When it comes to laying floors, be they carpet, tiling, wooden or vinyl, the contractor laying the floors needs more than just the carpet. It was this realisation that persuaded Alf Cerrone to launch Ashmount Flooring Supplies in 1973.
He had previously worked as a flooring contractor and had suffered over the years because the distributors supplying the major floor coverings, in the main did not supply many of the other sundries – nails, cleaning materials, carpet accessories, etc – making life hard for the contractor.
With this in mind, Alf set up the company to provide all of the needs especially of the smaller contractor, including the myriad of one-man bands operating in the area. The products that he offered included screeds, plywood, hardboard, edging for carpets, nosings for stairs as well as range of the necessary tools. Today, Ashmount offers over 2,00 lines, ranging from tools (from blades to turbo-stripping machines) plant hire, clothing (from footwear to hard hats), cleaning materials, seals and polishes, adhesives, underlays and grippers, sheet materials, laminates engineered wood and hardwood, linoleum, carpet tiles and many many more. Present day Managing Director Ron Burkett, is Alf’s son-in-law. He says, “From our humble beginnings, we now have five vehicles and 20 people serving an area from Milton Keynes to the whole of Essex down to Reading, Tonbridge Wells, Crawley and Gatwick. In the main, and particularly inside the M25, we pride ourselves on being able to do next day deliveries for most of our customers.”
One of the continuing growth areas for Ashmount is in safety flooring and so currently about a dozen different safety floors are kept in stock. For example, in many areas, vinyl floor coverings would traditionally have been laid. These are now being replaced with safety flooring, some of which have a very coarse finish and others a somewhat smoother finish. Another problem with the earlier safety floors was that of cleaning but manufacturers have now developed surfaces that are easier to clean and which carry a full safety rating. Safety flooring now accounts for around 20% of sales.
Sometimes it is difficult to know where their products are installed as they are supplied to flooring contractors. Ashmount do know however, that some of their products have been installed in the accommodation quarters of the London Olympic site.
Ashmount’s main suppliers are Polyflor, Altro, Tarkett and Forbo Nairn. Polyflor, who manufacture in the UK now offer a range of tiles that look like wood and natural stone. These are easy to clean, look decorative and have both a domestic and a commercial rating. Forbo Nairn manufacture in Holland and Scotland, Tarkett in Sweden and Altro in England.
Ron concludes, “In recent times, the market has been really tough but we have more than held our own against some very fierce competition. Our main priority will always be to our customers providing them with service, stock and reliability.
For further information please telephone 0208 808 2158 or visit www.ashmountflooring.co.uk
