Shaw Industries : a history / Randall L. Patton.

Format:

Book

Author/Creator:

Patton, Randall L., 1958-

Language:

English

Subjects (All):

Shaw Industries--History.

Shaw Industries.

Rug and carpet industry--Georgia--History.

Rug and carpet industry.

History.

Georgia.

Physical Description:

viii, 217 pages, 24 unnumbered pages of plates : illustrations (some color) ; 24 cm

Place of Publication:

Athens : University of Georgia Press, [2002]

Summary:

Shaw Industries, based in Dalton, Georgia, is the nation's leading textile manufacturer and the world's largest producer of carpets. This history focuses on the evolution of Shaw's business strategy and its adaptations to changing economic conditions. Randall L. Patton chronicles Shaw's rise to dominance by drawing on corporate records, industry data, and interviews with Shaw employees and management, including Robert E. Shaw, the only CEO the company has known in its more than thirty years. Patton situates Shaw within both the overall context of Sunbelt economic development and the unique circumstances behind the success of the tufted carpet industry in northwest Georgia. After surveying the state of the carpet industry nationwide at the end of World War II, Patton begins the Shaw story with the boom years of 1955-73 and continues through the transitional decade of 1973-82, the consolidation phase of the 1980s and early 1990s, and the "new economy" of the mid- to late 1990s. Throughout, Patton shows, Shaw's drive has always been toward vertical integration -- controlling the outside forces that could affect its bottom line. He tells, for instance, how Shaw built its own trucking fleet and became its own yarn supplier, all to the company's advantage. He also relates less successful ventures, most notably Shaw's attempt at direct retailing. The picture emerges of a company proud of its image as a steady and profitable business surviving in a competitive industry. Patton traces the history of Shaw Industries from its start as a family-owned operation through its growth into a multinational corporation that recently joined Warren Buffett's holding company, Berkshire-Hathaway. The Shaw saga has much to tell us about the continuing vitality of "old economy" manufacturers.

Contents:

Introduction: The Rise of Northwest Georgia's Carpet Industry 1

Chapter 1 Beginnings 17

Chapter 2 Making the Transition 40

Chapter 3 A Philadelphia Story 66

Chapter 4 The Emergence of Shaw Industries 81

Chapter 5 Survival of the Fittest 104

Chapter 6 Leadership in a Maturing Industry 119

Chapter 7 Difficult Times 143

Chapter 8 A Return to Core Competencies 162.

Notes:

Includes bibliographical references (pages 209-211) and index.

ISBN:

0820323640

OCLC:

49922039