By Sarah Zimmerman
After a tough time up at bat over the past few years, the resilient category hasn’t thrown in its glove. Also naming commercial its MVP this year, the segment is concentrated on looking ahead. Top mills list product innovations and design trends as leading the team in 2008.

What is your 2008 forecast?

Dennis Jarosz
Senior vice president of sales and marketing for Congoleum
We have forecast our business to be essentially even with 2007 levels. There is nothing to suggest that the economy will improve. However, it will not be worse. Residential sales will continue to be slow until housing sales (both re-sales and new construction) improve. Multi-family and property management sales will continue to be reasonably strong. Commercial has been strong for the past couple of years and should remain so through 2008. Overall, sales of residential products that will go into multi-family will be good, while those that go into new construction and remodeling will continue to be down compared to historical levels but relatively flat compared to 2007.

One major bright spot for resilient is the growth segment of our High Performance Flooring—DuraCeramic, DuraPlank and DuraStone tile products have made substantial sales gains in recent years. Consumers will continue to look for alternatives to natural products without sacrificing aesthetics.

Mario Allard
Director of product management for Domco
Even with the slow economy, FiberFloor has re-energized the vinyl category, and as a result, Domco experiences very positive sales trends in all segments, as decorators, consumers and installers appreciate the flexibility as well as the multiple features and benefits of this practical and attractive product. The category will definitely grow. Domco’s reasonable price points help.

How are you positioning your company to grow business as we approach next year?

Jarosz:
We have structured our business to be successful even in the slow economy. Cost reduction efforts implemented early in 2007 will continue to have a positive effect in 2008.

Our greatest opportunities for increased business come in the residential property management/multi-family sector where we are focusing an increased effort as well as in the area of new products. New products are the lifeblood of any company. There are several new products in the prototype stage now, and any of these could prove to be real “game breaker winners.”

Allard:
Domco is doing very well and will expand its activities in both felt and fiberglass-backed segments. In order to grow business, we definitely have to focus on quality, performance and style while keeping in line with the tastes of North American home decorators.

We must provide the best value to our customers and differentiate ourselves from the growing competition. We have to better communicate the value of our products, such as FiberFloor’s glueless installation, printing with environmentally safe water-based inks and all 260 SKUs of Domco’s resilient sheet floors—in both categories, exhibit the FloorScore label from Scientific Certification Systems (SCS), a certifier of environmental and sustainability purity claims.