Retail Observer

RETAILOBSERVER.COM JUNE 2014 56 F loors lay the groundwork for style and function in the home. That's why choosing the right flooring to fit with the consumer's decor, lifestyle and budget is an important design decision. And like most industries driven by style and trends, flooring fashions are ever changing. Today, the hottest flooring product on the market is luxury vinyl. From a dead start just a few years ago, luxury vinyl now accounts for about 10% of our total flooring business. For kitchens, more luxury vinyl is now being sold than any other type of flooring, including ceramic tile, laminate and engineered hardwood flooring. In bathrooms, luxury vinyl is also supplanting ceramic where price and installation costs are an issue. WHY IS LUXURY VINYL SO POPULAR? Luxury vinyl so closely mimics other high-end flooring materials - hardwood, stone, ceramic tile, metal flooring, bamboo, marble, and even inlayed hardwood medallions and borders – that most people can't tell the difference between it and the real thing. It can be grouted to resemble tile; planking can be finished with beveled edges or hand-scraped to look and feel like real hardwood. That's why luxury vinyl has become the product of choice for landlords, renovators, builders and developers, who can get the same look of these luxury products at a fraction of the cost. Plus it's relatively inexpensive to install, requiring fewer tools, less expertise (click-together systems) and floor preparation, and it even molds to subfloor irregularities. When you factor in the product's durability, stain and scratch resistance, ease of cleaning and cushioning (especially important in kitchens), it's easy to see why luxury vinyl is hot, hot, hot! Another popular alternative in low- to medium-end kitchen and bathrooms is fiberglass-backed vinyl, like Tarkett ® FiberFloor ® . This hypollergenic, mildew resistant cushioned vinyl comes in a multitude of styles, patterns and colors. This product is simple and inexpensive to install (it can be loose laid instead of glued) and will mold to subfloors of all types. NATURAL AND GREEN PRODUCTS CONTINUE TO GROW IN POPULARITY. In "move-up" and luxury homes, hardwood is the fastest growing trend in new kitchen installations. According to the most recent Builder Practice Survey (by Home Innovation Research Labs), solid hardwood or engineered hardwood accounted for 32% of new kitchen installations in 2012 in single-family homes the U.S. While ceramic tile still took the lion's share (41% of kitchens in new, single-family homes in the U.S.), solid hardwood was installed in 23% of such kitchens, and engineered hardwood in 9%. Trending in hardwood are lower gloss, matte finishes and textured products that hide dust and imperfections, along with a transition toward whitewash and driftwood grays from dark colors and heavy stains. Increasingly trendy are wider planks and a rustic look. The warmth provided by the natural textures of wood and its comfort underfoot undoubtedly contribute to its growing popularity. "Green" flooring manufactured from recycled or sustainably sourced materials is also making inroads in all rooms of the home, including kitchens and bathrooms. Antibacterial cork, sustainably harvested from the bark of the cork oak tree, is used to make cork flooring and is a key ingredient in eco-friendly linoleum. You can now buy engineered wood floors made from wood pulp mixed with stone dust to produce an extremely stable substrate composed of 75% recycled material, and wood flooring reworked from old wooden floors or wine barrels. Rick Cartwright Flooring Trends Rick Cartwright Operations Supervisor, United Floors Cantrex Nationwide WHAT'S HOT IN KITCHEN & BATHROOM FLOORING RO

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