Welt / Service Value Study: Segmüller is the best chain store

Does a company impress you with the ambience or atmosphere in its shop? This question was posed by the German daily newspaper Welt in collaboration with the Cologne-based consultancy Service Value. The furniture store Segmüller generated the most enthusiasm in Germany, taking first place in the survey with 75.5 per cent ‘yes’ votes. The furniture stores Höffner (5th place with 74.2%) and XXXLutz (9th place with 73.3%) were also in the top ten.

Otto Group appoints new Head of Strategy

Olaf Schabirosky will take over as Head of Strategy & Transformation at the Otto Group on 1 October. He succeeds Christoph Schulte, who passed away unexpectedly in the summer. Schabirosky was previously CEO of Hermes Germany and will report to Petra Scharner-Wolff in his new role.

Flying carpet: extreme athlete flies in the Alps

French base jumper Freddy Montigny, aka Alladin Skylab, has swapped his wingsuit for a carpet and jumped off the 2491 metre Croix des Têtes in the Alps. The daring carpet ride was filmed with a drone and can be seen in full on Youtube.

40th Pakistan International Carpet Exhibition in Lahore

The 40th edition of the Pakistan International Carpet Exhibition is scheduled to be held from October 9 to 11 this year. The event will take place at the Faletti's Hotel in Lahore and is organized by the Pakistan Carpet Manufacturers and Exporters Association (PCMEA).

Another German Brand Award for PAD

In the category 'Excellent Brands: Interior & Living' category, the 'PAD - innovative and optimistic for the future' campaign was honoured with first place. This is the eighth time in a row that the creative designer home textiles label from Bavaria has won the coveted award.

Tapi buys Carpetright brand and stores

The British flooring chain Carpetright, which has recently been in financial difficulties several times, is now in new hands: Competitor Tapi Carpets and Floors is taking over both the Carpetright brand and 54 (of around 270) stores of the ailing company. As a result, 300 employees will keep their jobs, but around 1,000 will lose theirs, as reported by the British daily newspaper “The Guardian”. The Carpetright head office in Essex is not included in the multi-million euro deal.

Opti-Wohnwelt files for insolvency under self-administration

German furniture retailer Opti-Wohnwelt group filed for insolvency with the Schweinfurt local court in July. The application was approved on 22 July. The group operates 28 Opti-Wohnwelten and 13 Opti-Megastores. In addition to the difficult situation in the sector, the main reason for the financial difficulties is the expansion of the company, which took over numerous stores in 2021.

Jim Ford deceased

P.R.J. 'Jim' Ford has died. The well-known carpet importer and author passed away on 12 July 2024 at the age of 82. Born in London, Jim Ford joined the Oriental Carpet Manufacturers (OCM) in 1967 after studying at King's College, Cambridge: OCM was a company involved in the production of, and trade with, Oriental carpets. In addition to his work as a carpet importer, Ford made a name for himself as the author of several books on carpets. The most famous is "Oriental Carpet Design", published in 1981 and translated into several languages.

Carpet Week Hamburg in October, advertising association established

The fourth edition of Carpet Week Hamburg will take place in the week from 7 to 13 October. This time 26 Hamburg carpet suppliers will open their showrooms and warehouses for the in-house exhibition format and invite their customers from the international carpet trade. This year, Hamburg's carpet wholesalers are moving even closer together by founding the Carpet City Hamburg advertising association. The aim is to jointly promote the strengths of Hamburg as a business location. Carpet Week Hamburg is organised by Carpet City Hamburg.

British chain Carpetright in trouble again

Carpetright issued a letter of intent to appoint an insolvency administrator on 12 July 2024. It protects the British flooring chain from creditor claims during ongoing sales negotiations. Kevin Barrett, CEO of parent company Nestware Holdings, is quoted in the media as saying that there are "promising discussions with interested parties that are heading in the right direction and confirm that Carpetright has a future". Carpetright had already run into financial turbulence in 2018 and was ultimately acquired in full by the investment company from the Meditor Group in 2020.