Reimagining Retail Flooring Procurement Post‑Pandemic
Overview
Following the pandemic-driven cessation of retail store development world-wide, Earl Wasserman emerged with a new business model —one built on nearly 48 years of industry experience and designed to meet the realities of modern retail construction. The refreshed approach combined Earl’s proven expertise, vast curated resources, evolving trends in specification, procurement, and logistics.
The Challenge
Retail clients today demand more than materials—they expect accountability, speed, and clarity. Johnston & Murphy’s model reflects this shift, favoring direct-to-manufacturer procurement and placing a premium on service ownership. With long-term leases, limited maintenance schedules, and tighter construction timelines and budgets, flooring solutions must be right the first time.
The Approach
A new model simplifying the supply chain while increasing responsibility at every stage:
- Direct Manufacturer Relationships
Manufacturers own both the relationship and the results, ensuring clearer communication and stronger accountability. - Specification-First Thinking
Match the current specification with a running line product, inventoried domestically in quantity, reducing cost. - Alternative Solutions Active exploration of porcelain alternatives that replicate hardwood aesthetics while improving durability in airport retail settings.
Project Scope
- Typical flooring footprint: 1,000–1,300 sq. ft. per store
- Near-term post-pandemic outlook: a single airport location expected to be the sole project completing 2022
- Return to pre-pandemic volume: 12-15 new stores and renovations annually
Incumbent Vendor & Process Standards
- Custom specification made-to-order
- Domestic manufacturing with typical 6-week lead times
- No blanket orders in place to ensure timely product availability.
- Concerns about consistently meeting design intent from order to order
Result
This reimagined model replaced complexity with clarity. By aligning decades of experience with modern procurement expectations, Earl Wasserman delivers fewer handoffs, stronger partnerships, reduced friction, and a scalable foundation for future growth—positioning the business to support retail expansion as the market continues to recover. Earl Wasserman oversees Johnston & Murphy’s new direct hardwood manufacturing partnership, offering production consistency, domestic inventory that exceeds annual consumption, ease in procurement processes, quantity take-offs, and reduced material cost.
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