Love it, or they’ll replace it. That’s Confidence Plus, from MDG Flooring America
By Ken McEntee
Depending on the lighting, Gwen, Jerry’s “two-faced” girlfriend on Seinfeld, could be strikingly gorgeous or decidedly unattractive. Occasionally, says Scott Powers, sales manager at MDG Flooring America, in Medina, a similar scenario may play out with carpeting—the stunning swatch on a sample board may not look as fabulous as you had expected after it’s installed in your family room.
No problem, Scott insists.
That’s because of MDG Flooring’s exclusive Confidence Plus warranty. For specified “Five Star” and “Four Star” products, under Confidence Plus, if, within 30 to 90 days after installation, depending on the product, you’re not happy with your new floor for any reason, MDG will replace it with a floor of equal value, Scott promises.
“It really helps to reduce the pressure of making a final decision,” he says.
MDG’s membership in the Flooring America purchasing cooperative allows the locally owned family business to offer its customers programs like Confidence Plus. The cooperative, which includes hundreds of flooring showrooms, allows independent businesses like MDG to offer prices and benefits that compete with the corporate big box retailers—but with the helpful and knowledgeable customer service shoppers may find lacking at the big boxes.
“We stand out from other flooring showrooms in the extent that we will go to make a customer happy,” says Powers, who will celebrate his first anniversary as MDG’s sales manager next month. “Once the carpet, tile or other flooring is selected, purchased and installed, we want the customer to have a good feeling about us. That’s how we built our reputation over the past 20 years.”
Scott was sold on MDG long before he joined the company last April. As a former home builder, he chose MDG to install his floors.
“Quality of installation was important to me and it’s still one of the biggest advantages we offer over most of our competition,” he insists.
Steve Walbolt, president and co-owner, opines that the closeness of family is what has set the company apart since it was established 21 years ago.
“We are a very close family, but we also enjoy close relationships with our extended family, which includes the people on our team, as well as our customers,” Steve says. “We like to think of ourselves as the place where friends send friends.”
Steve’s uncle, Mike Green, whose initials provided the company’s name, started the business in 2001 and quickly got his children—Donny and Client Support Manager Christie Jackson—involved.
“At first, Uncle Mike focused on new construction but the emphasis eventually changed to residential remodeling,” Steve recalls. “He opened our retail location in 2004. My cousins have been working here since they were kids.”
Three years after opening the store, Donny and his mother, Carol, took over the operation after Mike was seriously injured in a car accident. Later, Steve, who was looking to exit the corporate world after 13 years, partnered with Donny to purchase the store from Mike and Carol, beginning the second generation of family owners.
“We knew that we’d make an awesome team,” Steve says. “My background was in retail and Donny knew flooring inside and out. It’s been so much more fun coming to work where we continue to build a family legacy. Besides working with my cousins, my mom also works here. It makes it fun, and I think our customers enjoy walking into a friendly, family-oriented atmosphere.”
Today, he says, MDG offers a full assortment of carpeting, tile and other floor covering, along with professional installation.
“Our family has always taken pride in doing things right and providing superior quality service,” Steve says. “There’s a lot more to the flooring business than many people realize. Maybe anybody can measure a room, but not everybody is able to anticipate obstacles and understand technical issues, like when you might need to build up a sub floor. That’s why we employ our own in-house installers instead of using sub-contractors. It’s important that we can compete with anybody on price, but it’s more important that our customers are satisfied throughout the sales and installation process. When you buy from us, we’re with you every step of the way until the job is finished.”
It starts from the time a customer enters the 5,000-square-foot showroom, Scott says.
“We help people through the process,” he says. “We look at photos of their rooms and help them to select the perfect colors and products to make their home look sensational.”
You can peruse MDG’s ample inventories of LVT, carpeting and other flooring materials by visiting the showroom at 3812 Pearl Road, Suite C, in Medina. You can find more information by visiting MDGFlooringAmerica.com, checking out the latest news on Facebook @MDGFlooringAmerica. You can call the store at 330-725-5252.