FloorCoveringNews

By Matthew Spieler

San Antonio—As the economy picks up steam members of the Alliance Flooring network were encouraged to take control of their destinies by being the driver and making a difference.

The days of just hanging a sign and having people come in are over, noted Ron Dunn, co-CEO of Alliance. “You need to drive to it; it doesn’t come to you.”

Barnwell, S.C. – Formica Flooring announces the launch of a 2012 social media campaign, which includes a blog (appropriately named FormicaFloorum) on formicaflooring.com and an enhanced presence on Facebook, Twitter, Pinterest, YouTube and Google+.

The FormicaFloorum blog contains helpful entries on choosing the right laminate flooring brand and style, and informing the consumer about the difference between hardwood and laminate by sharing stories of actual homeowners. Formica Flooring’s Facebook and Twitter pages are consistently updated with informative and engaging posts and links, and a YouTube channel will soon host videos on a variety of topics related to laminate flooring.

by Matthew Spieler

Talk of laminate’s demise may be greatly overstated, especially to those who at-tended Surfaces. Yes, sales have suffered more than most since the recession started. Yes, the category is under tremendous pressure from competing products like LVT. And, yes, margins are being squeezed razor thin. But none of this has stopped laminate companies from investing in technology and creating products that either mimic the real thing or have a unique look.

PHILADELPHIA—The Bayard Sales Corp. once again solidified its position of strength in the Mid Atlantic when it unveiled new products to its sales team here, on Oct. 18. New products and programs from Formica, Kährs and Shaw were rolled out to give the sales force a new arsenal when it comes up against today’s challenges.

Refreshingly, Don Wohlfarth Jr., Bayard’s president, didn’t cite the economy or a lull in building as one of the obstacles the group is facing. “One of our big challenges, frankly, is from the time we get our professional approach in front of our customers, the message is watered down and not introduced the way we want it introduced,” he explained. “You go to a specialty retailer today and she’s answering phones, loading vans, not hearing what we have to say.”

BARNWELL, S.C.—Formica Flooring began producing a new laminate flooring collection called Classic Estate.  Six hardwood looks in walnut, maple, mahogany and oak feature 12mm thick planks and details including beveled edges to capture the look of stately, refined American hardwoods.

At 4.96-inches in width by 50.79-inches long, Classic Estate features narrow planks with single-strip designs, and the entire collection is backed by a lifetime residential warranty against wear, staining and fading.

Even though overall prices within the laminate category have dropped in recent years and more products fall into the low and mid range price points, there is still a market for high end goods.

As such, there are still laminate companies promoting high end products as they recognize it not only separates dealers from the pack, it allows retailers to earn higher profits as the margins on these goods are better.

As sales continue to be hard to come by, laminate manufacturers are putting more emphasis on products that give consumers extra value for their dollar while touting the fact more of these goods are being produced domestically.

“The buying process in 2011 finds consumers almost universally scrutinizing their flooring purchases through a new value lens,” said Roger Farabee, senior vice president of marketing for Mohawk’s Unilin divison. “A strong price/value relationship is of paramount importance to them.”

Brands are considered an interface between the company that makes the product and the end user. People can more easily identify a range of offerings if they have recognized labels, which, in turn, boosts sales for retailers, experts say. In addition, branded products can command premiums since they are considered a step above commodities in the consumer’s eyes.

There are pretty much two ways to look at the laminate flooring category in 2010. The optimists will focus on the fact that for the second consecutive year, and in a very tough economic climate, laminate manufacturers moved more square feet of the product than the year prior. Unfortunately, it is happening at the expense of the product’s average selling price. Thus, the category suffered its fourth straight year of declining sales in terms of dollars, although similar to 2009, the dip was only in the 2% range.

Driving trade-ups is one of retail’s biggest challenges, but one that the industry overall has actually had more success with in the last couple of years than in the past, noted Yon Hinkle, product manager, Armstrong laminate and residential resilient tile. According to Hinkle, retailers who sell laminate flooring need to clarify the segment’s trade-up story. To this end, he noted, many mills have gone to a very clear product hierarchy. “Clearly call-out the key attributes for your customers that drive value while showing her how true, realistic looks differ at varying price points.”

ROSLYN, N.Y.—Following a two-year hiatus, Shaw Industries was voted the industry’s Best Overall Manufacturer in the 15th Award of Excellence competition. This was the third time in the award’s history that Shaw took top honors, which it last held in 2008. Shaw also repeated its performance from last year by taking home the Award of Excellence for Environmental Leadership, which was first awarded in 2010.

Roslyn, N.Y.—The 15^th annual Award of Excellence competition, sponsored by Floor Covering News and the World Floor Covering Association (WFCA), is a way for manufacturers’ customers—retailers, distributors, designers, installers, specifies, etc.—to honor the companies they feel consistently provide the best service, professionalism of sales force, management responsiveness, value, design, B2B, handling of claims and ease of doing business. In other words, those manufacturers help them do the best job running successful, profitable business operations, whether it be a retail operation, distributorship, design centers or installation workrooms.

While every category has been hit hard by the recession and the new attitudes of the consumer as the country slowly recovers from the economic downturn, it seems like laminate has been taking some low blows lately and executives are fighting back, telling FCNews there is plenty of life left in the category going forward. “Low end continues to attract the most volume,” noted Travis Bass, executive vice president of sales and marketing for Kronotex, parent company of Formica. “However, there has definitely been a trend back toward the higher price points with consumer confidence growing.”

Las Vegas—In years past, it was easy to define the top design and technological trends in the laminate category as most introductions included one or both. But with the recession taking a major toll on the category, manufacturers at Surfaces were all over the board as they focused on rounding out their offerings in anticipation of more consumers opening up their purse strings as the year progresses.

UNCASVILLE, CONN.—More than 1,500 representatives from as many as 650 stores turned out for the NRF Distributors’ Fall Flooring Market here last month. Members raced to take advantage of unique buying opportunities from 80 vendors across all categories as well as multiple educational credit courses.

“You can hear the buzz on the floor,” said Terry Gray, senior vice president of marketing. “With the economy improving there is a lot more activity and not so much doom and gloom.”

It may still be summer according to Mother Nature, but with kids going back to school and Labor Day around the corner fall is in the air. As such, laminate manufacturers are in the process of restocking retail displays with new collections, new designs and new colors to help dealers capture consumers searching for ways to spruce up their homes.

The following is just a sampling of the latest products hitting the market. For the progressive retailer, some of these may already be in stock but there are sure to be a few discoveries in the list.

Sales of high-end products may be coming back based on various corporate reports but in the laminate category they have remained constant as consumers do not want to sacrifice either looks or performance for price.

“While it’s true consumers are searching for greater value,” explained George Kelley, CEO of Pergo, N.A., “it does not mean the majority of them are truly interested in sacrificing superior design and performance to buy a cheaply made product.”