Dalton—The World Floor Covering Association (WFCA) has named Piet Dossche, founder of USFloors, to the floor covering industry’s Hall of Fame. Dossche is the 50th inductee since the Hall of Fame was established in 1992. He will be joining a distinguished list of industry pioneers and leaders who have received this highly exclusive honor. He will be inducted during a ceremony at The International Surface Event (TISE) in Las Vegas during Surfaces 2020.
“I do not take my endorsement of anyone lightly, but with great humbleness and respect, I recommend Piet Dossche for this special honor,” said Pami Bhullar, director retail development, Invista North America. “His compelling principle behind every action is ‘Creating Value for end consumers, retailers, retail sales associates and the industry at large.’ He always said, ‘Pami we need to make our partners more successful. If we make them successful, we don’t have to worry about our success,’ I could not agree with him more. When I talk about ‘visionary, disrupter and inventor,’ I mean someone with Piet’s passion, genius, vision and humility. Many lives are richer today because they met Piet Dossche. I look forward to honoring his influential impact on our industry and celebrating his induction into the Hall of Fame.”
Dossche didn’t hail from a business environment. His father was a judge in his home country of Belgium, so he grew up in an academic household. After attending Brussels Catholic College, Dossche took a job at Beaulieu International Group, where Roger De Clerck became one of his first professional mentors, giving him the chance to prove himself at an early age. He became managing director of Beaulieu’s manufacturing plant in the U.K. at only 24. After five years, Dossche decided to strike out on his own, founding Image Flooring in Europe.
Twice more during his career, Dossche would turn a business challenge into an opportunity. First, when Image Flooring was derailed by a quality issue, he moved to the U.S. to work for Beaulieu of America, where he became president of their residential business. Then in 2001, he once again pursued his entrepreneurial itch and started USFloors.
Under Dossche’s leadership, vision, genius and the creation of the revolutionary COREtec product line and brand, USFloors grew dramatically before being acquired by Shaw Industries in December 2016. With innovation at the core of their DNA, the company has doubled in sales since that acquisition.
Through it all, Dossche credits his team at USFloors who helped execute the vision, and his wife Sabine, for helping him remain grounded during the twists and turns of his career. He says that Sabine balances his risk taking with her more cautious tendencies, which he describes as, “the yin to his yang.”
“In my 40-plus years in the flooring industry, I have rarely encountered someone with Piet’s unbridled belief that everything is possible,” noted Scott Humphrey, CEO of the WFCA. “He is a disrupter in an industry that too easily settles for defending the status quo. In short, Piet is an innovator that determines the best path forward and does everything possible to make that vision a reality for his people, his company and the industry. His induction into this elite group solidifies the Hall of Fame’s reputation for honoring those who have positively elevated our industry and created the innovation essential for its future success.”
Jason McSwain, owner of McSwain Carpets & Floors and president of National Floorcovering Alliance (NFA), also fully endorses Dossche to the WFCA Hall of Fame. “Piet has embodied innovative leadership to the floor covering industry in a manner not rivaled by others in recent decades-driving a skilled team toward new product properties, efficient installation methods, unique visuals and a classification grouping new to the retail flooring industry.”
He added, “One of Piet’s most enduring qualities is that he has a genuine caring of people and relationships. My involvement within NFA provides a view of him in many settings. Whether on stage leading a group session, around a table sharing a meal, a recreation activity or at the vendor negotiating table, his respect for others is his trademark. With his career success and specific innovation in the last 10 years, I am confident he will continue to invest his best efforts in research, design and innovation for tomorrows’ best next concept. He believes this responsibility is the greatest contribution he can provide to our flooring industry.”