for MAGZ64

DuPont is a science company that delivers science-based solutions in food and nutrition, health care, apparel; home and construction, electronics, and transportation. The company was founded in 1802, and operates in more than 70 countries as of 2003. DuPont’s core values for over 200 years have remained constant: commitment to safety, health and the environment, integrity and high ethical standards, and treating people with fairness and respect.

DuPont Fibers Division was wondering: could carpets move “uptown” into the fashion-oriented world typically associated with clothing and furniture? The longtime market share leader in the carpet industry, DuPont, was searching for new ways to expand in a slow growth market. This market had been growing at approximately 5% per annum over the 1990s and was predicted to remain level or even decline in following years. Revenues were up 5% in 2002 for DuPont’s fiber operations. In addition, in the residential segment of the market, DuPont needed a way to differentiate its nylon fiber carpets from increased competition including the strong challenge of Amoco's new polypropylene fiber carpets.

The carpet industry can be divided into three end-use segments: commercial carpets for offices, hospitals, hotels, schools, government facilities, and industrial sites; contract residential carpets for large residential purposes like apartment complexes or subdivisions; and residential carpets for homes. DuPont estimated that 30% of carpet sales were from new residential construction, and the other 70% was from replacement purchases. In addition to different end-use segments, each segment’s consumers were quite different from the other segment’s consumers and each segment was serviced through different channels. Commercial carpets were typically bought by interior designers, architects or specifiers for their clients. They had to be durable and, especially for some end-uses like hotels, fashionable. Contract residential carpets were bought by designers or by the contractor who typically focused on price and durability. The residential segment differed from the other two because the purchaser was also the end-user. Typically, the lady of the house purchased carpeting from a retail outlet in order to create the atmosphere she wanted in her home. In a recent trade journal article, carpet industry experts stated that retail stores are an important and effective component of the retail environment.

Ninety-seven percent of all carpeting is produced from man-made fibers derived from petroleum. The leading fiber in the industry has been nylon which was invented by DuPont in the 1930s. Though the leader in the industry, DuPont was challenged by other high quality nylon producers, like Monsanto, Allied, and BASF, and a host of generic low-end fiber producers. DuPont has 27% of the global nylon market and 58% of the nylon-6/6 market (the most advanced nylon fiber). Fiber producers sell their output to carpet mills that then produce the carpeting. Until the 1980s, competition in the residential segment was based on the technical qualities of the fibers, mill price of fiber, and reliability in shipping—none of which directly affected the consumer. As such, the industry tended to be very production oriented.

In the early 1980s, a giant breakthrough benefiting the consumer emerged—stain resistant carpets. By applying a chemical coating to the carpet fiber during production, the carpet was protected from permanent staining arising from most household soiling agents. Stains could be wiped off the carpet, thus alleviating the concern many people had about entertaining or “living” on their carpet. The four major fiber producers quickly announced their versions of the stain resistant carpets in an effort to remain competitive. Amoco also got into the game when it announced a “new revolution in carpeting,” carpets made from polypropylene (PP) fibers rather than nylon. As a fiber, PP is inherently stain resistant. Thus it offered the best overall protection from stains and it costs less to produce than nylon. However, it did not as readily accept dyes as nylon, nor was it as soft to the touch, thus making it less fashionable. As such, PP initially had difficulty entering the residential segment, but was well received by the commercial segment. Approximately 24% of the total U.S. carpet fiber market is PP.

In the mid 1980s, technical advancements in dyeing allowed Amoco to seriously compete in the residential segment. Their objective was to lead the introduction of PP fibers to the residential market. DuPont, desiring to be the unquestionable leading fiber producer to the residential segment, relied more on marketing than other companies. It seemed to sense the threat of PP towards nylon fibers when it purchased Hercules fibers, a large PP extruder. However, DuPont believed that nylon was still the fiber for residential carpets and was bent on letting the consumer cast the deciding vote.

DuPont believed it could use its well respected company name to attract consumers. As such, DuPont created the first fiber-producer backed carpets, DuPont Stainmaster carpets, which carried a guarantee backed by DuPont on stain resistance, wear and anti-static, and was branded as a DuPont carpet. The results of the program were highly successful with DuPont creating high brand recognition among consumers, the first time this had ever been achieved by a fiber company, thus differentiating it from the other fiber producers. DuPont took its Stainmaster carpet business and converted it to a premium carpet brand by increasing prices and reducing its distribution channels. DuPont spent over $10 million on television advertising beginning in 1995. A survey conducted by Video Storyboard Tests, Inc. rated the DuPont Stainmaster television commercial the fourth “most popular television commercial.” Based on its success with DuPont Stainmaster, the industry leader decided to forge new ground.

For most of its history, the residential segment had typically been the most blasé segment of the carpet market. Styles tended to be simple, colors passive, and features uniform across all competitors in the industry. Technically, industry players maintained that differences did indeed exist, but in the words of one industry analyst, “The differences were there in style and fiber quality, but the housewife out shopping for carpet didn't really know or care—she only liked what she could see and feel.” As such, DuPont wondered if the styles and designs so popular in the commercial segment could be transferred to the residential segment. Was the average household willing to make carpeting more than just a backdrop for other furnishings? If the program were to be successful, it would mean: further differentiation from other nylon fiber producers by creating a new segment based on fashion and status for residential carpets; increasing brand awareness among consumers for DuPont (resulting in increased demand for DuPont fibers); bringing in a new dimension to residential sales which would be difficult for PP carpets to duplicate and would solidify DuPont as the leader in the residential segment. It, however, would be an expensive undertaking, involving a significant amount of publicity and risking its reputation with its major fiber clients.

In addition, if DuPont were to proceed with the Designer Collection, it would have to move fast. The largest trade show in the industry—in which the companies announced their major designs and programs for the coming year—was coming up in three months. If DuPont wanted the Designer Collection to have a maximal impact, it would have to have carpet samples and promotional materials ready for distribution at the show, and their marketing program in line to begin shortly thereafter. As such, the go no-go decision would have to be made within six weeks.

Overall, for the full year of 2000, consolidated sales totaled $28.3 billion compared to $26.9 billion in 1999. However, Dupont’s revenues slipped to $24.52 billion in 2002 because of the overall slowdown in the U.S. economy. In 2003, DuPont emphasized an integrated marketing campaign to promote its Tactesse nylon carpet fiber. The fiber features two new deniers, 995 and 2,250, which DuPont engineers developed for added flexibility in loop constructions. The promotion included placing ads in several trade publications and a direct-mail piece to more than 5,000 carpet retailers. The mailer contained samples of carpet with Tactesse in loop and cutpile configurations. They provided carpet retailers an opportunity to test the fiber’s “You have to feel it to believe it” theme.

1. Gregory Morris, “DuPont Canada Brings On Nylon–6/6 Expansion,” Chemical Week (April 29, 1998): 19.

2. Marc Reisch, “New Texture in Carpet Fibers,” Chemical & Engineering News 76(4) (January 26, 1998): 20–21.

3. Andrew Wood, “DuPont Wants to Hitch Up Nylon’s Performance,” Chemical Week (October 29, 1997): 42.

1. Elaine Gross, “DuPont Shows New Tactesse Nylon Fiber for Carpets,” Textile World 150 (6) (June 2000): 6.

2. www.dupont.com

173