After so many weeks of Zooming, Skyping and FaceTiming, our team is ready for some face-to-face meetings. At the time I’m writing this in early April, there is no real sense as to when the opportunity may arise again. That said, we’re embracing technology and have been really excited about how many of our industry colleagues have been doing the same.
Due to the cancellation of the Coverings 2020 show in New Orleans, show management switched gears to create a digital show experience, Coverings Connected. Coverings has always done a great job educating and growing the vibrant tile and stone industry. The online experience, which ran April 20-23, offered a digital showcase for its 900+ exhibitors, opportunities to learn via live webinars, video tours of the latest tile and stone trends by interior designer Alena Capra, and interviews and life chats. They shifted gears in a big way, proving that learning and connecting is still possible digitally even when we’re under quarantine.
As we all adapt to our changing reality and landscape, we are committed to providing you with the coverage across all flooring categories. As part of that mission, Heather Fiore, editor of our sister publication, Tile magazine, rounded up a selection of the tile, stone and installation products that would have been seen on the show floor this spring.
With HD Expo cancelled this month and NeoCon cancelled for June, we are hustling to report on the latest trends and opportunities happening in commercial flooring. Our goal for next month is to offer you some fresh insight from leaders in architecture and design and the innovators developing the next best products.
We’ve had an influx of requests for online learning, whether it’s through continuing education, webinars, or podcasts. Our team has rolled up our sleeves and created new ways for our readers to learn, through Zoom interviews, live social streams and photo galleries.
We are doing what we can to seek positive stories on how the flooring community can get through this unprecedented time. But let’s get real: things are not great (unless you work at a company like Georgia-Pacific, who as of April couldn’t keep up with demand). The immediate impact of the coronavirus has become all too obvious. For those who have been around a while, it’s reviving memories of the most recent recession. It’s time for us to be change agents and embrace our new future, whatever that may look like.
