Longtime industry veteran and one of the founding members of the National Wood Flooring Association (NWFA) and the Wood Floor of the Year Awards, Jack Stuart, died Aug. 14, 2017. His legacy lives on through these awards.
Stuart learned the hardwood flooring business from his father and, in 1947, went into business with his brother, Darrell. Over the years, their company, Stuart Hardwood Floors, grew to become one of the largest hardwood flooring businesses in the San Francisco Bay area. At one point, they employed almost 65 flooring installers completing up to 25 jobs per day.
He left the business in 1972 and moved to Cloverdale, California, where he planned to make a change in his career. After building his own home and working on several projects around town, word got out about Stuart’s flooring experience. He received so many requests for hardwood flooring installation that he decided to open Jack Stuart Hardwood Floors.
Stuart’s passion for hardwood flooring was unparalleled, and he constantly sought ways to give back to the industry he loved. In 1987, he served as one of the founding members of NWFA. In 1990, he challenged the association to create a mechanism to recognize outstanding work and show off the beauty and excellence of hardwood floors to increase pride in the industry. Stuart served as Chairman of the committee that established the very first Wood Floor of the Year awards.
In 2001, Stuart was awarded an Honorary Vanguard degree for his exceptional service to the industry.
A man we should all try to emulate. More than anyone it was his forcefulness in regards to training which brought us to what NWFA is known for…education. He had more than enough reason for that interest as he always noted how much time and effort it took to train his installation teams. From there he moved us into an award for those that excelled in what they had been taught. RIP my old friend.