Few names carry as much weight in the flooring industry as Dossche. After all, Piet Dossche helped reshape the resilient category through the creation of COREtec, now a Shaw brand, and one of the most successful flooring brands in the industry’s history. But while the company has since changed hands, the Dossche family’s story in flooring is far from over.
Today, Julian Dossche, president and CEO of International Flooring Company (IFC), and his brother William, executive vice president, find themselves balancing two responsibilities: honoring a legacy that helped transform the industry while building a company designed for the realities of today’s retail environment.
“My dad built an incredible business and an incredible product, which reshaped the industry in a major way,” said Julian Dossche. “So as a second-generation company, the concept of having ‘big shoes to fill’ is an understatement. We carry a unique burden. We have to manage that legacy while creating something of our own and continuing to better not just the name but the story as well.”
For the brothers, however, the story isn’t about recreating the past. It’s about understanding which lessons still matter and which need to evolve.
Continuing legacy
At its core, IFC remains grounded in many of the same principles that helped define the family’s first chapter in flooring. Principles that built foundational relationships and focused on the needs of the independent retail community are still shaping the next chapter in Dossche history.
For Dossche, that starts with recognizing that the independent retailers IFC serves today often share many of the same characteristics as the family business he is helping to lead.
“If you look at the retailer community, it’s still very much family owned. They eat, breathe and sleep their business. If you look on the supply side, there’s not much of that left. We didn’t name the business Dossche Flooring Company, but our name is still there and we’re still very much a family-owned business. We continue to say that this industry is built on relationships— and we want to showcase to the industry, and to the world, that a family business is a very beautiful thing.”
When it comes to operations—while products, technology and consumer expectations have changed dramatically— Dossche said some fundamentals remain timeless.
“I still think one of the biggest lessons I’ve learned is email’s great, text messages are great, but a phone call goes a long way. Getting up and going to see the person goes a long way. The older generations may have been forced to be in front of people, but that lesson still stands true. I could do every single one of my meetings on a Teams call, but it would not have the same impact, it wouldn’t create the same thought processes, the same relationship building. This is still a people-driven industry, so being in front of people is crucial.”
But those relationships were built on more than shared experiences and family ties. They were constructed on a set of values that continue to shape IFC’s culture today. “Honor and integrity,” Dossche explained. “What I’ve taken from past learnings is being true to your word, be in front of people and wake up every morning with the intent that you’re going to try to make this thing better.”
Building something new
While some foundational principles remain intact, Dossche is quick to point out that the market itself has changed dramatically, meaning IFC’s strategy has to be entirely its own. “What we did yesterday isn’t necessarily going to make us effective today,” he said.
In truth, the challenges facing IFC today are fundamentally different than what Piet Dossche faced when introducing COREtec to the market. “My dad had to sell ‘why the product,’” Dossche said. “He created a brand-new category. So the questions were ‘What is this category? Why do we need this?’ And he did an incredible job doing that.”
Today, however, the category is established. Retailers understand rigid core. Consumers understand waterproof flooring. The challenge is no longer convincing the market that the product matters—it’s convincing retailers that IFC matters and doing it in a crowded market. “The question is ‘Why IFC? Why Canopy? Why Julian and William?’ Our focus now has to be on why us.”
For Dossche, answering that question starts with understanding the realities retailers face every day. “That goes back to listening to your customer, asking them what their biggest challenges are, what keeps them up at night.”
That retailer-first mindset ultimately led IFC to develop what Dossche refers to as the “four customers” framework.
“You have the retail owner, the RSA, the installer and the end user/consumer. You have four customers that you have to somehow serve. So that journey is something that we are constantly focusing on.”
When it comes to product development, IFC evaluates innovation through the lens of each of those stakeholders. “When we look at product innovation, the question becomes, ‘How do we solve problems for these four people?’”
That philosophy can be seen in the company’s flagship Canopy brand. “Canopy was built on the No. 1 pushback I received right before we started the business: ‘I’m getting shopped left and right.’ And our answer was, ‘Great, we’ll give you a product that retailer X down the street can’t have.’ You commit to us, and we commit to you.”
That same thinking has shaped IFC’s intentionally limited distribution strategy. “I’m very hyper-focused on the specialty retailer because I still believe that they are an integral part to making this business and this industry succeed—and we want to be extremely meaningful to a lot less people,” Dossche explained. “We don’t need to serve everybody. That’s not possible. And it’s not healthy for a supply chain to try to serve everybody, either.”
The next chapter
As IFC looks toward the future, growth remains important. But for Dossche, success isn’t measured solely in sales—though that remains a focused goal. Dossche said he hopes IFC becomes something more meaningful to the retailers it serves.
“Obviously, growth and sales—that’s without question. But I also want this company to have a leadership voice. And if you ask a partner of IFC’s, I want them to be able to say, ‘These guys have changed my world and have made my store, my community, my brand better.’”
Be sure to watch the story in real time. The Founders: The IFC Story
