We also enjoy our work environment, which is a family environment. All Rights Reserved, This is a BETA experience. And he made a difference. In 2009, Anderson estimated that Interface was more than halfway towards the vision of Mission Zero,[13] the company's promise to eliminate any negative impact it may have on the environment by the year 2020 through the redesign of processes and products, the pioneering of new technologies, and efforts to reduce or eliminate waste and harmful emissions while increasing the use of renewable materials and sources of energy.[14][15]. But Seretean was involved in more than just business ventures. | Click to share on Facebook (Opens in new window), Click to share on Reddit (Opens in new window), Click to share on Twitter (Opens in new window), Click to email a link to a friend (Opens in new window), Click to share on LinkedIn (Opens in new window), Click to share on Pinterest (Opens in new window), Click to share on Tumblr (Opens in new window), Submit to Stumbleupon (Opens in new window), Howard Mike Abbott, Abbott Paint & Carpet founder, dies at 91, Feds: U.S. Bank workers opened fake accounts for sales goals, Minnesota has just 3,000 monkeypox vaccine doses, not nearly enough for high-risk population, state official says, Tolbert proposes new-construction exemption, other amendments for St. Paul rent control, Roseville teen killed when SUV crashes in closed-off construction zone on Highway 36, Bush Foundation backs CollegeBound St. Paul with $3 million grant, Deadline looms for Marine on St. Croix charter school meant to replace closed elementary, Machine Gun Kelly offers big, loud, empty spectacle at Xcel Energy Center, Wisconsin pastor among 6 arrested in St. Paul-Stillwater prostitution of minors sting, St. Paul's original Red's Savoy to be converted into homeless shelter, Contractor charged with theft by swindle in St. Paul housing development, construction of Wisconsin home, Alan Jackson gives Xcel Energy Center crowd a night of nostalgia on his farewell tour, Vikings' Kirk Cousins arrived for camp in good shape, comfortable with playbook, Man paralyzed, car hit 29 times in drive-by shooting in small southern Minnesota town, White Bear Township sex offender sentenced to prison for filming girl undressing, showering, Woman sues bishop, claiming he stole her life savings, Lollapalooza day one: Metallica fans turn out, group protests city's teen curfew, Man dumps corpse in driveway using hand truck, then walks away, Police: 3 children found dead in CT home appear to have died by strangulation. Before the store used computers, if a customer didnt have money upfront, Abbott would hang up what was essentially an IOU slip and front the customer the supplies he needed until the personwas paid and could clear his account. He often ended his talks with the poem "Tomorrow's Child," written by an Interface employee, Glenn Thomas. Bud Seretean left his mark all over the country and in Dalton. With nine years to go, its 60 percent of the way there. [16][17] The latter was released in paperback as Business Lessons from a Radical Industrialist in 2011. If you have any questions about how we can help you,please get in touch with us here. Were not just working for customer satisfaction; we are working out of thankfulness for our Heavenly Father, who has graciously blessed our efforts. According to Andersons 2009 book, Confessions of a Radical Industrialist, since 1994 Interface has: In 2008 I spoke with Interfaces vice president of sustainability, Erin Meezan. [30] In 2006, Sustainablebusiness.com named Interface to their SB20 list of Companies Changing the World,[31] and in 2006 GlobeScan listed Interface #1 in the world for corporate sustainability. Opinions expressed by Forbes Contributors are their own. Bandy, Seretean and Henley founded Coronet in 1956 with the goal of having the only all-wool tufting company. Years later, electronics giant RCA Corp. bought Coronet, which was later acquired by Beaulieu of America. Coronet grew to be one of the most successful carpet companies of its time. Not only do customers get a beautiful new floor, but they also get to have a wonderful experience with genuine people who thrive to go out of their way to make sure all their customers needs and concerns are met. He poignantly told of his epiphany moment, in 1994, when he read Paul Hawkens book The Ecology of Commerce and realized that his business actions were harming the world his grandchildren would inherit. The wellness center was renamed in his honor in December 2000 in recognition of his constant encouragement and sustaining financial support, according to university officials. Anderson was a changed man. He was known in environmental circles for his advanced and progressive stance on industrial ecology and sustainability.[2]. The Textile Workers Union of America tried twice to organize the Dalton areas tufted textile workers. Sorry, there are no recent results for popular commented articles. Sign up now to get our FREE breaking news coverage delivered right to your inbox. The new tufting industry drew on the existing base of textile capital, materials like yarn and cotton sheeting, and technical and managerial expertise. [34], "Ray Anderson, 'greenest CEO in America,' dies at 77", "Ray Anderson, Businessman Turned Environmentalist, Dies at 77", "RIP, sustainability pioneer Ray Anderson", "Foundation launches on birthday of Ray C. Anderson; Refocuses on funding sustainability research projects", "A New Foundation to Honor Ray Anderson's Legacy", "Remembering a VisionaryThe Ray C Anderson Foundation", "Foundation website to advance the legacy of Ray C. Anderson (1934-2011), America's Greenest CEO", "ISyE Alumnus and Interface Chairman Ray Anderson Dies", Green-biz pioneer Ray Anderson says sustainability literally pays for itself,, Ray Anderson, sustainable business pioneer, dies aged 77,, Confessions of a Radical Industrialist,, Ray Anderson awarded honorary doctorate at Georgia Tech,, Research Showcase to celebrate accomplishments in sustainability, Ray Anderson to receive River Guardian Award,, Women's Network for a Sustainable Future - WNSF 7th Annual Award to Ray Anderson,, Pillars of EARTH: Sustainable Leadership Awards, Purpose Prize Winner, Environmentalist Ray Anderson Dies at 77, AU Quality of Life Award honors Ray Anderson at United Nations, Interface founder and chairman Ray Anderson, visionary entrepreneur and champion of the environment,, The 2007 SB20: World's Top Sustainable Stocks,, Companies and Governments Lag NGOs in Driving Sustainability but New Corporate Leaders Emerging, According to Experts,, InterfaceFLOR Founder and Chairman Ray Anderson Awarded Honorary Doctorate From Georgia Tech, Georgia Historical Society Announces the Collection of Environmental Visionary Ray C. Anderson Now Open For Research, Ray Anderson: The business logic of sustainability (TED 2009), The Sustainable Industrialist: Ray Anderson of Interface, Interface Puts More Distance Between Manufacturing and the Well Head, Faceted Application of Subject Terminology, https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Ray_Anderson_(entrepreneur)&oldid=1075611569, Deaths from cancer in Georgia (U.S. state), Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike License 3.0, Inaugural Millennium Award from Global Green, presented by Mikhail Gorbachev (1996), Lifetime Achievement Award from GreenLaw (2010), The inaugural Global Sustainability Prize from the, Sustainability Award from the Women's Network for a Sustainable Future (WNSF), the first time the WNSF has honored a businessman (2010), Pillars of EARTH Sustainable Leadership Awards given by, George and Cynthia Mitchell International Prize for Sustainable Development (2001), This page was last edited on 6 March 2022, at 18:38. The collection, which includes biographical materials, business records, correspondence, organizational records, photographs, presentations, speeches, writings, travel files, and books, is available at the Georgia Historical Society's Research Center in Savannah. Nevertheless, carpet is typically made with fossil fuels and generates vast waste. During his stay in Dalton, Seretean boarded with Mrs. B.J. Randall L. Patton, Shaw Industries: A History (Athens: University of Georgia Press, 2002). The leading carpet maker, Shaw Industries, became part of Warren Buffetts Berkshire-Hathaway holding company in 2001. Tufting machines were relatively inexpensive, machine makers like Cobble offered in-house financing, and by the mid-1960s secondhand machines were increasingly available. Peak Amazon Part II: Is The Earnings Miss A Sign? This rapid multiplication of new firms clearly required financing, always difficult in the capital-poor South. He is always willing to give of himself and go the extra mile to satisfy customers and employees. Carpet consumption followed the price trend. Wokers for the Thomaston Mills in Upson County inspect a roll of cotton fabric. Watch Ray Andersons talk []. Like a story-book romance reads the history of the colorful tufted textile industry. So the Tufted Textile Manufacturers Association boasted in its 1950 directory. Carpet industry sales topped $1 billion annually in the early 1960s and surpassed $2 billion in the early 1970s. As a family-owned and operated residential flooring company, atBert Vis Flooring Inc., we have been retailing a wide variety of flooring products. Ron Van Gelderen, former president of the Dalton-based Carpet and Rug Institute, said Seretean helped build Coronet into a very prominent and well known cog in the carpet industry. Seretean, a native of New York City, graduated from Oklahoma State University in 1949 and received his masters degree from New York University in 1950. He loved Dalton and supported many, many, many activities that have been going on around here. Bert quickly became known as a well-respected and driven business leader. What more do you need to see that sustainability looks pretty good?Jill Danyelle, fiftyRX3, Ray Anderson, the advocate of sustainability in business, died on Monday at age 77. Anderson was featured several documentaries and films, such as The Corporation, (2004 Canadian documentary); The 11th Hour (2007 Leonardo DiCaprio film); I Am (2011 Tom Shadyac documentary); Big Ideas for a Small Planet (Sundance Channel series); and others. A tufted cotton carpet sold for about half the cost of a similar woven wool product.
Interface was founded in 1973 and brought a European style of carpet tiles which could be easily replaced if part of the carpet became stained or worn to the United States. Abbottopened the first Abbott Paint & Carpet on Marshall Avenue in St. Paulin 1945. The purpose of the Ray C. Anderson Foundation is to perpetuate shared values and continue the legacy that Anderson left behind. The Walter E. Heller Company, based in Chicago, Illinois, was the most important national firm in the growth of factoring. While founding the company, Bert took many risks. Many smaller firms, and some larger ones, struggled and failed in the new slow-growth environment. Growing up as kids, wed have Christmas morning, fix breakfast, go to church, open presents, and then hed go to work for a few hours because he loved it, Kevin Abbott said. The Seretean Center of Health Promotion opened at Emory University in Atlanta in 1997 thanks to his $1.5 million donation as part of his goal that it be the healthiest campus in the country. The centers auditorium was named in honor of Sereteans sister Phyllis S. Alperin.
Interface was founded in 1973 and brought a European style of carpet tiles which could be easily replaced if part of the carpet became stained or worn to the United States. Abbottopened the first Abbott Paint & Carpet on Marshall Avenue in St. Paulin 1945. The purpose of the Ray C. Anderson Foundation is to perpetuate shared values and continue the legacy that Anderson left behind. The Walter E. Heller Company, based in Chicago, Illinois, was the most important national firm in the growth of factoring. While founding the company, Bert took many risks. Many smaller firms, and some larger ones, struggled and failed in the new slow-growth environment. Growing up as kids, wed have Christmas morning, fix breakfast, go to church, open presents, and then hed go to work for a few hours because he loved it, Kevin Abbott said. The Seretean Center of Health Promotion opened at Emory University in Atlanta in 1997 thanks to his $1.5 million donation as part of his goal that it be the healthiest campus in the country. The centers auditorium was named in honor of Sereteans sister Phyllis S. Alperin.