Olson Rug & Flooring

Buying carpet usually isn’t an easy process, but save yourself some trouble and just go straight to Olson Rug & Flooring’s Skokie location. Don’t mess around with Luna, Empire, or the home improvement box stores. We got a much better value at Olson («value» means what you get for the money, not just cheapest price per square foot of material).
Fred Rahbar is one of the best I’ve seen at managing a customer relationship. He took the time to understand what we were looking for and helped guide us to the right products. We went from an overwhelming choice of carpet styles down to a few finalists very easily with his help. At Olson, you will be dealing directly with him from the minute you walk in the door to the final installation. This service level is worth any price to me if it makes the process easier.
Our carpet purchase was part of a larger remodeling project. Olson was very accomodating, letting us schedule installation for several months out, then allowing us to easily reschedule on last-​minute notice when our remodeling project fell behind. The installers were quick, clean, and had no problem dealing with a moisture barrier that I had already installed myself (for a basement carpet installation).
Bottom line: my entire experience with Olson (and with Fred Rahbar) was one of «what can we do for you and get the product you want, when you want it.» This is the complete opposite of what I’ve experienced with other carpet retailers who spend a lot of time telling you what they won’t or can’t do.

We went into Olson with special circumstances. We have three 12 year old dogs who we rescued, but who have been resistant to training. It’s a difficult situation, but sometimes one must make accommodations.
In any case, keeping our old carpeting was impossible, as the salesman knew. While the situation isn’t ideal, we discussed the issue with him explaining that we needed very durable flooring. He sold us the best laminate available and assured us it could stand up to anything.
Well, within a few months it began to bubble. We do use training pads and maintain the floor properly. I think what makes this worse is that the bathroom floor that was put in is vinyl and the installer didn’t caulk it properly so my mother called and talked to the sales rep about it and he promised someone would come out to fix it, but no one ever did so she called again and still nothing.
As I said, we talked to the salesman about exactly what we needed and he recommended laminate for the living room, which makes sense in ordinary circumstances. However, for us, we should have been advised to get vinyl in the living room too.

I don’t normally take the time to review but I felt as though my experience with Olson Rug was worthy of the time. This was the worst merchant experience I have ever had and I highly recommend that you do not use them. I had the bulk of my carpet order delivered and installed and the carpet for one room didn’t arrive (the measurer forgot to order that piece). Over the course of the next two months, I never received this carpet. I scheduled the appointment no less than 25 times only to hear excuses such as the wrong size was delivered, the wrong color, the installer got stuck on his last job, etc. and even such as excuses as the delivery truck was hijacked and the carpet was stolen and that the installer got in a fist-​fight with the carpet salesman was arrested. I mean, seriously? Throughout the course of these excuses, I was promised this last piece of carpet would be free, in addition to some free blinds. Needless to say, none of these orders ever arrived. When I finally requested my money back, I was told for days that I would receive a credit card credit and, of course, I didn’t. So, I have since filed a complaint with Mastercard. I just had to take a minute to say please shop somewhere else!

I bought some carpeting there recently. Good selection, helpful sales people and decent pricing. Not as cheap as some other places, but really reliable service. The person who was at the store personally came out and measured, and delivery was within a week, on time, and professional. Home Depot and other «low cost» places try to nickel and dime you for every little thing. Olson Rug made it easy… even if there are cheaper options, I was happy to pay a small premium for the peace of mind.