Surfaces 2007 - March 2007

By Darius Helm, Maurie Welsh O'Neill and Kemp Harr

With the floorcovering economy in a distinct slump, no one expected the crowds at Surfaces to approach last year’s record, but most exhibitors were surprised by the quality of the visitors who did come to Vegas last month. “Smaller crowds, bigger orders,” one of them said, and that really summed up this year’s show, and possibly the industry’s prospects for the first part of the year.

Broadloom carpet accounts for 50% of all U.S. floorcovering sales, but you’d never know it at Surfaces. Hard surface exhibitors definitely dominated this year’s show, with Mannington Mills once again the most prominent player. Mannington, in fact, has become the glue that holds Surfaces together. The Salem, New Jersey vinyl, hardwood, laminate and carpet producer was once again the most significant sponsor of the show, and it once again played host to nearly 3,000 retailers at a huge dinner and party featuring comedian Jeff Foxworthy.

The absence of the nation’s three largest floorcovering manufacturers—Mohawk, Shaw and Armstrong—for the fourth straight year hasn’t had any significant impact on Surfaces. And it doesn’t seem like this year’s withdrawal of Tarkett and Columbia Hardwood, two of the largest exhibitors last year, had much of a negative impact either. Two other players, Anderson Hardwood and Faus Floors, quickly took over the spaces they abandoned. The absence of the biggest players also seems to have created a much greater forum for smaller companies, like Pinnacle Interiors, BR-111 and Natural Cork, which all made big statements at this show.

The carpet producers were led by Beaulieu, which continues to have the greatest presence in that category, along with Milliken, Dixie, Masland, Gulistan, Royalty, Monticello and a large group of high end players showing under the Wools of New Zealand banner. While neither Shaw or Mohawk showed their primary lines, divisions of both companies were there. Helios, Mohawk’s high end rug division, was part of the Wools of New Zealand contingent, while Mohawk’s ceramic and stone business, Dal-Tile, had a significant presence. Shaw’s Anso Nylon fiber division came with its new Green Edge campaign.

The presence of companies from China continues to grow. Most of them are wood flooring producers, but we’re seeing more and more Chinese laminate and ceramic flooring manufacturers at the show. The number of ceramic producers from other countries—particularly Italy and Spain—is also growing.

Once again, Surfaces played host to hundreds of companies that make accessories and provide other flooring related products and services. It seems that Surfaces is becoming the pre-eminent show for small companies that retailers wouldn’t otherwise have a chance to see. Visitors flock to see these small niche players, who are usually concentrated on the ground floor of the Sands, as much as they do to the larger mainstream flooring manufacturers on the main level.

TRENDS

IN GENERAL
1. Many firms are expanding beyond their traditional markets, adding either upper end or lower priced collections or entirely new categories of flooring to enhance their offerings.

2. Deep chocolate browns and near blacks are bigger than ever for hardwoods and laminates, in part fueled by the rise in popularity of exotics. But we’ve also seen the spread of those darker tones into carpet and ceramic too, where consumers will be likely to color coordinate throughout spaces in the house, and across flooring categories.

3. More influence from the commercial side of the market: more sophisticated constructions, and most especially, more stripes in carpet; sleeker surfaces, lower gloss levels and darker palettes in the harder surfaces.

CARPET
1. Wool was stronger than ever at this year’s show, where many traditionally nylon mills brought out lines in wool, wool blends or proprietary nylon technologies that create wool looks, like Solutia’s Wear-Dated Natural Nylon, and Stainmaster’s delustered yarns, along with the soft-handed Tactesse products, which continue to be popular.

2. Sophisticated striated and striped patterns, which have been big for the last few years on the commercial side, have begun to filter into the residential market.

3. This year, color offerings for carpet lines were more specific to particular patterns in each collection for many producers: e.g. natural looks were offered only in natural and earth tones. Another positive influence from the commercial side.

4. Near-solids, or products that have textural interest or are actually made with more than one yarn color, but read as a solid on the floor—have been strong in the commercial market for years.

5. Coordinated lines that include three or four styles—for example, a large, a medium and a small scale pattern, along with a near-solid (also an influence from the commercial side).

HARDWOOD
1. Exotics are definitely on the increase, along with more burly grained species.

2. Many firms are working on artful stain processes that make more abundant woods, like birch, look like rosewood, teak and other exotics.

3. Natural treatments: fuming and oil finishes.

4. More maple, walnut and elm, the new kid on the block.

5. Super dark stains: chocolates that are almost black, along with rich, red cast stains, are moving in on the traditional golden oaks.

6. Lower luster satin finishes for most hardwoods.

7. More handworked details on distressed wood styles, like nail holes and split ends.

8. While distressed looks continue to be important, we’re seeing a softening of surface treatment toward more smoothly rubbed time worn looks.

LAMINATES
1. Wood look laminates, which take their cue from the hardwood market, have also been moving toward exotic looks, more dramatic graining, and lower gloss levels.

2. The quality of realism in laminates continues to improve to a point where it’s harder and harder to tell which is the real thing on the showroom floor.

3. Stone look laminates, which follow ceramic looks, have been trending toward darker, sleeker, more urban styling.

4. New mixed high and low gloss levels for grout looks have added great realism to stone and tile designs.

RESILIENT
1. Soft and flexible loose lay vinyl floors are the newest resilient products.

2. Larger formats in tiles.

3. More coordinates in transitional pieces and wall base, e.g., Johnsonite’s new systems that coordinate with Tarkett’s resilient products; Forbo’s wood transition pieces that complement its Marmoleum; FauSolution’s new division of floor accessories.

CERAMIC
1. More varieties in formats and sizes for original mixed and matched configurations.

2. Glass and metal have become mainstream market accent pieces, as the mixed media look becomes a staple in home furnishings looks.

3. Smoother, sleeker, more urban finishes are replacing complicated, heavily rustic looks.

4. Stained cement effects in a variety of colorations and texturing are the newest looks on the market.

5. Sleek rectilinear tile formats, long popular in Europe, are influencing looks here.

For the full report on Surfaces 07, see the March 2007 issue of Floor Focus Magazine.

Print the Article