Blog 9: Leftwich Chapman

Kayla Towns

ID 3311.002

GAINES

7 November 2011

Blog 9: Leftwich Chapman

Last week, we had a very fun and interesting trip to a local flooring vendor here in town: Leftwich Chapman. I learned so much while we were there and am documenting my findings thus.

Leftwich Chapman is owned by two people, Larry Leftwich and Jo Chapman. They have been in business for 9 and a half years together and deal specifically with retail in custom homes, remodeling, small commercial businesses and insurance claims offices. They have the store split into 3 zones: hard-surface flooring, tile, and carpet. Hard-surface flooring makes up about 65% of their sales and carpet is the remainder with 35%.

Their flooring comes in multiple colors and finishes. My favorite was the Cross-Scraped American Cherry flooring. Beautiful! The Rustic look is one of my favorites and this floor took me back to a warm, cozy cabin up in the mountains that we visit every year. I’d buy that floor, no doubt about it. An Asian import, Bossa Wood, comes in a sheeted veneer. It is not quite as durable as a legitimate wood floor and will break down over time. Another interesting finish was the Leather flooring. It was absolutely beautiful and I couldn’t believe how many different textures there were. This material is meant for heavy residential and light commercial. Some other interesting floors we saw were the High-density Cork and Bamboo. The Cork is great for acoustics, tough and durable, and easy to maintain. Bamboo on the other hand is a little less convenient. Most people do not use Bamboo in their homes because will crack open without enough humidity (checking). However beautiful it may be, this area is not very feasible for Bamboo floors.

In conclusion, I learned a lot from Mr. Chapman on our field trip and will definitely be going back to use his services in the future when I am designing. With their kind service and wide variety of flooring, Leftwich Chapman is the perfect place to send my future clients to.