NEWH - Fall 2013 - (Page 24)

Q&A Meet Scott Pope President of the Toronto chapter, and a sales representative for Vifloor How did you become involved with NEWH? Chris Tucker, who is a longtime member, well really a ‘lifer,’ introduced me to the organization when I was an interior designer and one of her customers. She would frequently invite me as one of her guests to various events and because of her influence I became a member and subsequently a board member. What has it done for you? It challenges you to be a better person professionally, socially, and diplomatically. Although most of us do not like to work singly or in a vacuum, it does not mean that we interact as much as we should. Being a board member, and now chapter president, it means that you are socializing and networking with people that you would not otherwise have an opportunity to. It allows you to learn from so many different people in very simple ways. I remember my first International Board of Directors meeting and being surprised, in breakout sessions, at how valuable it was to meet individuals from such diverse backgrounds, and who so willingly shared their varying experiences. What are your goals as president of the Toronto chapter? Tell us about Vifloor? Vifloor Canada Ltd. is a distributer that supplies a number of flooring products including Cortenaar Wool, which is a European residential product, and Vifloor commercial matting systems. We also represent Shaw Hospitality and the Patcraft carpet line. My primary focus is on Shaw—I am very fortunate as they are continually introducing new product and technologies. We recently expanded our custom tufted line to include enhanced MLCL carpet, and new equipment to Shaw is our colorpoint technology. There has been great success with our recently launched BE BOLD collection, and in the near future there will be a broadening of our standard running line product for both guestrooms and public spaces. It is an exciting time for Shaw. What projects are you currently working on at Vifloor? I am working on a number of projects ranging from large hotels and condominiums to smaller restaurants and golf clubs. Representing a custom carpet line allows you to work with designers and architects in multiple disciplines and my hospitality design background is invaluable to assisting on the sales side. My main goal is to increase the profi le of the organization within the industry and I feel the quality of some of our recent events has done that very well. By doing this, we are gaining further interest in NEWH locally and, therefore, expanding our board with new members. Th is past year we had a board that consisted of new members bringing a fresh outlook and approach and I would like this to continue. It appears we are successful, based on additional interest that has been expressed for new board members for 2014. How has business been? Highlights of the year so far? Why hospitality? What do you love about the industry? Our evening at the new Four Seasons Hotel in Toronto. We ended up being very well supported from a sponsorship perspective and we established a new attendance record for a single event. We received a substantial amount of positive feedback surrounding this great occasion. How did you end up at Vifloor? I had a very fulfi lling career as a hospitality designer for over 20 years and decided it was time for a change. Many industry professionals refer to switching to sales as ‘going to the dark side’ and I guess that is what I did. 24 www.newh.org Business continues to be very solid. Toronto has an extremely healthy condominium market both with new build projects and ongoing renovations, which has been a staple for us. The hospitality market has picked up again which is a refreshing change, given the economic volatility of the past few years. Locally I see a continuing increase in the hotel renovation business because Toronto is hosting the Commonwealth Games in 2015 and local hotels will need to be renovated given the anticipated international exposure. Hospitality design has been my passion since I was a design student. Although I was involved in all aspects of hospitality— restaurants, private clubs, banquet halls, and golf clubs—my main focus was hotel design. I always enjoyed the variation in size and scope of the work. From presidential suites to ballrooms and spas, you are involved in the design of so many different types of spaces. I also love that even though it is big business, it is a relatively small industry and you get to know most of the people very well. When you are not working, where can we find you? Generally playing very poorly on a golf course! ❙❘❚ http://www.newh.org

Table of Contents for the Digital Edition of NEWH - Fall 2013

NEWH - Fall 2013
Table of Contents
News
Who’s Who
Sustainability
Conference Roundup
Q&A: Julia Marks
Q&A: Scott Pope
Icon of Industry
Have You Seen?
Product Know How
On the Scene
Cover Story
Project: A Bar
Project: Trademark
Save the Date
New Members
Partner Profiles
Ad Index

NEWH - Fall 2013