Lifestyle Carpet Collection Part 2: Headlam Group

Following on from my last post looking at the newly launched Lifestyle Collection released by the Headlam Group, here are another handful of new ranges:

Rustic Retreat: This is a 100% wool berber made at a price. It’s definitely aimed at those on a budget who want the benefits of wool without having ‘wool money’. It’s available in 4m & 5m widths and comes in two different designs – the ‘Hobnail’ and the ‘Stripe’. Below we have the Stripe in Wheat:

As you can see it’s a very narrow ribbed stripe and not at all unusual for a carpet of this type.

One problem retailers may have with this one is its classification of ‘General Domestic’ on the label. I do understand why they’ve done this – it’s hardly likely to offer very heavy wear in reality, but until there is some realism in grading carpets then we will continue to see cheap and nasty budget twists being rated ‘Heavy Domestic’ while this superior effort is only ‘General Domestic’. To my mind, they are correct in saying ‘General Domestic’, but it just shows up the anomaly all the more.

Consequently there is ‘only’ a 5 year warranty on this. Honestly you should take carpet warranties with a pinch of salt if ask me.

Price for this one £9-£15 per square metre. If someone claims it has a RRP of £20+ then ask them just who is recommending they price their carpets like that.

Village Twist: This one is another fairly decent 100% polypropylene twist in the range. You could probably see it as big brother to City Twist.

It does have a superior feel to City Twist and is finished pretty well. I quite like it and its colours touch most popular bases. I especially like the inclusion of a nice and subtle ‘Silver’ as well as the ‘Rose’ pink, which we often struggle to find these days. Most colours in this range are subtle and muted and at the price it will be sold at (£10-£15 per square metre), I think it’s good value.

You can have this either 4m or 5m widths and it is worth considering if your budget is around £10-£15 per metre.

Royal Court: The standout carpet in the entire range is Royal Court. This is an 80% wool, 15% nylon, 5% meltbond twist that will impress. It’s available in 40 or 50oz weights and 4m and 5m widths. It also has a jute back, in line with many quality wool twists.

I’ve shown the ‘Apple Blossom’ colour here, as there does seem to be a dearth of green around right now:

Hopefully you can pick out the density and definition from the image. It’s a very very good range and I am glad they chose to include a good twist in the collection and not just look to roll out the cheapest thing they could muster.

It should sell at £18-£27 per metre – obviously the lower end for the 40oz and the higher end for the 50oz. Intriguingly they have decided to label the 50oz as extra heavy domestic just to set it apart from the heavy domestic of the 40oz. Not a bad idea I always think.

I really do think they’ve come up with the goods on this one though. It looks clean, well defined and the colours throughout the range are very very solid. It’s certainly far better than the other wool twist in the collection.

(Originally posted on the 1st September 2010)

Lifestyle Carpet Collection Part 1: Headlam Group

Headlam Group’s (the group is a wholesaler/manufacturer) major launch this year has been the Lifestyle Floors collection. They are aggressively promoting their new launch in the form of lovely stands and lecterns that they are offering to place in shops across the country for a nominal fee. It’s great value for shops, so you will see plenty of these stands.

Ours was installed last week and we have 14 carpets on it. This rundown of the carpets will come in three parts. Today I’m looking at:

City Twist: This is a ‘better than most’ budget twist that is comparable to something like Revolution in terms of price and quality. It does feel a little more dense to me and it is a very colourful range, with ‘Sky’ and ‘Fuchsia’ definitely catching the eye at first glance. It’s 100% polypropylene and action backed and is available in either 4m or 5m wide rolls.

It’s a decent stab to do a reasonable twist for under a tenner and I have to commend it. You should pay £8-£12 per metre for it and it would be ideal for those on a budget or landlords who don’t want the ‘cheap and nasty’ look.

Revival Twist: This one is a heavier, heathered twist with a more subtle colour bank. I quite like the Crimson and Raspberry Jam, but if I’m honest then I am not blown away by this one in the least. It’s one of many similar at this sort of price.

It’s 100% polypropylene, action backed and available 4m and 5m wide. It should be priced between about £14 and £18 per square metre and I think that maybe a pound or two too much. I don’t think it stands up that well to competition at a similar price, like Cormar’s Primo Tweed, Balta’s Stainsafe Heathers or Lano’s Startwist Supreme. It’s not a bad carpet as such, but it’s not as good as its competitors to my mind.

Cosmopolitan Stripe: The much-vaunted ‘funky’ stripe of the collection (there is another, but it is a little more subtle) is a slightly shaggy twist with stripes of varying widths in some crazy colours.

Coffee and Tan are by far the best colours in the range and it features a truly rancid ‘Hot Pink’ shown below:

It’s 4 metre wide only, is made from 100% polypropylene and is felt backed. I’d be guessing it’s for kids’ bedrooms or playrooms, but you could use it elsewhere I imagine.

Time will tell if it will sell well, but customers have not been impressed by it in here so far, so I don’t think it’s going to work for us, but I might be wrong. Expect to pay around £9-£12 per square metre and it’s not a bad price for what it is and if you like the colours and designs, you could do a lot lot worse.

(Originally posted on the 31st August 2010)

Endangered Species: Rhinofloor & Armstrong To Close

Save the rhino! No, this is not a sudden departure into protecting those mighty beasts……sadly it is to post about the impending demise of Armstrong’s domestic vinyl production on Teesside. Note that this closure affects the domestic side of their business only.

It really will be a hammer blow to a part of the country that can ill-afford the loss of 163 jobs. It’s pretty clear that Armstrong have struggled to cope with the new generation of vinyl competition from Europe, of which Leoline has been the spearhead.

It does not surprise me to hear this news, though it does sadden me. To think that what is by far the most recognised vinyl brand, Rhinofloor, will no longer be available is quite shocking. Realistically it is pretty much the only brand people ever seem to ask for in this shop – in recent times however, they often come in talking about Rhinofloor and leave the shop having bought Leoline – sad but true.

A lack of true innovatition and creativity, as well as some very strange pricing structures have contributed to their demise as much as anything else in my book. I actually dismantled one of their stands today (coincidentally) to make way for something else that will sell a lot more than that and the significance of what I had been planning for a couple of weeks sunk in. If I’m not getting results from their stand, then I’m sure I’m not alone.

The end of an era and another British manufacturer goes to the wall. No bail outs from the goevernment to the flooring trade though, we save those for reckless bankers……

(Originally posted on the 25th August 2010)

Pure Stone by Balterio

Balterio recently added a tiled laminate range to their impressive array of products with Pure Stone, a collection of four new designs.

It’s an 8mm thick heavy grade laminate with a 25 year domestic and 12 year commercial warranty and is suitable for areas of heavy traffic including kitchens.

With this range, Balterio have managed to create a genuinely authentic looking stone tile. The surface texture and finish is subtle and slightly ‘pitted’ like the real thing. Obviously it doesn’t feel like stone, but perhaps that is part of the charm. Stone floors can often deter potential buyers simply because of their feel and coldness, so Pure Stone does offer a solution there.

Although there is a disappointingly small number of options, the four designs in the range are well thought out and the end result is especially good in my opinion. It’s streets ahead of Quickstep‘s very very tired looking Quadra range and Berry Floor’s tiles are not in the same league.

The tiles are bevelled all the way around and in a very large format: rectangles of 1192mm x 392.5mm. They lend themselves to large rooms, though we have fitted them in smallish kitchens so far and they have looked very good.

The format of the tiles brings me to my one gripe with Balterio’s point of sale. Their wonderful display stand has large tiles for each design, but nowhere does it show the bevel! I have found myself explaining to the customer, “yes they are bevelled all the way around, just like this one” and then showing them an image – it’s far from ideal and a definite oversight on their part. This does not detract from what is a great product though and I recommend it highly.

Can you put it in bathrooms? We often get asked this by customers and to be brutally honest, I don’t like putting any laminate floor in a bathroom. Forget what the makers may claim, it so often ends in tears. Thankfully Balterio and Quickstep unequivocally say ‘no’ by and large to avoid confusion. If you really want to do it then go ahead but clean up all spills and make sure the room is very well ventilated. Don’t say you weren’t warned.

Price wise, this will sell at £18-£25 per square metre and is pretty decent value at that price.

(Originally posted on the 24th August 2010)

Carpet For Mods: Carnaby by Brockway

While I was researching the ‘striped carpets’ stuff for this blog, I did come across a very lovely new range that I hadn’t seen before.

Brockway have launched the decidedly 60′s retro mod chic of Carnaby to the market and what an absolutely wonderful design it is – right on the money:

It’s a 100% quality wool berber that I am yet to have a physical sample of, so I am simply bowled over by the design alone at this point. Brockway will send you samples from their (very good) website. They do a whole host of excellent stripes on there – Carnaby is just the tip of the iceberg.

I expect an order from Paul Weller is pending…and if I can convince the wife, maybe from me too.

(Originally posted on the 20th August 2010)

York Twist by Associated Weavers

One of the additions to Associated Weavers’ range that we saw in the Spring was York Twist and it’s definitely a worthwhile contender.

It’s a decent 100% polypropylene twist aimed at those who perhaps want a ‘wool look’ but maybe don’t have ‘wool money’. It’s a decent stab at replicating the look of a wool twist and although the feel of it does not absolutely convinvce, it’s not bad for the money you are likely to be asked. I’d reckon on £11-£15 per square metre and it’s pretty good value at that.

It is available in 10 neutral shades, comes 4 or 5 metre wide and features the usual 10 year stain and wear warranties that AW like so much.

I think it will sell very well for Associated Weavers, although our experience is steady rather than a massive rush. That particular price point in that particular type of carpet is mightily competitive right now.

(Originally posted on the 18th August 2010)

Hardwood by Kersaint Cobb

I’m a big fan of Kersaint Cobb’s products and their refreshingly positive attitude towards retailers. Their coirs, sisals and seagrasses are excellent, as are their tremendous collection of wool carpets.

Therefore it was quite a surprise when they launched a hardwood out of the blue last year. It’s a range full of oak, which is the big seller after all, save for an American Walnut. There are a couple of 14mm Engineered Oaks – lacquered or brushed & UV oiled, four ‘semi-solid’ 18mm thick options (including the walnut) and five options of 20mm solid oak, as well as an 18mm solid oak.

The display stand that they have come up with is simple and effective. It’s a ‘toaster stand’ that allows easy access and provides the customer with enough of the fitted hardwood on show to have an idea of what it will look like on the floor and also helps the retailer to really show off what is a quality product.

You can buy it on Yourfloors and you are much better off with a quality wood from a reputable supplier than some shady pallet handler from the Far East who sells on Ebay. Be very careful when buying hardwood…

(Originally posted on the 16th August 2010)