Wood: Canadian suppliers in a class all their own

HomeInside FCNewsWood: Canadian suppliers in a class all their own

July 9/16, 2018: Volume 34, Issue 2

By Reginald Tucker

 

Most laymen associate Canada with sprawling, breathtaking forests, maple syrup and feverishly devoted hockey fans. But when it comes to flooring, especially hardwood, industry observers agree the country produces some of the highest quality products in the industry.

Case in point is Boa-Franc, manufacturer of the standard-setting Mirage brand of hardwood floors. Over the past 10 years, the company has earned 33 quality awards—more than any other North American hardwood floor manufacturer, according to Pierre Thabet, president and founder. This includes an impressive streak of FCNews Awards of Excellence trophies as well as honors from the Canadian government and private enterprises. Among them: the prestigious Gold Trophy Award at the Canada Awards for Excellence several years ago, and the highest honor at the Grands Prix québécois de la qualité awards in 2017 and, prior to that, 2012.

“Boa-Franc strives to pro- duce the finest hardwood floors,” Thabet said. “Our entire focus is on making superior quality flooring that exudes well-being and gives dramatic new life to consumers’ home décor dreams.”

For the past 35 years, Boa-Franc’s main goal has been to produce the industry’s finest hardwood flooring, according to Thabet. To follow through on that quality promise, he said, the company adopted a management philosophy founded on five core values: passion, respect, integrity, commitment and innovation.

“Innovation is at the heart of everything we do here at Boa-Franc,” Thabet stated, adding that being a leader means being the best, not necessarily the biggest. “It’s what enables us to make superior quality products and maintain our leading position in North America.”

Boa-Franc’s distributor and retail partners appreciate that quality-minded philosophy. Shawn McCloskey, marketing manager for J.J. Haines, the industry’s top-ranked wholesaler, cites one of the company’s best-selling lines—Mirage’s Flair collection, which features an advanced finish called Duramatt. “It is an extremely durable, low-gloss urethane finish that has the appearance of an oil finish without the associated maintenance. It also contains anti-microbial agents and is 20 times more wear resistant than a conventional oil finish.”

Another quality-minded supplier renowned for its expertise in hardwood production and coating application is Mercier, which markets the advanced Generations 2500 Intact finish. The molecules that comprise the coating, named for its numerical performance on the Taber test, interlock with the wood cells to create a waterproof barrier. The finish also features aluminum oxide particles of varying sizes and boasts a multilayered composition for greater flexibility and impact resistance. Generations 2500 also touts antimicrobial qualities and features anti-yellowing properties to combat the effects of UV rays.

“Mercier gives us a first-quality, Canadian-manufactured wood line that fits all possibilities in today’s ever-changing customers lifestyle,” said Steve Flanagan, product and marketing manager, Jaeckle Distributors. In particular, he cited the appeal of Mercier’s matte finish on its Design Plus collection, as well as the Legend Series from the Nature collection. “Mercier fits the consumers need anywhere from a quality entry-level product in their Pro series to the most fashionable 7-inch-wide pine board or other in-demand species such as hickory, maple, red and white oak and their entire Exotics series.”

Depth and breadth of product—as well as high service levels—are also hallmarks of many Canadian wood flooring manufacturers. That’s according to dealers like Mike Caroll, owner of Buffalo, N.Y.-based MP Caroll, a hardwood-only retailer that positions the Preverco line front and center. Although he has only carried the line for a few years, it has quickly become the company’s go-to product. “Preverco is our leading line, which we consider an upscale offering,” he told FCNews. “It’s super consistent with its milling and colors, and their attention to detail is unmatched.”

The same can be said for companies like Wickham Hardwood Flooring, which prides itself not only on consistent product quality but also quick turnaround times on special orders—a rarity in the industry. A big plus, customers say, is Wickham’s unique make-and-ship program. How it works: All stock is kept unfinished and then is finished as ordered. Regardless of species, colors, grades, sheens or widths, retailers can meet almost any consumer specification when participating in the program.

“Assisting the client in order to constantly grow their business is a crucial component of a healthy business relationship, and we are committed to making sure efforts to sell are mutual on both sides,” said J.P. Nittolo, president. “Our sales- force is devoted to assisting the customers, whether it is for product knowledge sessions, travel with the sales representatives or even in helping with product marketing. We also offer a variety of merchandising programs where customers can build their own displays—with joint efforts from the Wickham team—based on the end consumers’ needs.”

Clients like Craig Dupra, president of Installers Warehouse, a Rochester, N.Y.-based distributor, knows this firsthand. “Since assuming a controlling interest in Wickham Hardwood about 10 years ago, J.P. Nittolo has completely transformed the former Wickham Hardwood Flooring company into a brand new entity. From the time when I first visited them to today, Wickham has been in constant transformation. They have evolved from a quiet little mill to a major supplier in the North American market. Benchmarked against his competition, the growth has been remarkable.”

 

Satan Flooring sees opportunities on the wall
Toronto, Canada—Satin Flooring, maker of a variety of trendy, high- performance hard surface flooring materials, is going vertical. Known primarily for its wide offering of laminate, hardwood and resilient flooring products, Satin Flooring is now targeting consumers in the market for decorative wall materials.

With the launch of Decora 3D wall panels, Satin Flooring is targeting the homeowner who’s looking to do a complete room remodel—not just the floors. Featuring a decorative laminate wrap over a high-density fiberboard core, the new decorative panels address one of the biggest trends in interior design.

“Feature walls have become more important in decorating today,” said Ingrid Mancini, senior marketing manager. “People are putting in accent walls using stone or wallpaper, etc. This is not a throwback to the ’70s, when you had wood panel walls, but I think it’s adding texture and dimension to make the space more homey, interesting and more visually appealing.”

Available in five introductory patterns (concrete, slate, light barnwood, brown barnwood and earth pine) the new wall panels aim to complement—but not necessarily match to a tee—the products currently available in the company’s flooring line. “The patterns in the Decora 3D wall collection were created specifically for a certain kind of texture or look, but they will definitely coordinate with our flooring patterns,” Mancini said. “In my home, I have the concrete pattern on the wall and a beautiful, engineered red wood called Twilight on the floor. It’s a little more brown/gray, but it goes nicely with the concrete wall color.”

Another feature of the new wall line, according to Mancini, is it can be installed in a variety of different sizes and blocks to create a multi-dimensional effect. “So, depending on the person, there’s a lot of variation that’s available and there are a lot of trims to match,” she stated.

The new Decora 3D wall line, which was previewed at the NWFA convention earlier this year, makes its official debut this month.

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