April 27/May 4, 2015; Volume 29/Number 2
By Jenna Lippin
Novalis Innovative Flooring prides itself as a design and manufacturing leader of LVT. Established in 1984, Novalis has expanded its business significantly to become an international company with multiple offices and distribution centers all over the world. In North America, Novalis has been working diligently to add more distribution partners to its network to help increase exposure.
“We have come a long way in a relatively short amount of time,” said Mark Hansen, vice president, North America. “Our distribution in the U.S. with our branded product [NovaFloor] has grown by 60% in the last 18 months.”
One of Novalis’ newest distribution partnerships includes Longust Distributing, which was brought on in March to represent NovaFloor and Stainmaster Luxury Vinyl in California, Hawaii, Nevada, New Mexico and parts of western Texas and southwestern Colorado. Novalis joined forces with Fishman Flooring Solutions last fall to distribute NovaFloor in Maryland, New Jersey, Pennsylvania, Ohio, Virginia, North Carolina, eastern Tennesse, South Carolina and Georgia.
“Every distributor partnership is different, depending on their unique situations,” Hansen noted. “Overall, we choose quality distributors and they choose us because they want a quality LVT supplier. We are very proud of our relationships with Bennett Supply, Crescent Hardwood Supply, Cole Flooring, Fishman Flooring Solutions, Kenco Distributors, Longust, New England Flooring Supply and Self’s, [with] more to come.”
At this time Novalis’ goal is to complete coast-to-coast coverage in the U.S., with particular focus on the Northwest and some parts of the Central states. A primary focus for the company is to create brand awareness and increased sales for NovaFloor, its complete LVT line developed for both residential and Main Street applications. “Not only does NovaFloor offer a variety of styles and installation methods, but we support it with very ‘shopable’ merchandising displays and full-size samples. We also have the ability to offer distributors their own private label brands if they so desire.”
According to Hansen, Novalis’ continued efforts to branch out have not only helped expose the company’s unique products, but LVT in general. “We have been able to bring our LVT to some distributors who would have never ventured into the LVT market. Thanks to NovaFloor, it has been a very profitable experience for them during the surge of LVT over the last three years. Being a worldwide LVT brand and specialist since 1984 gives us a tremendous base of experience to help distributors take advantage of the growth opportunity in the category.”
To learn more, visit novafloor.us.