Be An Informed Shopper

Be An Informed Shopper

Carpet Truths: 
  • There is no such thing as FREE labor.
  • There is no such thing as FREE under-pad.
  • There is no such thing as an invisible seam.
  • There is no such thing as a real 70% off.
  • The life of a carpet depends on your lifestyle.
How to Shop for Carpet
How To Shop For Carpet

Shopping for carpet should be fun, and if you are prepared it will be fun. To begin with, know your carpet dealer. Carpet is not something you purchase often, and therefore you may not be informed as to what is the norm in today's market. You must find a dealer you trust, and who is a professional. If you were considering a serious operation on a critical part of your body, you would not want someone who is not a professional doing the operation. Also you would not want the least expensive doctor to do the work. Your professional carpet dealer will be informed as to the most modern fibers, pad, colors, styles, and installation techniques. Ask your friends who have had carpet installed, and see if they are happy with the entire carpet buying experience.
The Private Label  
 
Is more of a marketing ploy to prevent you the consumer from shopping using the old "apples to apples" comparison technique. It's kind of like buying a mattress - you can find the exact same mattress under 10 different "names" depending on where you shop. In the case of carpet, the most prevalent use of "private labels" is found in the the big box retailers, and large buying group stores. A large buying group uses the Bigelow label as if Bigelow made the carpet, when in fact, the buying group bought the name Bigelow from Mohawk industries, and can use the “Bigelow” label on any carpet they choose. Yes, Bigelow is an old time mill, but they don’t make residential carpet any more. Furthermore, Burlington Industries sold the “Lee’s” name to a buying group, and like the Bigelow name, we will see carpets with the Lees name on them that are really made by any mill.
How To Shop For Carpet
be an informed shopper
Guaranteed Lowest Price 
     
This ploy is used by many box stores who want you to think their price is the lowest. The gimmick is to say that if you can find the same carpet elsewhere at a lower price, "we'll meet or beat that price by 5%". Of course you can't find the "SAME" carpet elsewhere because the box store has it private labeled.Therefore, the only place you will find the same named carpet is at a branch or division of the same chain. Furthermore, if you do select a carpet from their showroom, most of these companies charge between $30 to $50 for an estimate, and the only way you get this money back is to purchase the carpet from them. You will find that most carpet speciality stores DO NOT charge for an in-home estimate. Finally, the contract labor pool that box store must draw from does not assure you of a quality installation. Someday retailers are going to learn that consumers are not stupid. 
*Special thanks to the Carpet Guru for his knowledge and expertise in the flooring industry. 
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