CF Blog

BRITISH MANUFACTURERS LEAD THE WAY

January 30, 2024

Business leaders now believe that the UK is ‘better for manufacturing than the EU’ according to a report by PwC and Made UK. That’s good to hear as it is is widely acknowledged that the British make the best carpet in the world. When the prime locations need carpet, more often than not a UK […]

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USE THEM OR LOSE THEM – SMALL BUSINESSES WILL SHUT IF WE DON’T SHOP LOCAL

January 3, 2024

Britain has lost 6,000 shops over the past five years. A dismal forecast by PwC predicts almost 30,000 businesses will go under in 2024. Small businesses are particularly at risk with high interest rates, low economic growth and high energy prices. So it is imperative that we support our local businesses who are run by […]

Energy Efficient

May 6, 2022

The cost of energy is spiralling but there are ways to to cut costs around the house – and carpet can play a big part. Carpet is heat retentive, and while 15% of all household heat disappears through uninsulated floors, this is not the case with carpet. Carpet with underlay is an excellent insulator and […]

Scaremongering

August 24, 2021

We are fortunate to enjoy excellent relationships with the media – particularly those in the home interest market. By and large we have no issues with the press but every now and then we are subject ot inaccurate, and, dare we sat it, lazy journalism designed to scare consumers. Saturday saw such an example in […]

Bricks not clicks

June 15, 2021

The last 15 months has seen online shopping take off. However, a new study by Deloitte Digital shows that the move during the pandemic to online shopping has hit a real-life brick wall. Consumers now want to spend their money with people rather than faceless brands. We are not here to criticise those who buy […]

Time to shout about being a family-owned business

May 26, 2021

Thanks to the pandemic, community spirit is all the rage and family businesses have never been more relevant, appreciated or fashionable. There are over 5 million family businesses in the UK, and of these, nearly 80% are micro-businesses with no other employees and a further 901,000 employ between one and nine individuals. (IFB Research Foundation […]

Back your local independents

April 12, 2021

Shops are now open – and lockdown loosening has begun. Now, more than ever before, is the time to support our local communities and shopkeepers. Online shopping has kept us fed, watered, clothed and entertained – but, throughout the pandemic, for many of us local shops have also been a lifeline. So, now non-essential shops […]

Shopping locally has never been more important or appreciated

March 24, 2021

A change is afoot in our personal shopping habits according to new research – and local, independent specialists are set to benefit. Demand for neighbourhood shopping has soared in the pandemic. According to newly released figures by the Local Data Company, a total of 31,405 independent units opened in 2020. Furthermore, a survey by Barclaycard […]

Neutral Know How

March 12, 2021

Colour may be to the fore now but, when push comes to shove, the majority of us still pick pales and neutrals – and this is very true with carpet. This is no doubt down to the fact that plain, and neutral carpets especially, give greater flexibility for use of pattern elsewhere in the room. […]

Use them or lose them

February 18, 2021

Thanks to the pandemic, community spirit has been all the rage. Communities everywhere have been pulling together and one of the key rules of bolstering one’s local community is simple: use local shops or lose them – and particularly independent retailers. The mood music now is very much with ‘local’ heroes, the small wonders. Walk […]