Every two weeks, FCNews seeks out flooring retailers across the country to offer their advice on hot topics of the day. This week we asked: How were business sales in the first half?
Here are their responses:
 “Our business is seeing another record-breaking year. The biggest surprise has been the shift in the residential and commercial segments. We have seen tremendous growth in commercial and are flat in residential growth.”
—Carlton Billingsley, Floors and More, Benton, Ark.
 “We have experienced a softer retail environment during the first half of 2023, but it isn’t all doom and gloom. We continue to advertise at the same pace as years past and are even more focused on aggressive and highly promotional advertising designed to create urgency and drive traffic. This strategy is helping us find and earn the business we need to continue to grow.”
—Palmer Johnson, Johnson Floor & Home, Tulsa, Okla.
 “Despite the uncertainty of the markets, interest rates and the housing outlook, we have maintained a slight increase over this time last year. This, in itself, is surprising as we braced for a drastic downturn based on the prevailing themes of the news cycles.”
—John Bretzloff, Barefoot Flooring, Castle Hayne, N.C.
 “Business has been a little soft. Being up against our biggest year ever, I believe that’s not too much of a surprise. We’ve had some good months and traffic certainly picked up the second quarter but, overall, we’re still behind last year.”
—Penny Carnino, Grigsby’s Carpet, Tile & Hardwood, Tulsa, Okla.
 “For us, 2022 and 2023 numbers are almost dead even. While retail store traffic and lead generation are significantly down, our commercial and property management business remains steady in the first half of 2023. Surprisingly, our cash-and-carry business is up.”
—Rick Oderio, Conklin Bros., San Jose, Calif.
