Wrapping up the winter show season, it is obvious that there’s a lot of potential in the flooring industry. New technologies, new products, new marketing strategies—it’s intriguing to see how marketers are using consumer research, their personal experience and plain old gut instinct to tell their story and sell more flooring.
From the 30,000-foot view, we’ve seen the tide of resilient flooring take over the industry in recent years, and now everyone and their brother seems to be using “waterproof” or “water resistant” as the key words in marketing collateral. So much so that I keep anticipating the retailer who will give away a canoe with every waterproof flooring purchase. (If you’re already doing this, please send us pics. It would make for a fun story). Granted, 2017 gave us a lot to worry about with the hurricanes and floods in the southern states, but as one industry executive noted, “It’s not like homeowners are hosing off their floors every morning, so how waterproof do they really need to be?”