RETAILERS SIGN UP FOR BESPOKE TRAINING AT THE
ACADEMY The UK’s largest flooring retailer, Carpetright and trade-only kitchen specialist, Benchmarx, part of Travis Perkins PLC; have both undergone staff development programmes at the Academy for Excellence in Flooring. With a total of over 600 stores across the country, the commitment of these companies demonstrates the importance of training in business development.
Both companies used the Academy to develop programmes that meet differing needs. Working with Carpetright’s training manager, Graham Powell, the Academy developed a programme for the retailer’s sales employees covering product and common questions encountered in an ‘ask the expert’ format.
The requirements of Benchmarx, saw employees trained in practical, technical and product knowhow; the
BRITISH WOOL APPOINTS NEW
HEAD OF MARKETING British Wool, the organisation that sells and promotes British grown wool to the international textile industry has appointed Graham Clark as its new Head of Marketing.
Graham has a master’s degree in marketing and joins British Wool from a background in joinery and kitchens. Until recently he was Marketing Manager at XL Joinery, his role there included responsibility for shaping the marketing strategy in the organisation.
aim to provide installers with the right advice on flooring selection.
Benchmarx’s Graham Carse, explained: “Thanks to the Academy, our staff are now confident in dealing with the customer questions we receive on the installation of Quick-Step, such as which underlay to use or what expansion gap is required. The training
Originally from Cumbria, Graham has significant experience in selling and marketing products into the retail arena having worked with independent and national retailers, e-tailers and Builders Merchants. Graham also brings expertise in digital marketing for both B2B and B2C.
Graham said: “I am delighted to join the wool industry and feel that my retail and digital experience will be a good addition to the British Wool business. I am looking forward to learning more about wool and meeting the industry partners over the coming year.”
www.britishwool.org.uk
has also helped staff to deal with specific technical queries relating to ranges. This invaluable information we can now pass on to our customers in a more informed way.”
The response from attendees at courses on behalf of Carpetright was equally positive. Experienced team member Danny Lyon commented: “I have been in the flooring industry for 15 years and still walked away with lots of extra information that can be shared with my colleagues. Being honest, I expected to learn a few new things, but thought it was going to be more of a refresher course, I couldn’t have been more wrong. Now, after the course, I have improved knowledge to better explain the variations between products and the different ways to install over several types of subfloor.”
Both Carpetright and Benchmarx, have committed to more training programmes for this year, underlining the success of bespoke courses at the Academy. Bespoke courses at the state-of-the-art facility in Manchester are becoming increasingly popular with large retailers that want to maximise leverage of the Quick-Step name. Yet the model is just applicable to smaller retailers wanting to increase sales.
The Academy for Excellence in Flooring can develop course content across a number of specialist areas in wood, laminate and LVT. From detailed product performance features, through to correct preparation and installation, there is a huge amount of scope to develop the ideal course.
www.quick-step-academy.co.uk 10 | NEWS
www.tomorrowscontractfloors.com
Page 1 |
Page 2 |
Page 3 |
Page 4 |
Page 5 |
Page 6 |
Page 7 |
Page 8 |
Page 9 |
Page 10 |
Page 11 |
Page 12 |
Page 13 |
Page 14 |
Page 15 |
Page 16 |
Page 17 |
Page 18 |
Page 19 |
Page 20 |
Page 21 |
Page 22 |
Page 23 |
Page 24 |
Page 25 |
Page 26 |
Page 27 |
Page 28 |
Page 29 |
Page 30 |
Page 31 |
Page 32 |
Page 33 |
Page 34 |
Page 35 |
Page 36 |
Page 37 |
Page 38 |
Page 39 |
Page 40 |
Page 41 |
Page 42 |
Page 43 |
Page 44 |
Page 45 |
Page 46 |
Page 47 |
Page 48 |
Page 49 |
Page 50 |
Page 51 |
Page 52 |
Page 53 |
Page 54 |
Page 55 |
Page 56 |
Page 57 |
Page 58 |
Page 59 |
Page 60 |
Page 61 |
Page 62