RUGNEWS.COM EDITORIAL:
CHAS SYDNEY IS FATHER OF THE
MODERN AMERICAN RUG INDUSTRY

By Lissa Wyman

Chas Sydney, the Father of the Modern American Rug Industry, is retiring as senior vice president of AmericasMart Atlanta. He will be sorely missed.

Kevin Malkiewicz, vice president of AMC, will now take over many of Chas Sydney's duties. He has been with AMC for 12 years and Chas has been an able and generous mentor and guide. I am sure Kevin will not only prove to be extremely capable in his new job, he will also make his own unique mark on the rug industry.

To see the recent announcement about Sydney and Malkiewicz on Rugnews.com, click here.

Calling Chas the "Father" of the industry may be a bit hyperbolic, but I can not think of a better way to describe his legacy. Many other people were also instrumental in the development of a meaningful American rug industry, but Chas was definitely the figurehead of the movement.

Through all the years of change, Chas Sydney has maintained his dignity and his gentlemanly aplomb. For the 30 years I have known him, I have  heard only the highest praise for his business acumen, his courtesy, his honesty and his attention to the needs of his clients. His word is gold.

Rug Industry Emerges

When the Atlanta Merchandise Mart Area Rug Center was first established in the very early 90's (I am hazy on the precise date), there were major shifts occurring in both the world of rugs and the world of floor covering.

• The floor covering  industry was cycling out of the Atlanta Market and establishing an annual market in Las Vegas.

• Wall to wall carpeting was rapidly losing its cachet, supplanted by hardwood floors, ceramic tile and marble floors which were a perfect background for the warmth and beauty of rugs.

• The first U.S.  Embargo of Iranian rugs was making it necessary for rug importers to look to new sources of supply and new constructions to feed the rapidly growing consumer demand for rugs.

• Machine made rugs  were coming rapidly  on-stream to provide well-designed, affordable rugs for consumers in every income bracket.

• The old rules about how a beautiful rug was defined were being thrown out the window.,American rug design was becoming the industry standard.

• In short, the rug business was ON FIRE.

Until the Atlanta Area  Rug Center was established, everything was growing helter-skelter. The Area Rug Center gave rugs a true home and an identity as an INDUSTRY. Separate from floor covering. Separate from home furnishings.

Boy. Those were the days.

In 1980, when Chas Sydney joined the Atlanta Merchandise Mart, there was no "rug market" and there was no "rug industry." Chas was an educator by profession.  He told me a couple years ago  that the idea of working for the Atlanta Merchandise Mart struck him as both a better opportunity and more fun than teaching school.

Life was relatively simply back in 1980 (although we didn't think so at the time).  There were five major floor covering markets in the US: Atlanta, Chicago, Dallas, New York and San Francisco. The markets took place back-to-back fhrough most of the months of January and July. We bitched about being away from our families and thought there were way too many markets.

There were no rug markets.  A few rug companies showed at the major floor covering markets, however. These included Karastan (which of course also made broadloom carpeting), Couristan (which also had broadloom carpeting), Capel and Trans-Ocean. There were also some rug specialty  companies which are no longer with us.

Change is a Constant

Change is always with us. The world of floor coverings went through a major evolution from the late 1970's to the late 1980's as the wholesale center for floor covering shifted to the Atlanta Merchandise Mart  from the Chicago Merchandise Mart (where it was part of the huge home furnishings market center). Although other regional markets straggled along before giving up the ghost, Atlanta became THE place to be by the mid-1980's.

Then an upstart show was established as an annual event in Las Vegas. Over the years, the Las Vegas Surfaces Expo became the center of the floor covering industry.

But instead of dying, the Atlanta Market Center was transformed.

The transition from the 80's to the '90's became a great opportunity. The Atlanta Merchandise Mart was re-invented and The Area Rug Center was born.

I can't even pretend to know what went on during that transition period. I am sure it was challenging. But Chas Sydney and the AMC management never gave up.

I watched much of the birth of the rug industry from the sidelines. During the mid to late 1980's, I pursued other academic and professional goals that kept me a bit removed from the rug action. However, my husband Bud Wyman and his company,  Rug-Hold, were directly involved with the excitement.

In a previous incarnation, however, I was heavily involved with the floor covering industry as managing editor of the trade publication, Floor Covering Weekly. I met Chas Sydney when he was brand new and just a young fella at AMC. (His black hair had already started to turn white in his late 30's however.)

A lot has changed since Chas joined AMC. A lot will change in the future. But Chas Sydney will always be the Father of the American Rug Industry.

And what do YOU think? Please use the comment box below or email us at lwyman@rugnews.com

To see an archived interview with
Chas Sydney written by Janelle Lampp
in December, 2005, click here

7.25.11