Keith Spano, president of Flooring America, said conventions take place in every industry and all levels and generally speaking they are generic affairs—generic businesspeople, suits and strangers getting together once or twice a year.
When it comes to buying group conventions, they are generally about the organization showcasing new products, programs and services it has developed—usually in tandem with their member advisory boards—to help the membership differentiate themselves in the marketplace and become more profitable.
While I admit the title of this column may seem a bit strange to our readers in Southern California and the Southwest, for everyone else around the country who has experienced a cold, snowy, miserable winter, you’ll understand.
As I read Geoff Gordon’s article on the role of the flooring contractor in the December issue of Floor TrendsI was reminded of all flooring contractors have to know and do.
I've always believed you need to see what customers drive up in, because it can often give you clues on which direction to take them. It’s not to see if they drive an expensive or low-end car, because that will make you assume something and often in the wrong direction.
Many called 2013 “the Year of LVT.” And with good reason: Resilient has been the fastest growing flooring category, and within this rapidly growing segment, luxury vinyl tile (LVT) is thriving (Editor’s note: For the purposes of this article, LVT refers to both luxury vinyl tile and luxury vinyl plank).
As we step boldly and confidently into 2014 it is important to look back at the year behind us. It was philosopher George Santayana who said, “Those who forget history are doomed to repeat it.”
Certainly there are exceptions to the rule and we had an opportunity to visit one of those when we were in Philadelphia recently to attend the Greenbuild expo and conference.
The first month of the year is already passed us and so has some of the industry’s major markets and conventions—from the all industry type of affairs such as Surfaces, the Atlanta Area Rug Market and Domotex Germany, to major manufacturers and distributors holding their winter markets around the country, to some of the main buying groups.
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