Replacing the carpet in your home is an expensive and inconvenient event, and it makes good sense to shop, compare, and do your homework to make sure you are getting the best deal you can, right? Well, easier said than done.
In today's carpet market, more and more retailers are colluding with carpet manufacturers to "private label" the carpet that they carry in their stores. In other words, Shaw Carpet, the world's largest carpet producer, may make a certain style of carpet, and then label it differently for a dozen different retailers. To make matters worse, some large retailers are buying carpet brands and using them as their own. For example, in 1994 Carpet One bought the Bigelow brand name from Mohawk Industries. Bigelow is an old and trusted carpet name brand, but now Carpet One can use the name on any carpet! To cloud the matter further, both Carpet One and Flooring America are both owned by CCA Global Partners! This makes it very difficult to shop and compare prices at various stores. Lowes, Home Depot, Flooring America, and Carpet One are just a few of the carpet retailers that are in on this scam....er....
I mean arrangement.
Why do you suppose they do this? In most businesses, you price your products based on your cost, reputation, and desired profit, and may the best store win, right? Apparently the carpet industry wants a different arrangement, one where the consumer is unable to compare apples to apples when deciding on products. A good question to ask is "why are they afraid to compete?" and the answer usually is "because they are not priced competitively." And really, this "arrangement" doesn't pass the smell test, does it? Something's rotten in Denmark!
So how do you shop smart for carpet? Well, when you find a carpet that you like, insist on a list of the particulars of its construction:
- What kind of fiber is it made from? Polyester, Polypropylene, and Nylon are just a few of the possibilities, and each has advantages and disadvantages. And don't let them give you a private label yarn name, such as Flooring America's "Tigressa." Tigressa is a private label yarn made from type 6-6 BCF nylon, and they want you to believe that it is one of a kind. This yarn has a number of features that makes it a great choice for your carpets, but the truth is that you can get the same yarn in other carpets.
- Is it a Bulk Continuous Filament (BCF) fiber? BCF yarn is made from a single fiber filament, as opposed to yarns made from many fibers. BCF yarns greatly resist pilling and fuzzing of the carpet over time.
- What is the face weight of the carpet? (Face weight is the weight, in ounces, of the carpet yarn in one square yard of carpet, as opposed to the total weight of the carpet, which is the weight of the entire carpet, including backings, in one square yard of carpet.)
- What is the gauge and stitch rate of the carpet? (How close the yarns are to one another, a major determiner of carpet pile density and performance)
- How many yards are in the installation? I am amazed at how many flooring quotes I see that do not state how many yards or square feet are included in the price! This is vital information necessary to compare one quote to another. (Some roofers do the same thing in their quotes.)
Once you have this information then you can go from one store to another looking at samples of similar carpet and obtaining quotes.
We once obtained a quote from for a project from a franchise store. It was a nice piece of carpet, but the quote was for a whopping $70.00 per square yard! That comes up to $7.78 a square foot, or about what a nice hardwood floor would cost. After some questioning and research we were able to find a very similar piece of carpet for about 2/3 that amount. A big box or a franchise store may offer the best deal, but ask your questions, do your homework, and make sure. It can save dollars, and that makes sense!
