Dear Diary,
I know I seem to say this every year, but once again it was over in a blink of an eye. The months leading up to Surfaces are grueling, you prepare for three days of exhilaration and exhaustion and—just like that—it’s over. You get off a plane one day and before you know it you’re flying home.
It’s been nearly two weeks since I landed, and I have now fielded the “How was Surfaces?” question at least 20 times. Here’s the interesting thing, dear diary: I answer the question the same way every time—“It was fine.” (But then I remember an ex-girlfriend who always admonished me when I said “fine” in response to the question, “How do I look?” So with PTSD in mind, I will say the show was better than fine. Maybe much better than fine.)
I mean, it’s hard to find something negative to say. Amie Gilmore, the charismatic show director, does an amazing job, as does her team. It appeared that every square foot on the show floor was sold out. Pretty much every company that matters was exhibiting—either on the show floor or in a meeting room. Exhibitors were writing business. Booths like Engineered Floors, Stanton, Mannington and Mohawk were always swarming. FCNews was locking up strong business for 2025 both from new and existing accounts. Most important, optimism abounds. I will say this, dear diary: People are excited after an up-and-down 2024.
The one question I repeatedly get asked at the show was the obligatory, “What do you think of attendance?” And my obligatory response is always, “Doesn’t matter.” If the largest retailer in the country brings four people instead of five, theoretically they are decreasing their attendance 20%. If the same company purchases 20% more than last year, what statistic matters more, dear diary, if the exhibitors are happy—and just about everyone I spoke to was. So yeah, maybe much better than fine.
The other most popular question I’m always asked is, “What were your takeaways from the show?” “What did you see that excited you?” First off, Kate Upton was not running around in a bikini, so my excitement was tempered. (I did see Herb Upton, though. Thankfully in a suit.) Seriously, dear diary, you saw less SPC, and suppliers are conscientiously moving away from thin because of reported failures. Conversely, everywhere you looked you saw WPC and laminate. Both are making the biggest comebacks since Lazarus. Very few ceramic tile suppliers on the show floor. Daltile these last two years has occupied a sliver of the Mohawk space. Emser pulled out. We haven’t seen Florida Tile in years. It’s all MSI and Crossville along with some lesser names. Some, I’m sure, are opting for KBIS and IBS later this month.
But like I always do, dear diary, I’m going to rattle off the things running through my brain in no particular order: I feel like this is the year the Dossche family makes noise with their Canopy brand… Cali has really outdone themselves these last two years in terms of booth creativity… Nox is proving itself to be a real sustainability leader… Nature really stepped up its presence this year… LX is not a flooring company; it is an innovation company… If I were an SPC supplier looking for domestic production, I would give Wellmade a call before they hit capacity on their second line… The Stanton rebrand was well received, as were the new products, especially on the hard surface side. Jamann Stepp doesn’t get enough credit… Caught up with Raj Shah at the MSI booth. Always a highlight… The Roomvo/QFloors combo will be formidable competition for the Cyncly machine… Remember this name: Flooring OS… Agency people can be real annoying and an impediment sometimes. Gotta set them straight… I believe in OnnSurfaces under the direction of Paul Dominie… HF Design impresses every year, both booth and product… Speaking of product, Urbanfloor was showing what they claim to be the longest and widest wood plank in the industry… Seth Arnold seems to be thriving as the brand leader for COREtec. Still think going from Mohawk to Shaw or vice versa is like playing for both the Mets and Yankees… You don’t meet nicer people than the Johnson Hardwood folks… Expecting big things from Couristan and Len Andolino… So yeah, maybe much better than fine.
I also wanted to show my appreciation for Ted Gregerson, Typhannie Harker, Ashlie Butler and Brian Elias for participating in my 30-minute retailer panel discussion on the second day of the show. Their insights were invaluable. What wasn’t valuable was the 12:45 start time, smack dab during lunch hour, so many of the seats were occupied by invisible men and women. My bad for choosing that time without thinking. By the way, the content was much better than fine.
Final random thoughts: I didn’t take Prednisone this year, but I also couldn’t keep my eyes open past 11 p.m…. Eye Candy is more crowded when Surfaces doesn’t overlap the AVNs. Maybe just a coincidence… RPM Italian is a fine choice for dinner, and Emeril’s doesn’t disappoint after all these years… I hope the year is much better than fine for everyone.
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