Steven Feldman

After spending a day-and-a-half in Denver at the National Wood Flooring Association Education Conference and Wood Flooring Expo, I came away with the belief that things may not be as bad out there as we may believe. Don’t get me wrong; retail is tough. And builder business is not going to rebound until late third quarter at the earliest. But after speaking with a bunch of suppliers, I see some bright spots, both now and on the horizon.

Start with Mullican. Brian Greenwell, vice president of sales and marketing, told us business was up 8% over first- quarter 2006. And that’s with severe price pressures on the unfinished side, which is 40% of Mullican’s business.

Mirage, one of the largest Canadian mills, is riding the crest of the successful Surfaces launch of its glueless Mirage Lock product. Luc Robitaille, vice president of marketing, calls it the easiest and fastest installation system in the industry.

Over at Hoboken Floors, the closest thing this industry has to a national distributor, John Salvador, product manager, wood, acknowledged a tough first quarter, citing the slowdown in builder, which represents more than 40% of business. However, he outlined some bright spots: exotics, commercial and high-rise markets.

Mike Kearins, president of Pinnacle, said the company is weathering the builder slowdown thanks to increases in the residential replacement market. Pinnacle has penetrated more dealer showrooms thanks to its new Innovation display.

US Floors comes off a record-setting month thanks to differentiated products that bring value to the marketplace, said Deborah Hardin, vice president of sales. She cited its new rustic pine collection and engineered bamboo as examples. The latter is popular because it offers unique visuals that emulate exotic wood, while the former is hot because it is not in abundance, especially at an affordable price point.

Other companies see business improving for various reasons. David Lauzon, president of Lauzon Distinctive Hardwood Flooring, sees China becoming less of a threat long term because of its challenge to get raw materials. And Dennis Mohn, president of Award, when seen in the hallways, mentioned the company is restructuring its product lineup and will have a more cohesive line for distributors before 2008.