Carpet company founder, Shaw, to retire

<p>Big changes are under way in the leadership at Shaw Industries, which calls itself the largest floor-covering manufacturer in the world.</p><p>Robert Shaw, who co-founded the carpet company in northwest Georgia along with brother J.C. "Bud" Shaw, announced last week that he will retire as chief executive Sept. 1.</p><p>He will be replaced by Vance Bell, a 31-year veteran of a corporation that evolved from a small dye company in the 1940s to a multibillion-dollar enterprise.</p><p>Shaw's retirement follows that of president Julian Saul two weeks ago.</p><p>Bell, 55, is currently executive vice president in charge of operations. Randy Merritt, 52, who was elected president to replace Saul, was the executive vice president in charge of sales and marketing and has been with the company for 30 years.</p><p>Shaw will remain on the board of directors as a consultant, and Saul also will continue in a consulting capacity.</p><p>In a company press release, the 75-year-old Shaw was quoted as saying: "I am very excited about the future of Shaw Industries and look forward to helping the new management team in any way that I can.</p><p>"I would also like to thank all of our people, customers and suppliers for their support and for the loyalty they have shown me and Shaw Industries over the years."</p><p>Randy Patton, who wrote a history of Shaw Industries, said Shaw is `'past that age when people typically retire."</p><p>"And after Julian retired, I think it was only a matter of time," Patton said.</p><p>The company has about 30,000 employees, including more than 9,000 in the Dalton area in Whitfield and Murray counties. It has more than 70 manufacturing facilities in 32 communities and seven states, and distribution facilities in 25 cities throughout the country. In 2005, Shaw Industries had $5.72 billion in sales.</p><p>Billionaire investor Warren Buffett, whose Omaha, Neb.-based Berkshire Hathaway completed a more than $2 billion purchase of Shaw Industries in 2001, attributes much of the company's success to Shaw.</p><p>"He's my kind of manager," Buffett told The Daily Citizen in Dalton. "Here's a guy that literally started with nothing and built a company that's a leader in the industry and is going to do well over $5 billion of business this year. There aren't many stories like that.</p><p>"He may be retiring, but his heart will always be with Shaw and fortunately his brain will also be available to us," Buffett said. "He wants to make room for the next generation, but Bob Shaw will always eat, sleep and breathe Shaw Industries."</p><p>Among the developments under Shaw's leadership, the company moved in the 1980s to skip distributors and begin selling directly to retailers. Shaw Industries also stopped buying carpet fiber from outside sources and began making it in-house more than 20 years ago, a critical step towards vertical integration, said Frank O'Neill, publisher of Floor Focus magazine.</p><p>The company also adapted from strictly a carpet and rug manufacturer into a producer of hard surfaces, including hardwood and laminate.</p><p>Patton said Shaw was "ahead of the game" in these areas. He said the venture into retail backfired, though, as it proved extremely expensive and offended Shaw Industries' existing customers.</p><p>"Far and away, that cost them more money than any other mistake they ever made," Patton said. "To their credit, they weren't afraid to cut their losses and move on."</p>

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