Articles

Following the inevitable dip ceramic weathered in 2020 as Covid-19 shuttered the economy for six weeks around April, the category rebounded in 2021 . The 17.3% jump in floor + wall tile revenue more than made up for the roughly 2% slide in 2020, according to Market Insights data, but last year, sales prices also rose as supply chain and labor challenges forced multiple price increases across the ceramic industry. In terms of marketshare, ceramic maintained its roughly 14% benchmark of the past few years, falling just slightly from 14.4% in 2020 to 14.0% in 2021. Though not a DIY product, ceramic was buoyed by homeowners' rush to renovate, along with the growing builder market Read More

Catalina Research has released its latest Kitchen and Bath Quarterly Update. According to the report, U.S. kitchen and bath product sales (shipments minus exports plus imports) showed relatively strong current dollar sales gains as manufacturers passed through rising material, labor and transportation costs. Read More

Five notable and refreshing Ceramic Porcelain Tile and Natural Stone trends are leading the hard surface industry throughout 2022, and MSI has revealed its Top Design Trends for the year including some of the newest on-trend products within hard surface. These five trends explore subtle colorways, natural tones, unique textures, ultra-high-definition inkjet prints and durable waterproof products made for active lifestyles and design that speak to wellness. Read More

Lowe's reported Q4 2021 sales were $21.3 billion, a 5% increase compared to $20.3 billion in Q4 2020. Comparable sales increased 5.0%. Comparable sales for the U.S. home improvement business increased 5.1% in Q4. Pro customer sales increased 23%. Read More

Coverings, the largest international tile and stone exhibition and conference in North America, announced the top 10 tile trends for 2022. The tile trends were gathered and forecasted by the three leading international tile associations and sponsors of Coverings, Ceramics of Italy/Confindustria Ceramica, Ceramic Tile Manufacturers Association of Spain (ASCER)/Tile of Spain and Tile Council of North America (TCNA).  Read More

The Home Depot announced sales for Q4 2021 were $35.7 billion, an increase of $3.5 billion, or 10.7% from Q4 2020. Comparable sales for Q4 2021 increased 8.1%, and comparable sales in the U.S. increased 7.6%.  Read More

Coverings, the largest international tile and stone exhibition and conference in North America, announced the top ten tile trends for 2022. The tile trends were gathered and forecasted by the three leading international tile associations and sponsors of Coverings, Ceramics of Italy/Confindustria Ceramica, Ceramic Tile Manufacturers Association of Spain (ASCER)/Tile of Spain and Tile Council of North America (TCNA).  Read More

Home buyer preferences have continued to reverse trends in home building as builders work to respond to new interests in the wake of COVID-19, according to reports from the National Association of Home Builders (NAHB). Read More

“There has been research that shows consumers will purchase an area rug within a very short time after installing hard surface flooring,” reported T.M. Nuckols, president of The Dixie Group (TDG). Read More

What is remarkable about LVT is that it is not entirely driven by brands. It is not as if every consumer comes into the store and know the brand of flooring they want and that applies to LVT, also. No, it is the intrinsic value and style of the product and LVT is great for any end user markets — residential replacement, new homes and all of commercial.   Read More