Inside America’s Carpet Capital: An Empire and Its Toxic Legacy
February 02, 2026 | Source: FRONTLINE | by Dylan Jackson, Jason Dearen, and Justin Price
DALTON — Bob Shaw glared at the executives from the chemical giant 3M across the table from him. He held up a carpet sample and pointed at the logo for Scotchgard on the back.
“That’s not a logo,” fumed Shaw, CEO of the world’s largest carpet company, one attendee later recalled. “That’s a target.”
Weeks earlier, 3M Company announced it would reformulate its signature stain-resistance brand under pressure from the Environmental Protection Agency because of human health and environmental concerns.
Mills like Shaw’s had been using Scotchgard in carpet production, releasing its chemical ingredients into the environment for decades. And on a massive scale: The shrewd CEO built Shaw Industries from a family firm in Dalton, Georgia, into a globally dominant carpet maker worth billions.
“I got 15 million of these out in the marketplace,” Shaw told his 3M visitors. “What am I supposed to do about that?”
A 3M executive replied that he didn’t know. Shaw threw the sample at him and left the room.