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18 HARTFORDBUSINESS.COM | JUNE 15, 2026 How one CT manufacturer remade its supply chain as tariffs reshaped global trade China, but China has become a less important manufacturing point for us," Stone said. He declined to disclose HMTX's investment in the restructuring effort, but said it involved relocating equip- ment, training workers in new markets and ensuring products manufactured in different countries met the same specifications and quality standards. Court fight The company's response to U.S. trade policy extended beyond relo- cating production. By Michael Juliano mjuliano@hartfordbusiness.com F or years, Norwalk-based HMTX Industries relied heavily on China to make flooring products sold in the United States. Today, the company says none of those U.S.-bound products are made there. The manufacturer of luxury vinyl tile and other flooring materials has spent the past several years rebuilding its supply chain across the United States, Mexico and Thailand as tariffs, trade disputes and global disruptions reshaped manufacturing. HMTX's restructuring mirrors changes made by manufacturers nationwide as companies reassessed supply chains following the pandemic and years of shifting U.S. trade policy. Now, the family-owned company — which says it generates nearly $800 million in annual revenue and counts Home Depot as a customer — is entering another transition. In May, HMTX named a new CEO, Imran Ahmad, who previously led the decorative architectural products group at Michigan-based building products manufacturer Masco Corp. His task will be to turn years of supply-chain investments into long-term growth. Production diversification HMTX traces its roots to 1912, when Arthur Stone founded a building mate- rials wholesale business in Utica, New York. Over the decades, the company evolved its product lineup, changed names and eventually relocated its headquarters to Norwalk. Today, HMTX sells flooring prod- ucts through wholesale distributors and retailers under brands including Halstead, Metroflor, Teknoflor, Vertex and Aspecta. Arthur Stone's grandson, Harlan Stone, served as CEO for 30 years, before becoming executive chairman in May 2025. The 68-year-old New Canaan resident now oversees the board while leading the company's trade policy and lobbying efforts related to tariffs. His brother, Peter Stone, has led HMTX's international supply-chain division since 1986. HMTX began shifting flooring production out of China in 2021 after spending four years planning the tran- sition, Harlan Stone said. At the time, nearly 95% of the flooring products it sold in the United States were manu- factured in China. Today, the company no longer relies on China for products destined for the U.S. market. "Our exposure in U.S.-imposed tariffs on products made in China is virtually zero," Stone said. To accomplish that, HMTX launched what it calls a production diversifi- cation program, adding about 2.94 million square feet of manufacturing capacity outside China between 2023 and 2025. That included a 315,000-square-foot factory in Pitt- ston, Pennsylvania; a 620,000-square- foot plant in Monterrey, Mexico; and a 2-million-square-foot factory in Thailand. The company also has manufac- turing operations in Vietnam. The Pennsylvania factory is owned by American Flooring, a joint venture between HMTX and Chinese manufac- turer Elegant Home Tech. The facili- ties in Mexico, Thailand and Vietnam are owned by other Chinese partners that Stone declined to identify. Geopolitical concerns, U.S. port infrastructure constraints and China's evolution into a more advanced economy influenced the company's decision to diversify production, Stone said. Despite the shift, HMTX has main- tained relationships with its Chinese manufacturing partners, which continue producing flooring in China for markets outside the United States. "We still have partnerships in AT A GLANCE HMTX Industries Industry: Flooring Manufacturing Top Executives: Imran Ahmad, CEO; Harlan Stone, Executive Chairman HQ: 29 Oakwood Ave., Norwalk Employees: 350 Website: hmtx.global Contact: 203-299-3100 HMTX Industries Executive Chairman Harlan Stone inside the company's eco-conscious headquarters in Norwalk. Contributed Photo