Roll in the savings at Factory Carpet Superstores

The secret to any kind of success, particularly in business, is conviction in your beliefs — though a little superstition helps too!

Take the notion that good things come in threes, for example. It may be an old wives’ tale, but it’s one that’s served Factory Carpet Superstores incredibly well during their 30 years in business serving the people of Cork.

The family-run chain operates three hugely popular stores across the city, offering the largest selection of flooring in Munster. And this year, as they celebrate their third decade in business, they’re set to become even bigger and better.

“Since we opened our first store, on the Kinsale Road back in 1995, the business has just kept growing — and it’s showing no signs of stopping,” says owner Ben Warrilow.

“When we first opened that store, it was a 4,000 sq ft unit, but business quickly became much busier than we first expected, and within three months we had extended into the unit next door to transform it into a 6,500 sq ft showroom. Around 10 years later, an even bigger unit became available just a few doors down from us, so we moved in there, where you'll still find us today!

“Since then, as demand has continued to grow, we've opened two more stores; our second was opened in Blackpool 15 years ago, covering the north side of the city and north Cork, followed by our Ballincollig store in 2018."

With the business constantly pushing themselves further and reaching new levels of success, it's hard to imagine what heights they could possibly aspire to next — but Ben promises that 2025 will be their best year yet.

While many details are still under wraps, he reveals that Factory Carpet Superstores are planning to open a brand new store, their fourth in Cork, later this year. 

"We're really excited about it," he shares. "People should definitely watch this space!”

This continued success and expansion of the business, Ben emphasises, wouldn’t have been possible without all the support from Factory Carpet Superstores’ loyal customers over the years.

This month, as part of the company’s 30th birthday celebrations, they’re delighted to give back to those valued customers with a very special offer.

The chain is offering up to 30% off selected items across their full range of products, but only while stocks last!

“Our priority is always to offer the best possible value to our customers,” Ben explains. “We keep our prices low by buying about 90% of our total stock direct from manufacturers. This allows us to ‘cut out the middle man’ and pass the savings on to our customers.

“As well as unbeatable value, we offer huge choice to our customers. We have the largest selection of carpets, vinyls and laminate flooring in Munster. In our storage warehouse in Little Island alone, we keep over 600 full rolls of carpets and vinyls, and we have over 300 pallets of laminate flooring in store, ready for either collection or super-fast delivery.

“We also stock over 500 mattresses and a massive selection of beds, our customers can choose from over 60 colours for their bed and more than 20 different types of headboards to match, all at no extra cost. We also offer divan bases with drawer options, and we stock the very popular ottoman style storage beds — a great solution for anyone with less wardrobe space for storage. All of these are available in all sizes, from single up to super king. You can design a bed you love, and have it delivered from us within two weeks. Alternatively, if you need a bed straight away, we keep 100 in stock ready to go.”

You might think it’d take a huge number of people to keep so many plates juggling at once. However, Ben believes that much of Factory Carpets’ success has stemmed from having a small, tightknit team of staff working there.

“We have 16 staff working across our three stores, and we have 13 fitters working five days a week fitting carpets, vinyls and laminate flooring in our customers' homes. They also run our measuring service, which we offer for free, and we can even call out to anyone with samples if they can’t make it in to one of our three stores.”

It’s just one example of the many personal touches that have won customers over and helped Factory Carpet Superstores to stand the test of time.

“Because we’re a small, family-run business, we can offer a more personalised service. Over the 30 years we’ve been in business, we’ve built such a loyal customer base that our staff know almost everybody who comes in and our customers know and trust them. In fact, in all our stores I’ve noticed that some people will come in and actually wait for a specific staff member, or if that staff member’s not working that day they’ll come in the next day just to talk to them!

"It’s that type of personal, friendly service that our customers want, and that we pride ourselves on — our customers know they’re not just getting a ‘yes/no’ type of response from somebody down the other end of the phone and that’s what keeps people coming back to us. I’d say at least 80% of the people who come in to our store are repeat customers, which we’re really proud of.”

Having that expert help can be a godsend for anyone taking on any kind of home improvement project — but it’s particularly useful for the new generation of homeowners walking through the doors of Factory Carpet Superstores.

“Tackling any kind of project can be overwhelming for first time buyers in particular,” Ben empathises. “We’re actually finding nowadays that a lot of younger customers are coming in to us that haven’t dealt with us before, but they’re bringing along their parents, who we have done work for previously! It’s a nice full circle kind of thing, that we’ve been here so long we get to see our loyal customers now bringing their kids in so we can help with their own homes.”

And if Ben has his way, Factory Carpet Superstores will even be here long enough to help those customers’ grandkids someday!

“We’re definitely aiming for another 30 years, at least,” he shares. “My oldest son is now involved in the business, and I’m hoping my youngest son will get involved in the future too. We’re as busy as ever at the moment, so we plan on being here for many more decades yet!”

To find out more, visit www.factorycarpetscork.ie