Blog

Orlando, Fla.—CCA Global Partners announced that sports broadcaster Bob Costas has been selected as the keynote speaker for its annual member conneXtion convention to be held here in January. Held annually, the conneXtion convention brings together nearly 1,200...

Waregem, Belgium—Unilin Technologies, the intellectual property division of Unilin, has received a notice of allowance for a new patent—US 18/450,106. This patent, soon to be officially granted, according to Unilin, covers the recently introduced flooring products...

Dalton—The World Floor Covering Association (WFCA) released a new “Tuesday Tips” this week. In the series, WFCA experts presents short video tips for improving customer service and optimizing staff performance. In the end, it’s all about understanding the importance...

In the first two installments of this series, I discussed how smart dealers, like Cody (a composite of many dealers I’ve worked with), use strategic marketing and in-store practices to start overcoming objections long before a client raises them. In this installment...

The nature of competitive advantage remains consistent yet ever-evolving. To sustain competitiveness, understanding customers and their decision-making drivers is imperative. But how do you gain insights into your customers’ thoughts and build that advantage?...

The NFA held its fall conference here in Washington, D.C. Washington, D.C.—Ian Newton, Flooring 101 and current president of the National Floorcovering Alliance (NFA), along with the entire executive board, was re-elected to serve another two-year term at the group’s...

Vero Beach, Fla.—In a historic event for the tile industry, Carpet & Tile Warehouse—in collaboration with Women in Tile, the Ceramic Tile Education Foundation (CTEF) and the National Tile Contractors Association (NTCA)—is hosting an all-female Certified Tile...

New York City—The 2024 Red Bull Half Court tournament brought together elite basketball players and creative talents on a court that is said to not only be a playing surface but a work of art. Designed by renowned artist Carolina De La Cruz Rodriguez, the center court...

Dallas, Texas—This Veterans’ Day Daltile announced its continued support and dedication to the Gary Sinise Foundation. Established in 2011 by actor and humanitarian Gary Sinise, the Gary Sinise Foundation honors and supports military service members, first responders...

As a flooring business, you know the importance of nurturing a new skilled workforce. Elevating the installation career to a new generation secures the future of your business. The Floor Covering Education Foundation (FCEF) is dedicated to creating a pipeline of new...

An aerial view of Foam Products’ state-of-the-art Trion, Ga., facility before the destruction Hurricane Helene wrought on the company’s factory in Erwin, Tenn. It’s one thing to watch in awe all the devastation and destruction caused by natural disasters such as...

Flooring suppliers and retailers have always had a symbiotic relationship—dealers need compelling new products to sell and suppliers need the customers those retailers attract. But the best partnerships often go beyond transactions. In FCNews’ Retailers of the Year...

With the elections now firmly in the rear-view mirror, it’s time to get back to some semblance of normalcy. The results broke the right way for about 50% of the country and not so much for the other 50%. If you fall into the latter category, you have no choice but to...

Baxter, Tenn.—Portobello America, the U.S. business unit of Portobello Grupo, has announced the launch of Bossa on the Road, its first-ever global tile collection. This collection is said to mark a significant milestone for the brand, combining Brazilian roots with...

Chicago—Global flooring manufacturer Tarkett was recognized for its marketing efforts in the annual MarCom Awards, earning three platinum and three gold awards in the international competition. Two of the platinum awards honored Tarkett’s 2023 Design Days marketing...

Calhoun, Ga.—Mohawk is boosting its digital marketing offerings by teaming up with Cyncly as an additional provider for Edge Omnify websites. Mohawk is also expanding its Edge Local Advertising suite by adding both Broadlume and Cyncly as new partners. This strategic...

Calhoun, Ga.—Women are leaving their marks across the flooring industry—not only at Mohawk but also at retail stores throughout the country. To celebrate these impactful women at Edge Summit 2025, Mohawk announced its collaboration with Women in the Floorcovering...

Dalton—This holiday season sparks J+J Flooring’s 8th annual Helping Hands initiative. Each November and December, designers and flooring professionals come together for a fun, festive competition where they create themed Christmas trees based on kid-appropriate ideas....

Chris Wellborn Calhoun, Ga.—As Mohawk Industries’ president and chief operating officer Chris Wellborn prepares for his planned retirement next February, the company has announced plans to promote Paul De Cock, current president of Flooring North America, into...

Lexington, Ky.—Panariagroup USA has introduced Playlist by Panaria Ceramica, a vibrant collection that is designed to transform any space into a dynamic canvas of expression. Inspired by the rhythm of modern life and eclectic energy of geometric patterns, Playlist is...

Dalton—The World Floor Covering Association (WFCA) released a new “Tuesday Tips” this week. In the series, WFCA experts presents short video tips for improving customer service and optimizing staff performance. In the end, it’s all about understanding the importance...

New Orleans—From October 22-24, the NAFCD + NBMDA Annual Convention hosted over 1,000 distribution professionals at the Hyatt Regency for two full days of professional education and networking—with over 200 companies showcasing the latest products and services in the...

Evan Martinez Bel Air, Md.—With just two years in the market, Spartan Hospitality continues to expand its entity with the appointment of Evan Martinez as Southwest regional manager—with a dedicated focus on California, Arizona, Nevada, Colorado, New Mexico, Utah and...

Columbus, Ohio—America’s Floor Source (AFS) Group has acquired the assets and intellectual property of yet another flooring retail operation, Flooring Solutions, a top retailer in Memphis, Tenn., for flooring and tile, with sales of more than $10 million annually. As...

Orlando, Fla.—Coverings, the largest showcase of ceramic tile and natural stone in North America, has announced Coverings 2025 registration with early-bird registration perks, competitive hotel rates and coveted award opportunities. Industry professionals are...

The retail sales associate (RSA) is arguably the most influential person in a specialty flooring store. After all, it is the RSA who spends the most time with a customer and, theoretically, can make or break the deal. Success often starts with attitude, experts say....

CTEF’s annual auction takes place Dec. 2-7. In anticipation, it is requesting material and/or experience donations to include in the auction. Ideal material donations for the CTEF Auction: Items can be any of your products, tools, materials or anything you feel would...

Florence, Ala.—Schönox HPS North America announced its continued commitment to sustainability with its extensive range of LEED-contributing products and certifications. With products that meet the rigorous requirements of LEED v4.1 certification for Building Design...

Every two weeks, FCNews seeks out flooring retailers across the country to offer their advice on hot topics of the day. This week, we asked: What product/category has stood out for you this year? Here are their responses: The product category that has stood out the...

Boston, Mass.—The National Tile Contractors Association (NTCA) announced the recipients of the 2024 NTCA Tile Setter Craftsperson of the Year awards, honoring two exceptional tile professionals for their dedication, craftsmanship and industry leadership. This year’s...

Before starting a career as an RSA in the retail floor covering industry, there were some things I wish I knew beforehand—first and foremost the value of organizational clarity. Strategic anchors are the main X factors in determining how we will succeed. We place a...

Louisville, Ky.—Louisville Tile has launched its latest Louisville Tile University (LTU) training program. Louisville Tile said it has always been dedicated to delivering exceptional customer service, high-quality products and expert advice—backed by a knowledgeable...

i4F management David Song, Marcel Boekhoorn and John Rietveldt with James Wong from Lioncore. Turnhout, Belgium—i4F, a group of companies providing patents and technologies to the flooring industry, announced that Lioncore Industries Vietnam has signed an additional...

Castellón, Spain—Decocer, specializing in the design and manufacturing of custom small-format tiles, has launched a new website featuring a refreshed design aligned with its new brand image, enhancing its values and customer interaction. The ceramics company, focused...

Waterfront laminate from BHW Flooring Laminate flooring continues to make advancements in not only its ability to mimic visuals found in real wood and stone, but also the texture and heft of the genuine article. This is primarily due to advancements and innovations in...

Washington, D.C.—With inflation gradually easing and builders anticipating mortgage rates will moderate in coming months, builder confidence moved higher for a second consecutive month despite challenging affordability conditions, according to the National Association...

Washington, D.C.—With the Federal Reserve beginning an easing of monetary policy and builder sentiment improving, single-family starts posted a modest gain in September while multifamily construction continued to weaken because of tight financing and an ongoing rise...

Washington, D.C.— Home buyers moved off the sidelines in September following the Federal Reserve’s recent move to cut interest rates for the first time in four years, according to the National Association of Home Builders (NAHB). Sales of newly built, single-family...

Mohawk is known for many things, including its steadfast focus on innovation. That focus has once again been pointed toward the resilient category as the company continues its “Resilient Revolution.” The next step in that revolution comes in the form of SolidTech R....

The resilient flooring category has grown by leaps and bounds over the last decade, and today clocks in as the biggest segment in flooring—outstripping carpet as No. 1 in 2022. But with LVT and rigid core—namely WPC/SPC—the last innovations to successfully grab market...

Dalton—Shaw Floors has announced its new partnership with the American Kennel Club (AKC), the world’s largest and most recognized not-for-profit all-breed dog registry. Through this partnership, Shaw Floors is the “Official Flooring Partner” of the AKC, joining forces...

Washington, D.C.—The 39 members of the National Floorcovering Alliance (NFA), along with its core suppliers, gathered here this week for its 2024 fall conference. With the Presidential elections a mere week away, it was only fitting to host this event in the nation’s...

Dennie Odette Silver City, N.M.—Dennie Lee Odette, age 84, founder of Carpet Exchange, along with his wife, Catherine, died in an auto accident on October 17. Born July 6, 1940, in Jamestown, Kan., Odette lived a remarkable life filled with love, accomplishment and a...

Oberlin, Ohio—The Natural Stone Institute (NSI) announced that beginning with the 2025 call for entries, the Tucker Design Awards will be partnered with the Pinnacle Awards program. Both awards will be given annually beginning in 2026. This streamlined approach to...

Dalton—The World Floor Covering Association (WFCA) released a new “Tuesday Tips” this week. In the series, WFCA experts presents short video tips for improving customer service and optimizing staff performance. In the end, it’s all about understanding the importance...

24-7 Floors includes separate entities: The full-service residential retailer (24-7 Floors), Floors 4 Pros, Dustless Demolition and a new commercial division, as well as a shop at-home service. When Scott and Sally Perron moved to Florida in 2012, they were both...

If your strategy for overcoming objections doesn’t kick in until the price objection is raised, it’s often too little, too late. In the first installment I used the example of a floor dealer named Cody (a composite of many dealers I’ve worked with) to demonstrate how...

Xtra Bold Sophistication carpet by Karastan Think of the residential carpet segment in terms of the seven-day weather outlook. Today is Monday, and it’s damp and dreary, much the way 2024 has played out; tomorrow (2025) shows signs of improvement, while the weekend...

(The retail community is counting down the days until Mohawk’s Edge Summit takes place this winter. As such, we’ve tapped several retailers, large and small, to explain what they’re looking forward to most.) Reason to attend: Networking/product/marketing Tom Heffner...

Bob’s Carpet & Flooring sustained significant damage due to the hurricanes. The one-two punch of hurricanes Helene and Milton, which left a trail of destruction from southwest Florida to western North Carolina, caused considerable damage and disruption to...

Cersaie 2024, which took place in late September, drew more than 95,000 visitors from around the world. Based in the heart of Italian tile country in Bologna, the show has been leading the way since it first debuted 41 years ago. Being the first show in the “2025”...

A lot has been going on this fall, and I know I’m a little late on this, but I wanted to talk about the Susan G. Komen 3-day, in which readers of this column know I vowed to participate. Happy to say not only did we survive the 20 miles, but we actually walked 21...

Raleigh, N.C.—USA Flooring announced the launch of an innovative Partner Rewards Loyalty program, designed by The Incentive Group for pro customers, with support from Shaw Industries. The program tracks flooring purchases, offers incentives and provides USA Flooring...

MSI has introduced two new collections to its tile lineup and a new line to its vinyl portfolio. In tile, the company unveiled Arabescato Venato, a 4 x 12 marble tile, and Calacatta Gold a 4 x 12 porcelain tile. These new lines are designed to bring elegance,...

Seth Arnold Dalton—Shaw Industries has named Seth Arnold brand leader of COREtec. He will assume this new role on Nov. 1. “COREtec is integral to Shaw’s hard surface portfolio and remains one of the best-known and most trusted consumer brands in residential flooring,”...

Chicago—The Call for Programming for the 56th edition of NeoCon, the leading event for the commercial interiors industry, opens on October 30. NeoCon invites thought leaders and influential industry experts to submit proposals for Continuing Education Units (CEUs),...

The superior performance of ceramic tile means less mess and more peace of mind. Due to a variety of inherent features and benefits, tile’s care is almost effortless. Some of what makes tile easy to clean and maintain: Bacteria resistance: Porcelain and ceramic tile...

Alpharetta, Ga.—LX Hausys, a global leader in building and decorative materials and sustainable solutions, has announced the release of its 2024 ESG (Environmental, Social, Governance) Report. The report highlights the company’s continued commitment to sustainability,...

Ringgold, Ga.—Shaw Industries is further enhancing its domestic resilient flooring manufacturing capabilities with a $90 million investment in Plant RP here, which makes SPC and LVT resilient flooring. This latest phase of investment will more than double the...

Anne Funsten of Tom Duffy Company Los Angeles—Transom Capital-backed Artivo Surfaces has  acquired top 20 distributor Tom Duffy Co., its third major acquisition of a flooring distributor within the last 12 months. “For over 70 years, Tom Duffy has earned its place as...