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CARPET STAR
2023
Carpet Retailers of the Year
Teppich-Fachhändler des Jahres
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CARPET STAR 2023
Belle of Stouby, Denmark earns a Carpet Star 2023 as Exemplary Carpet Store
A wealth of ideas + professional expertise = major sales
This Carpet Star winner is a retailer from Denmark that serves an exemplary role 1 model for other carpet stores. The showroom is located in the small town of Stouby near the Baltic Sea – a ten minute drive from the city of Vejle out into the beautiful countryside. It’s a place you would rather expect to be going on holiday to, instead of visiting a successful car- pet store.
Run by Martin Munkholm, his sister Hille and her daughter Trine, half of the company’s re- venue is made from modern art, in fact, as the company Belle is a carpet dealership and art gallery rolled into one. Visitors are made aware of the firm’s two distinct business lines before stepping inside. The company presents its range of high-quality carpets on some 300 square meters of showroom space inside an old, thatched-roof building, while the art gal- lery is housed in a modern extension built on in 2012.
In terms of carpets the Munkholm family focu- ses exclusively on handmade products, roughly 70% of which are Persian, ranging from mo- dern rizbafts to workshop carpets with classic patterns. Flatweaves have been up and coming over the last two years, alongside modern-clas- sic rugs from Afghanistan, rounding out the high-quality assortment.
Belle would keep more carpets in stock if they had more space, as Martin Munkholm notes: “Our showroom space is limited, sadly.” But that in itself has led to good things, as Belle in- vites customers to attend a carpet show four times a year. Organised jointly with importers, these exhibitions are an opportunity to try out new things in the assortment. “These events are effective advertising for us. It happens often enough: a customer will come in looking for one particular thing, but ends up buying an entirely different carpet,” dealer Munkholm points out.
In purchasing, the Munkholms insist on premi- um quality with no exceptions. “I’d rather pay 100 euros more for each square meter if that means the rug I show my customers will still be looking great ten years from now.” Selling pro- ducts in the higher price ranges demands a lot of specialised knowledge. “Customers want to know what they are getting in return for the ex- tra money they pay. And we are able to explain it to them.”
The Munkholms are unquestionably rug ex- perts, as anyone growing up as the third gene-
Belle is located in the small town of Stouby near the Baltic Sea – a ten minute drive from the city of Vejle out into the beautiful countryside.
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PHOTOS: BELLE