Herb Cantor with the trusty Mini-Van

By Lissa Wyman

WESTBURY, NY -- "If you don't show your face at the stores, they'll forget about you."

That's Herb Cantor's first rule of a life. Even in the dry season between market introductions, Cantor makes sure his customers see his face on a regular basis.

In order to get a nuts-and-bolts view of the life of an independent rep, we accompanied Cantor for a few hours on a sales trip to Long Island. We visited the huge G. Fried floor covering/home accent store and Carpet Concepts, an elegant designer showroom.

Cantor, who will celebrate his 75th birthday this Summer, is proud of the fact that he is one of the senior people on the sales circuit. His major product lines include 828 International Trading, Radici, SoHo Carpets & Rugs and Rug-Hold/Vantage. His territory includes Connecticut, Northern New Jersey and eastern New York. He estimates that he has over 100 active accounts.

Cantor is president of Royal Ambassador Rug, the company he has headed for nearly 40 years. He  began his rug career in the 1950's with Aldon Rug Mills and later established his independent sales agency.

For a brief time in the late 70's and early 80's, Cantor was also a rug importer. With the Botany 500 line, he was one of the first to sell licensed products.

"I'm one of the oldest guys in this business, and I love my job. The floor covering industry has been good to me for 51 years," he says.

On our road trip, I saw how Cantor approaches each sale. Just as importantly, Cantor shared advice for people who are thinking about entering the salesman's world.

 Because all of us normally see each other in the exciting atmosphere of market, it was a revelation to see how a sales rep goes about  his daily business. Throughout the day, I was most impressed with Cantor's careful pre-planning each step of the way.

Cantor has an extremely winning sales personality, but underneath the smile, there is an analytical and methodical mind at work.

"The main thing is to get placement of a line. Once a store places the product, it's a matter of servicing and showing them the newest items. The tough part is getting initial placement," says Cantor.

Cantor said the number of calls he makes each day varies. "If it's during the prime selling season, I have a lot to show, so I  sometimes make only two calls a day. But those calls are usually productive. In the dead season  retailers have already made their seasonal buys, so I don't have much to talk about and I don't want to waste the buyers' time.  In the off season, I can sometimes make six calls a day. But whether it's in season or out of season, I always want to leave the customer with some new ideas," Cantor explains.

"You can't overwhelm the customer with too much stuff," he stresses.  "If you need to show them something else, you can always go out to the van and get it."

Cantor believes in protecting his customers. "Wendy is a good, loyal customer, so I don't sell the same products  she chooses to her competitors. I try to keep all my clients happy that way. None of them wants to carry the same patterns. They want exclusivity and that's what I give them. I won't sell every little account on the street when my big clients give me big orders all year round," he said.

Cantor walks confidently through the employees' entrance and waves a greeting to each staff member. It's obvious that Cantor's affection for the Fried staff is fully returned. Cantor knows every sales person by name and tell me all about their skills and talents.

 We have a few minutes to walk the store, so Herb takes me into the huge warehouse. He's couldn't be prouder of the store if it was his own. He explains how the store recently renovated the 40,000 sq. ft. warehouse showroom area, turning it into a neatly organized space with flowing departments of  carpet, rugs and hard surface flooring.

Wendy Fried soon joins us in the warehouse. "Rugs are an important part of our business," she says. "I don't know how many are here, but we have over $1.5 million in rug inventory." Prices range from approximately $150 to $2,000 for 6x9 size, with the best selling price point at $499.

Neat rolls of carpeting line the walls and mansion size rugs function as artwork. Suspended over the rug section is a room setting hanging by invisible wires. Rugs are also suspended from the cavernous ceiling.

Bright purple and teal colors spark up the broadloom area. "We know that  brights are not going to be best sellers, but we've got to give the sales floor some sizzle.  Beige and naturals are what sell, but we like to dress up the showroom with something pretty," explains Fried.

Upstairs, there's an area called Wendy's Attic, which was transformed from custom furniture to home accents about eight months ago. The area is a delightful hodge-podge of gifts, home accessories, tote bags and other impulse items. "I need a little fun in my life," says Fried, "and this is how I get my fun."

We return to Fried's office and get down to business after a short exchange of pleasantries and industry gossip.

Cantor shows Fried a runner that matches broadloom she bought earlier in the year. She studies the sample intently, looks up the original order  in her computer. She asks a few questions about price. The office settles into  silence as she considers the sample.  Cantor finally asks, "Shall I send the order?"

The answer comes swiftly: "I don't love it, Herb. What else have you got?"

Cantor produces the soft furry SoHo shag. The official name is Skuwami, but Cantor calls it "Herb's Love Rug." Fried is interested.

"It's a shame these rugs come in only two sizes," she says. "I won't put them on a rack. If I can't turn a product in several sizes, I can't spare the arm.  It just doesn't make sense. I have a pile of animal skin rugs. These rugs are furry. That's where they belong."

Cantor's pen is poised on the order form. "So how many do you want? If you buy one color, you also get the samples of the other colors."

Fried thinks hard for another 30 seconds and the room falls silent again.  "I'll  take two rugs. White. One sample for each store. Too bad it's only in two sizes. Frankly, if it wasn't  for Herb, I wouldn't  buy them."

Cantor re-assures her. "These things will be huge. Everyone wants them."

What's next? Cantor whips out the Leggett & Platt underlay. There is a lively discussion about price and product thickness. The hard surface buyer is called in and asked to bring the product that is currently sold in the store. More talk about thickness and price.

Finally, Fried makes her decision:  "I love ya, Herb, but  business is business. I see no reason to change my regular supplier if you can't give me a better product at a better price."

Cantor won't give up easily. "How about if I go back to Leggett & Platt and suggest  they develop some new products  in this category?" he asks. They all agree that could be a future possibility.

After hugs all around, we leave the store. Before we head off, Herb spends a few moments updating his black notebook. Writing a sentence or two about what occurred at the meeting and the amount of the sale.

We are greeted by owners Alice and Steven Feuer. They explain that Carpet Concepts is primarily a showcase for high end and custom carpeting. "We sell only through the decorator trade," explains Alice Feuer. "Business is good. The housing boom is definitely helping the high end."

The walls of the showroom are  lined with samples of designer carpeting with some samples of needlepoint and hand knotted rugs on the floor. "We also sell a lot of rugs, mostly high end Tibetans," Feuer tells us.

That observation presents a sales opportunity for Cantor. "You should see some of the Tibetan rugs from 828. They're really beautiful," he says.

"828 sells Tibetans???" says Feuer, incredulous.

"Honest. I'll bring some samples next time," Cantor replies.

Now we get down to the nuts and bolts of the call. Feuer wants to know what's going on with his order.

"So Herb, am I ever going to get that carpet? The customer is really getting anxious about this. It's been a long time."

Cantor is prepared. "I spoke to the mill yesterday. They told me to tell you that it's on the water now. It should be here in a couple weeks. I can't give you an exact date now, but I will let you know what's happening as soon as I know myself," he says.

Feuer is somewhat mollified. "Just  let me know what's going on. I want to keep my customer happy, too. It's a big investment for everyone."

A designer is coming in for a scheduled appointment, and we leave.

Back in the van, we both know that Feuer is not exactly happy. Cantor again makes a notation in the black notebook.

 "It's always painful to tell people something they don't want to hear. But what can I do? I've got to pass on the bad news as well as the good news. It's part of my job," says Cantor. "The important thing is to keep the customer informed. You have to be honest."

It's time for me to go back to Manhattan so Cantor can get some more work done. He drives me to the train station and on the trip back, I relive the day.

 Cantor's  comments and advice swirl through my mind. I'd like to share them with you, in his words: