Editor's Letter
By Tanja Kern
Associate Publisher & Editorial Director
2023 Flooring Industry Year in Review
This year was full of highs and lows for the flooring industry. The residential market faced economic headwinds in 2023. In commercial flooring, institutional and hospitality kept busy and corporate spaces took a hit while the workforce figures out what the hybrid office work looks like. What was consistent was the endless amount of news, style, strategy and innovation that we reported.
Top from left: 2023 Starnet Annual Meeting; Retail 2.0 displays at the 2023 CCA Global Winter Convention; the FLOOR Trends & Installation team with Daltile at Coverings 2023. Bottom from left: Dave Gardner and Jen Zurn at the NWFA Expo; Beth Miller at NWFA Expo; and the Mannington team at the NFA Fall Meeting.
A Few Highlights of the Year
The year began with the usual bang: flooring markets; CCA Global Winter Convention; a trip to Hannover, Germany, for Domotex; and The International Surface Event where we reported on the latest trends and innovations.
This spring, FLOOR Trends & Installation Managing Editor Beth Miller traveled to Cevisama in Spain to see the latest in Spanish tile trends. See her coverage here.
In March, we were thrilled to host an educational webinar, Specifying and Installing Better Healthcare Floors, which foreshadowed our move to bringing together our design, retail and installation audiences. Jane Rohde, principal and founder of JSR Associates Inc., an architecture and interior design firm specializing in senior living and healthcare spaces, lead a discussion among designers and flooring installers on how to collaborate and communicate more effectively for successful flooring projects in senior living and healthcare spaces. Watch it here.
In April, we were back at Coverings checking out the latest in tile trends in North America. Our varied coverage included trends stories and video highlights. Watch it here.
May brought us to NWFA Expo in Milwaukee, Wisconsin, which celebrated great attendance numbers as the industry learned about the products, installation tips and business best practices to take businesses to the next level. Read the story.
In June, we were back in Chicago for Neocon where we went trend spotting for commercial flooring trends. Read the story. Watch our video with Hip Hop Architect Mike Ford about his rug collection with Shaw Contract. HMTX CEO Harlan Stone talked about the company's innovative SRP TPU flooring technology. Watch the video.
September kicked off with the launch of our new super brand, FLOOR Trends & Installation, bringing together the readership of Floor Trends and Floor Covering Installer under one brand.
It was standing room only in the education sessions and demos at the inaugural 2023 Certified Flooring Installers (CFI) and Flooring Contractors Association (FCICA) Convention, where installers came to glean tips and tricks of the trade, elevate their skills and discuss the uncertainty of business in 2024. Read the story.
In tandem with the CFI + FCICA Convention, we were excited to publish the inaugural Performance Accessories Guide, that explained the brand's total system of adhesives, underlayments, trims, transitions and stair solutions offered to retailers and installers. Read the issue here.
In November, readers voted for the FLOOR Trends & Installation Awards, sponsored by Taylor Adhesives with prizes donated by QEP/Roberts. The Installation Awards celebrate the flooring installation industry’s talented craftsmen and women in both residential and commercial settings, and we hope by highlighting the skill of these installers we can encourage more installer recruitment and education. Read the feature.
In December, the flooring industry voted in the inaugural 2023 Top Flooring Products. Winners are announced in this issue! We were blown away by the participation and will celebrate the winners at TISE 2024. Thanks to the number of submissions and readers’ enthusiasm for this contest—along with feedback we received—we plan to expand the contest to include more categories next year.
I want to end this year by thanking our readers, partners, collaborators and the FLOOR Trends & Installation team for all the work they’ve done to make it another great year. Wishing everyone a happy and restful holiday!
DECEMBER 2023 FLOORTRENDSMAG.COM