Visuals go far and wide
Wide-width boards are the resounding trend from mills. At Anderson, bigger is better. “Wide widths continue to be the choice in Anderson’s market but as widths get wider, lengths have remained the same, producing a less attractive boxy or tile look,” Woolsey said. To address the challenge, the manufacturer debuted Natural Re- flections this spring, an engineered product at 59 inches, 17 inches longer than traditional 42-inch boards.
Visually, trends have remained constant over the past few years. End users still want unique flooring with character and texture. “The most popular looks in both engineered and solid [continue to be] domestic exotic species and character looks particularly in wider widths,” Buchanan said.
Executives at Mirage noted similar trends. “Consumer purchases are driven by a desire for less distressed wood featuring natural character, wider boards, subtle color variations and knots to recreate the appeal of old-fashioned flooring,” Robitaille said.
Differentiation in product offerings is the last piece of the visual puzzle for retailers. With visual trends spread out as “a little bit of a lot things,” one has to find something unique, Holm said.
“Ask any retailer; original design, color and performance are still the value add in any sales experience and differentates those products you have from commodity to mass-market choices,” Woolsey explained.