FLOOR ED Karen George, Managing Editor with Lisbeth Calandrino
Why Women’s Groups in the Flooring Industry Matter
W
hen people talk about networking, there are plenty of groans and exasperated looks. Networking and building relationships equal work. When it comes to women and networking, my experience is different. Put twenty women in a room, and the excitement starts. Even before we get to know each other, there’re lots of smiles and energy. It’s just a matter of time until smaller groups form, and people are laughing and getting to know each other. Women immediately have things in common that have nothing to do with business but have everything to do with being women. Sharing who we are the first step in networking. In the early ’70s, things were rocking for women. Consciousness-raising and feminism were beginning to be topics of conversation, along with women’s changing roles in society. The nature of personal development and in these groups is intricately related to and reflected in women’s roles and status in society. More women were working, although attitudes and behavior were often in opposition to societal roles. We were becoming more outspoken, and the world was listening. In 1972, I established a women’s organization at the YWCA in Hudson, New York. It was called the Women’s Group, and we discussed everything from work attitudes to and changes in social roles and norms concerning women. This was about the same time I went into the flooring business with my sister, Sonna. We experienced not being able to apply for credit until 1974, nor get a business loan without a male cosigner! To get an idea of what it was like, it’s worth reading the Women’s Business Ownership Act of 1988.
Women immediately have things in common that have nothing to do with business but have everything to do with being women. 6 Premier Flooring Retailer | Digital 3 2020
