Where to Buy Carpet
I am wondering if anyone here could offer some advice on how to buy carpet wholesale in quantity. I have another company that specializes in property maintenance services.
Currently we offer carpet installation as a service. Property managers, realtor customers, and landlords are primary customers. I buy from a retailer and use their install services and pass the cost along. We are doing 100+ yards per day. I want to move this in house.
What I need is a source for carpet and some info. on requirements to purchase. I would like to stock 2-3 colors builder grade. Do I have to buy a truckload, train load, or what to get the best price?
Where do I go to purchase? Direct to mill, broker, wholesaler?
We are in Virginia, so it is in decent range to Georgia.
Anyone here have any suggestions?
I would much appreciate any helpful advice. If this is something that should remain anonymous please PM me with suggestions. Thanks in advance.
Currently we offer carpet installation as a service. Property managers, realtor customers, and landlords are primary customers. I buy from a retailer and use their install services and pass the cost along. We are doing 100+ yards per day. I want to move this in house.
What I need is a source for carpet and some info. on requirements to purchase. I would like to stock 2-3 colors builder grade. Do I have to buy a truckload, train load, or what to get the best price?
Where do I go to purchase? Direct to mill, broker, wholesaler?
We are in Virginia, so it is in decent range to Georgia.
Anyone here have any suggestions?
I would much appreciate any helpful advice. If this is something that should remain anonymous please PM me with suggestions. Thanks in advance.
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Just remember, you are not responsible for installation now. 80% of all complaints are installation related. You will have to make enough to cover the headaches.
So you want to buy wholesale...
The only way to buy wholesale is to buy from the mills. You can negotiate trade pricing with a lot of places, or you can order from a broker, but this is not "wholesale." The question is if you qualify for an account direct with the mills. And they are the only ones who can answer that, so you will have to contact them directly.
My guess is you would probably not qualify to have an account direct with the mills, but what do I know? Try them and see, or go the broker route, or expect trade pricing with your retailer.
PS If you have an account they will arrange shipping, which will be a minimum or $.XX per SY. People who drive to Georgia to get a few rolls are stupid, it costs more than having it shipped when you count everything.. Don't think you are finding some magic way that no one else has never discovered. Ditto if you use a broker. But the stores "open to the public" or "mill outlets" or "direct from Dalton" aren't wholesale - they are just stores that may try to move some volume with somewhat lower margins because they a) aren't paying any freight since they are literally next door to the mills, but you will be charged freight if they ship it to you, and b) they aren't providing any services like installation, since most clients are phone calls or from a few hundred miles away who think they are "getting over." They count on moving some volume because of the general public coming to Dalton to shop. Actuality is you can get essentially the same price and probably better service at a good store where you are.
The only way to buy wholesale is to buy from the mills. You can negotiate trade pricing with a lot of places, or you can order from a broker, but this is not "wholesale." The question is if you qualify for an account direct with the mills. And they are the only ones who can answer that, so you will have to contact them directly.
My guess is you would probably not qualify to have an account direct with the mills, but what do I know? Try them and see, or go the broker route, or expect trade pricing with your retailer.
PS If you have an account they will arrange shipping, which will be a minimum or $.XX per SY. People who drive to Georgia to get a few rolls are stupid, it costs more than having it shipped when you count everything.. Don't think you are finding some magic way that no one else has never discovered. Ditto if you use a broker. But the stores "open to the public" or "mill outlets" or "direct from Dalton" aren't wholesale - they are just stores that may try to move some volume with somewhat lower margins because they a) aren't paying any freight since they are literally next door to the mills, but you will be charged freight if they ship it to you, and b) they aren't providing any services like installation, since most clients are phone calls or from a few hundred miles away who think they are "getting over." They count on moving some volume because of the general public coming to Dalton to shop. Actuality is you can get essentially the same price and probably better service at a good store where you are.
And some of the places that call themselves mills, really are not. S&S carpet mills, for example, are just retailers.
I'm a general contractor in mo.and do mostly commercial infill work and commercial property maintenance. I also would like to be able to buy commercial carpet, vinyl plank, etc. the companies I use now have to order in everything I buy from the mills. It's never a stock item. We sell over 300,000 a year of carpet alone as a small contracting co. We would like to bring this in house as well! I'm still the one who has to sell it. Any info would be great.
Contact a local carpet distributor. Ask them what you need to buy a lot of material. They will find a way. I bought straight from a distributor when I liked in KCMO.
Thanks for your input
The biggest requirement from a mill is going to be having a storefront. Most mills will only sell to actual retail storefronts and brokers/procurement companies.
Yes, but local distributors are not usually too picky and it will still be cheaper than buying through a store. I bought from Herregans, W J Cole and Brinkman, but I don't know if they are still there.
Carpet Distribution has pretty much gone away. It made sense when there were tons of smaller mills around. Mohawk and Shaw own most of the market now, so there isn't enough apple left to bite. That said, there is some of it going on, but it's not carpet distributors per se. It's traditional hard surface distributors adding to their bag. Here in Georgia, WM Bird and Johnson Wholesale both handle a couple of brands, but it's a pretty limited offering.
By the way, unless you're looking for seconds, there is no reason to drive to Dalton. The guys who buy off goods in Dalton do operate on pretty thin margins, but it's along ass way to drive to get material with no warranty. Dalton is mostly internet sales now, anyway. The Dalton based off goods boom ended a long time ago. Now, the mills send a daily off goods list to any dealer in the country who wants them. That crap used to stay in Dalton, but now they'll sell it to whomever. I get an email every day from Mohawk with off goods for sale. If you want first quality material, nobody in Dalton buys any better than anyone else.
I'll throw my hat into a 4 year old thread.... S&S mills or Shaw has been who I dealt with and they were very accommodating...
I guess you know that S&S Mills is not really a mill. They are a retail store. Dealt with them years ago.
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