The Business

World of Carpets began as a modest carpet store in San Francisco in 1968. Today, the full-service store occupies more than 35,000 square feet of space in Santa Rosa. In addition to offering an extensive line of commercial and residential floor, window and wall coverings, World of Carpets is a full-service interior design company.

The Challenge

Continued expansion of the business in both services and size is a sure sign of success. But the energy bills to light, heat and cool the 35,000 square foot store were taking a bite out of the profit. And the unflattering fluorescent lighting with its unnatural blue shade was not showing off the fabrics, carpet and floor covering in their best light.

The Solution

World of Carpets took advantage of public goods funding through the Small Business Energy Alliance (SBEA) to update to energy- efficient lighting. The SBEA upgraded from old-fashioned T-12 lamps with magnetic ballasts to high efficiency T-5 lamps with electronic ballasts. At the same time, SBEA replaced energy- guzzling incandescent floodlights with energy- efficient compact fluorescent lamps. All products were ENERGY STAR- labeled.

The Result

World of Carpets is "seeing green" in three ways. Green is the color of the money they're saving from the energy-saving upgrades. As a result of saving nearly 44,000 kWh of electricity, World of Carpets is saving more than $5,500 on their annual electric bill. Green is also the color of the environment, which will improve as a result of preventing the emission of almost 70,000 pounds of carbon dioxide annually.

And, finally, customers can see the true greens (and other hues) of the products offered, thanks to the improved color rendition and quality of the energy- efficient lighting. "The warm natural looking light shows off our fabrics and carpets in their true colors," remarked owner Gayle Carston.

WINNER

In recognition of the significant energy savings, along with other energy-saving practices (such as shutting off lights when not in use and using electric fans to reduce air conditioner use), World of Carpets received national recognition with the Sixth Annual ENERGY STAR Small Business Network Award.