Lumber Liquidators 2012 Annual Report Download - page 15

and excluding transactions of less than $250 (which are generally sample orders, or add-ons or fill-ins to previous orders) and
of more than $30,000 (which are usually contractor orders). Our goal is to provide our customers with everything needed to
complete their flooring project – to remove the existing floor, install the new floor with complementary moldings and
accessories, and finally, maintain the floor for its lifetime.
Installation. We have a national installation arrangement with HSS, allowing us to make consistent installation services
available in every store in our chain. HSS manages fully insured and licensed providers of professional installation services
that measure, deliver and install flooring at competitive prices. This arrangement allows us to increase service offerings to
our customers, and we benefit from cross-promotional opportunities. Furthermore, we minimize risk associated with
installation services and reduce time spent by store managers on installation service issues. We receive certain
reimbursements from HSS based upon our customers’ use of their services. In 2012, less than 10% of our customers utilized
HSS for installation.
Our Products. We offer a complete assortment of wood flooring that includes prefinished domestic and exotic
hardwoods, engineered hardwoods, unfinished hardwoods, bamboo, cork and laminates, as well as resilient flooring. Our
product offering is substantially comprised of our proprietary brands, led by our flagship Bellawood brand. Our hardwood
flooring products are generally available in various widths and lengths. They are generally differentiated in terms of quality
and price based on the species, grade of the hardwood and quality of finishing, in addition to the length of the warranty.
Prefinished floors are finished in factories under controlled conditions and are ready to be enjoyed immediately after they are
installed. We also offer a broad assortment of flooring enhancements and installation accessories, including moldings, noise-
reducing underlay and tools, that complement our assortment of floor offerings. In total, we offer nearly 350 different
flooring product stock-keeping units.
2012 2011 2010
Percentage of Net Sales:
Solid and Engineered Hardwood ....................................... 47% 50% 54%
Laminates ........................................................ 22% 23% 21%
Moldings and Accessories ............................................ 16% 15% 14%
Bamboo, Cork and Resilient .......................................... 14% 11% 10%
Other ............................................................ 1% 1% 1%
Total ............................................................. 100% 100% 100%
Solid and Engineered Hardwood. Our proprietary solid hardwood products are milled from one thick piece of wood,
which can be sanded and refinished numerous times, and our proprietary engineered hardwood products are produced by
bonding a layer of hardwood to a plywood or high-density fiber board backing. Engineered flooring is designed primarily to
be installed in areas where traditional hardwood is not conducive, such as slab construction, basements and areas where
moisture may be a factor. We offer flooring products made from more than 25 wood species, including both domestic woods,
such as ash, beech, birch, hickory, northern hard maple, northern red oak, pine and American walnut, and exotic woods, such
as bloodwood, cherry, cypress, ebony, koa, mesquite, mahogany, rosewood and teak. We sell our solid hardwood products
either prefinished or unfinished, and our engineered hardwood products in either glue down or floating application. Our
prefinished hardwoods typically carry a wear warranty from 25 to 100 years, and our Bellawood products carry a 100-year,
transferable warranty.
Laminates. Our proprietary laminate flooring is typically constructed with a high-density fiber board core, inserted
between a melamine laminate backing and high-quality photographic paper displaying an image of wood and a ceramic
finish, abrasion-resistant laminate top. Our laminate flooring brands allow for easy-click installation, and some include a pre-
glued undersurface, moisture repellent, soundproofing, single-strip format or a handscraped textured finish. Our laminates
carry wear warranties ranging from 10 to 30 years.
Moldings and Accessories.We offer a wide variety of wood flooring moldings and accessories. Moldings are a
required finishing detail to every floor and we sell a complete selection that matches virtually all of our floors or can
complement them. We also sell stair treads and risers in both finished and unfinished versions. Accessories include sealers,
adhesives and underlayments that are placed between the new floor and the sub-floor, insulating sound and cushioning the
floors. In addition, we sell flooring tools, floor cleaning supplies and butcher-block kitchen countertops.
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