Jay Kerr

From his home shop, Jay Kerr fills a niche in the area carpet business

One of the great things about being a journalist is you get to meet all kinds of people who do all kinds of different things for a living.It is a lot like being in college all your life as you are constantly learning new things about human nature, the world of business, politics, technology and the like.

I am always fascinated by what people do with their lives, how they make their living and why they do what they do.The one thing I am most excited about is talking to people who are excited about what they do.

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Jay Kerr is a great case in point.Kerr works in a very specialized niche of the carpet business.He doesn't make carpet.He doesn't sell carpet.He doesn't really install carpet, per se.But he does do carpet cutting, beveling, fringing, binding and -- above all -- surging.And, as it turns out, he is about the only one in north Louisiana who does surging.

In his home shop, Kerr proudly displays the tools of his trade.He has a Cove Base cutter, a binding machine, a beveler, a fringing machine and his pride and joy -- a surging machine."I don't know of another one in north Louisiana," he says proudly.

Surging utilizes a yarn that is sewn inwards around the edges giving the carpet a very refined and finished look.This is a much in-demand technique that Kerr has mastered and he gets clients from a broad region due to the fact that no one else in the area can do the work.

After graduating from Fair Park High School and attending Northwestern State for two years pursuing a degree in business, Kerr embarked on his career path in retail carpet sales in Shreveport.From the mid-70s until around 1993, he was a representative for two leading carpet mills.Tired of the constant traveling required, he gave up the job in 1995 and joined the sales team at Mike Morgan Pontiac in Shreveport.

While a rep for L.D. Brinkman Carpet Distributor, Kerr had met Frank Hardesty, who ran the company along with his wife, Mary.
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In the last year Kerr and Hardesty were talking and Kerr learned that Hardesty was about to retire and close his business.
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"I knew that if Frank was gone there would be a real void in the market," Kerr relates, "so I bought the business from him and Mary.
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Kerr closed the deal in February of 2001 and bought inventory and most of the machines that cover his work space today.

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"With the advent of tile flooring and the trend in hardwood floors," Kerr says, "surging for large and small area rugs has become a big portion of my business.

"There is a lot of waste factor in carpet buying, where you may have irregular sized pieces left after the house is finished.That offers great opportunities to do creative and stylish embellishments with those remnants."

Surging, as well as fringing and binding, can add tremendous aesthetic beauty to carpet in many applications.Binding uses a polyester material strip that is sewn on to carpet edges for color accent as well to prevent fraying.

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The many samples of his work that surround us in his well organized work shop demonstrate the skill with which Kerr works and the fact that he seems to approach his work as an artist.His attention to detail and pride at the enhancement his work adds to each piece of carpet is evident.

His business is booming to the point that he is about to have to abandon his comfortable at-home work space for a warehouse location large enough to accommodate his growing work load.

"I am not in competition with carpet stores," Kerr is quick to point out."I am here to help the buyer get the most out of what they have already purchased."In most cases, I can pick up and deliver."

For the level of artistry he brings to the table and the array of machinery he has at his disposal, Kerr's charges are remarkably affordable, ranging from only "$1.25 a foot for binding and $1.50 a foot for surging to $3.50 a foot plus fringe for fringing."

If you are building a house or remodeling and want to get the most out of your carpet, Jay Kerr is the man to go to.If you or your decorator have been trying to get these services in the area before with little luck, Jay Kerr is here to help.

"I see tremendous potential in this business here," Kerr says with a smile of confidence.This man is an artist and carpet is his canvas.His phone is 773-9304.