Hospitality Design - September 2013 - 14

advertorial

Q&A

with

mark page

senior director of color and design

How would you describe your business in
one sentence?
One with boundless possibilities, set to evolve in
a multitude of directions and revolutionize the
hospitality flooring industry for years to come.

What differentiates your company from
its competitors in the marketplace?

Durkan emerges from the downturn as perhaps
the most organized and focused of custom carpet
providers, uniquely poised to capitalize over a
field of competitors still retrenched from years
of poor performance, low margin generation,
lacking from re-investment and loss of vision. For
Durkan market share has risen, re-investment
in new technology continues. We’ve become a
magnet for bright and energized talent and yet
this is just the appetizer. We see ourselves as a
global authority in design, forward thinking and
bold enough to surprise, shock and amaze as we
employ a strategy to lead by design.

What else should we know about your
company?

Durkan is the hospitality flooring division of
Mohawk Industries, Inc, the world’s largest
flooring company, with operations in North
America, Europe, Asia & Australia. Mohawk’s
products and brands span every major flooring
category across a wide range of price points and
distribution channels and including brands
such as Karastan, Lees, Bigelow, Unilin, Daltile,
Pergo, Marazzi and many more. We’re a growing
business that strives to offer a total turnkey
solution to all flooring needs.

What predictions do you have for 2014?

A continuation of business growth as the
hospitality market recovers from one of the
deepest downturns we hope we’ll ever see.
Renovation rather than new build will remain
the strongest segment in which re-invention and
innovation strive to offer a new experience to the
business and vacationing traveler. Evolution of
product particularly within the Durkan brand,
expands possibilities, offering extended choice
and widening our customer base. It’s an exciting
time for hospitality as we look forward against a
backdrop of darker days.

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September 2013 hospitalitydesign.com

How is technology playing a role in
product development?

The majority of my career was spent in
Axminster woven carpets, then I left the
business in 2012 having served 25 years as a
fourth generation employee to one of Europe’s
largest Axminster manufacturers. A product
specification based on a construction method
decades old and largely unchallenged by modern
manufacturing techniques, unfortunately that’s
about to change. Domestically manufactured
products are being supported by a revolution
underway for locally made materials, home
grown produce if you like, with a smaller
environmental footprint so key to the green
movement. Engineering breakthroughs have
broken the code and now offer hybrid tufted
carpets that mimic the look, feel and excel on
performance. Expanded color, pattern repeat
and multi-dimensional capabilities have begun
to offer carpets beyond the technical limitations
of an Axminster woven carpet. It’s expected
this will bring jobs home to the USA from an
industry that almost exclusively provides product
manufactured overseas.

Where does the company stand on
sustainability?

Mohawk Industries is recognized as one of
the worlds most distinguished companies
with an outstanding reputation for its overall
environmental efforts and dedication to
embracing sustainable concepts across the wide
range of its product portfolio. Smart sustainability
is a strategic business imperative, ingrained
throughout our operations, with initiatives both
good for the environment and for the business. A
track record built on fact. Highlights published
in our fourth annual sustainability report show
we recycled approximately 3 billion plastic soda
bottles to manufacture our ‘EverStrand’ carpet
fiber. Mohawk repurposes more than 29 million
pounds of recycled crumb rubber, the equivalent
of 1.45 million rubber tires to create beautiful
doormats. The list and our commitment to the
environment continues to grow.
http://www.hospitalitydesign.com
Table of Contents for the Digital Edition of Hospitality Design - September 2013
