivity,” Circosta said. “We took on that challenge and have developed amazing exclusive visuals that our team can offer customers and truly differentiate us from the competition.”
By offering a diverse portfolio of products and price points, SLCC has been able to foster meaningful relationships with its dealers, Circosta said. “With the cost of freight and other shipping challenges, we’re finding that dealers are consolidating their vendors and having multiple orders ride on the same truck together. Our service model allows dealers to order hardwood, laminate and rigid luxury vinyl products and have them ship collectively together. Also, we know inventory is king and we keep very healthy inventory of all our lines at all our hubs that dealers get to pull from.”
Retailers on board
Flooring retailers Floor Covering News spoke with were unanimous in their assessment of SLCC Flooring, lauding the supplier for its leadership skills, product acumen and willingness to put customers first.
During the five years Van Nuys, Calif.-based Carpet Mall has been doing business with SLCC Flooring, owner Stephen Akka said the supplier’s attention to detail and quality of product has stood out. “I love doing business with this company,” he said. “I buy container loads of the products on a regular basis and sell their products very well.”
Alexander Link, co-owner of Golden State Distributors, Fresno, Calif., said he has built a lasting relationship with SLCC rep Raymond Cooper, whom he calls “the complete package—he’s punctual, patient, knowledgeable of his products, willing to literally go the extra mile for his accounts.”
As for SLCC’s portfolio, Link added, “They have first-class products in several categories—SPC, WPC, laminate and hardwood. We have sold all their categories and have never once been disappointed. Jan and her team work tirelessly to make sure they bring to market new, improved and innovative products. With a team effort we were able to put a stocking deal together and now Golden State Distributors proudly offers in-stock 10 of the SLCC waterproof colors from the Painted Sky and Treasure Lakes collections.”
Other dealers product quality and zero claims as points of differentiation. Steven Hernandez, co-owner of Hernandez Wholesale Flooring, Commerce, Calif., said that in his eight years with SLCC he has not had a single complaint about a product, much less a claim. And like other dealers, Hernandez does well with the company’s signature Painted Sky SPC. “Painted Sky is a very clean-looking SPC—wide, long, with a 30-mil wear layer, which is what separates them as many other suppliers go to market with 20-mil wear layers. SLCC has phenomenal quality. Also, with SLCC, it’s not like their products are in every store. They are very strategically placed.”
SLCC said it is laser focused on the waterproof laminate category. “Our intention is to provide our customers with the best waterproof laminate offering possible to capture this exciting segment,” Circosta said.