Dalton—Floors & More, a leading retail flooring cooperative, has begun a new initiative with the Floor Covering Education Foundation (FCEF) aimed at fostering the next generation of installation labor in the industry.
Starting this month, Floors & More will implement a monthly donation matching program, encouraging its retail cooperative members to contribute to FCEF. For every one of its members that donates to FCEF, Floors & More will raise its own contribution, doubling the impact of the vital work being done by FCEF.
“Our commitment to our members and the flooring industry at large extends beyond just what takes place on the retail showroom floor,” said Vinnie Virga, president of Floors & More. “Professional installation is one of the pillars our members’ businesses are built upon and we must have an adequate installation labor base for sustainable growth. We are excited to support FCEF’s efforts of recruiting and providing scholarships for training for the next generation of installation labor.”
Vice president of Floors & More, Vinnie Virga, Jr., added to the group’s endorsement, stating, “It is paramount that our industry—vendors and retailers alike—remember that the last person a client sees is the team installing their new floor. The Floor Covering Education Foundation is working to bring us together collectively to combat the shared shortage we have in the quantity of quality crews today. Floors & More, and its members, fully support the vision of the FCEF.”
Floors & More is actively encouraging all its members to donate $100 per month per location to FCEF. The message is being communicated via its February newsletter, on the home page of its member portal and in its member Facebook group. Floors & More’s new donation commitment will have a tiered incentive to encourage more of its membership to participate. Initially, it will start with supporting the FCEF with a $100/month donation. If 33% of members are actively contributing monthly support, the group will raise that number to $200/month. If 67% of members are actively contributing monthly support, the group will raise that number to $300/month. If 100% of members are actively contributing monthly support, the number rises to $500/month. This new funding commitment is above and beyond the $100 per member Floors & More already donates to FCEF annually.
“We are thrilled to have Vinnie and his team at Floors & More be the first buying group to step up with a funds matching program for long term support of FCEF,” said Jim Aaron, executive director of FCEF. “This is an example of servant leadership Vinnie is known for and it serves as a great example for others to follow. We need to see other buying groups follow their lead on this. We are accomplishing great things at FCEF. Whether it is assisting retailers with coordinating local training, managing the implementation of the basic installation program at technical colleges nationwide or just providing scholarships to new recruits, it takes funding to make it all happen.”
Floors & More said it encourages all its retail cooperative members to participate actively in this philanthropic endeavor, emphasizing that their combined efforts can make a substantial impact on the efforts to recruit, training and place the next generation of installation labor for the flooring industry.