In flooring retail, we’ve trained ourselves to think in square feet. Every sales conversation begins and ends at the floor. We measure success in installed square footage, and our showrooms are organized accordingly—floor samples, floor displays, floor space. It’s understandable. It also leaves money on the table.
After many years in this industry, I’m convinced that one of the most overlooked selling opportunities in any flooring showroom isn’t on the floor; it’s on the wall.
Here’s a scenario I hear constantly: A dealer wants to close more profitable business but doesn’t want to take on new product categories that require significant investment, staff training or complex inventory management. They look at their showroom and think, “There’s no room for anything else.” What they miss is that they’re only looking down.
Our decorative acoustic wall panels occupy zero floor space, which makes for a less cluttered, sharper shopping experience. They mount at eye level, which turns out to be exactly where your customers are already looking. When a couple walks into your showroom to choose new hardwood or LVP for their living room, they’re not just imagining their floor—they’re imagining the whole room. A beautifully displayed acoustic panel on your showroom wall is exciting and does the selling for you. They see it. They feel it. They want it. The acoustic panel category is already selling successfully through flooring dealers and has had strong early receptions at both Surfaces and the International Builders Show.
Wall panels provide margin opportunities that do not require a new cost center. Adding acoustic panels to a flooring project is one of the cleanest upsells in residential or commercial sales. The customer is already committed to a room transformation. They’re already writing a check. A set of custom-printed acoustic panels to complete the look is a natural extension of that conversation—not a separate sales pitch.
Stability will support higher retail margins. NSP’s panels are made in the U.S.A., which reduces uncertainty of shipping, lead time and tariff costs associated with import products. They’re custom printable. And because installation requires only basic DIY skills, you don’t need to build out a crew or coordinate an installation team to close the sale.
This is high-margin revenue layered onto existing jobs for customers who want their homes to be fashionable and beautiful. There is no need for new infrastructure investment.
Getting stared
So, what’s required to get started selling wall panels? Surprisingly, very little. No elaborate floor display. No specialized sales training. The panels display themselves, and once a customer touches one, the conversation practically closes itself. We recommend starting with our “See it, feel it and sell it” approach, and let the product do the heavy lifting.
The floor will always be your foundation. But the next margin opportunity in your showroom could be staring your customers in the face.
Request a free sample using the QR code in our ad and see what your customers think.
Ed Bass is CEO of NSP Panels, a new company specializing in wall paneling (both acoustic and non-acoustic) for residential and commercial applications alike. He previously served as vice president of sales at Surteco North America. For more information about becoming a distributor or dealer, please visit nsp-panels.com or email contact@ nsp-panels.com.
