SOLON, OHIO, August 12, 2019 — Tarkett, a worldwide leader in innovative and sustainable flooring and sports surface solutions, announces its national title sponsorship of the Design Museum Foundation’s upcoming exhibition, We Design: People. Practice. Progress. The sponsorship is an important step in a multi-year plan to make diversity, equity and inclusion a major company focus, both internally and in collaboration with the architecture and design industry.

Tarkett doesn't consider itself just a flooring manufacturer, but a collaborative partner to and member of the architecture and design community. For years, our community has been discussing the lack of diversity, equity and inclusion on its teams, but progress has been slow and intermittent. Despite a variety of efforts to improve, architecture continues to be "among the least diverse professions in America," as Brenden Jackson wrote for GenslerOn. In response, Tarkett has committed to a series of initiatives over the next several years to support real and measurable change.

“Our relationship with Design Museum on the We Design exhibit is an important step to bringing broader awareness and collaboration around this need. We realize this is no small endeavor, but diversifying our talent is both the right thing to do, and critical to the future relevance of our professional and cultural contributions,” states Mausi McDaniel, VP Brand & Design Marketing, Tarkett North America.

We Design is a multimedia exhibition celebrating a variety of creative professionals — of differing ages, genders, backgrounds, races, ethnicities, sexual orientations, and abilities — showcasing their unique career paths through stories and photos, along with examples of their work throughout their careers, including design process imagery and artifacts. The exhibition also explores the need for more diversity in the design and innovation industries through quantitative and qualitative data visualizations and case studies.

“We are thrilled to partner with Tarkett on this important program” said Liz Pawlak, Vice President of Design Museum Foundation. “Their support will enable us to bring We Design to more locations both locally and nationally, to showcase and celebrate the range of career paths, people and professions in the design industry.”

A preview of We Design with Design Museum’s Mobile Exhibition will be traveling around Greater Boston to Roxbury, Mattapan, Dorchester, Cambridge, and the Rose Kennedy Greenway, August 15-22. Meet with local designers, see design demonstrations, and learn more about local organizations committed to diversifying the design industries.

This exhibition will be free and open to the public, premiering in early October 2019 at the Bruce C. Bolling Municipal Building in Roxbury, MA. From there, the exhibition will continue to travel around Greater Boston and beyond, over a multi-year period, and will eventually be cataloged in a print publication.

“Tarkett is delighted to be working with Design Museum on this important endeavor for the design industry. Diversity, equity and inclusion is a major focus in our business and we view this collaboration as another step towards driving positive change. We know design aesthetic and function are vastly improved when we are inclusive of diverse perspectives. Too many voices have been pushed away from the table for far too long, and we’re excited to be a small part of changing that,” added McDaniel.

Ongoing updates about this partnership and Tarkett’s other initiatives for Diversity, Equity and Inclusion will be shared on Tarkett’s Thought Leadership page (https://commercial.tarkett.com/en_US/node/thought-leadership-603). Information about all of Tarkett’s products can be found at www.tarkettna.com. High-resolution product images available upon request.

About Tarkett
With a history stretching back 135 years, Tarkett is a worldwide leader in innovative flooring and sports surface solutions, with net sales of more than €2.8 billion in 2018. Offering a wide range of products, including vinyl, linoleum, rubber, carpet, wood, laminate, artificial turf and athletic tracks, the Group serves customers in over 100 countries across the globe. Tarkett has 13,000 employees and 36 industrial sites and sells 1.3 million square meters of flooring every day, for hospitals, schools, housing, hotels, offices, stores and sports fields. Committed to "Doing Good—Together," the Group has implemented an eco-innovation strategy that is based on Cradle to Cradle principles and promotes a circular economy, with the ultimate goal of contributing to people's health and wellbeing, and preserving natural capital. Tarkett is listed on Euronext Paris (compartment A, ISIN: FR0004188670, ticker: TKTT) and is included in the following indices: SBF 120 and CAC Mid 60 www.tarkett.com.

About Design Museum
Design Museum Boston is a nonprofit, nomadic museum of design. Our mission: bring the transformative power of design everywhere. We inspire people by showing what’s possible through public exhibitions, events, and content. We educate people to become creative problem solvers using the design process. We transform, using design to take action and make change, demonstrating its impact. designmuseumboston.org

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