Dallas—Mohawk Momentum Roadshow will return for its seventh year beginning Jan. 6, 2027, in Dallas.
The five-city tour will bring Mohawk’s “Listen. Adapt. Win.” strategy to specialty flooring retailers across the country. The event will focus on product innovations, education and practical business solutions.
“Building on our Listen. Adapt. Win. strategy featured at Edge Summit in December, Mohawk Momentum Roadshow will bring the same consumer-centric thinking to retail partners across the country,” said Jeff Meadows, Mohawk’s chief commercial officer and president of residential sales and marketing. “We are deeply committed to understanding today’s consumer—how they shop, what influences their decisions and what they expect from the flooring experience. During the Roadshow, retailers will see how we are turning those insights into products, programs and tools they can use to engage more effectively with consumers, stay relevant and win more business.”
The education program will include a consumer insights session. It will focus on strengthening sales conversations, improving the shopping journey and growing business.
Product presentations and merchandising displays will also show how consumer preferences influence flooring choices.
Mohawk Momentum Roadshow 2027 will make five stops:
Dallas: Jan. 6-7, Embassy Suites by Hilton
Washington, D.C.: Jan. 13-14, MGM Grand
Chicago: Jan. 20-21, Sheraton Grand
Huntington Beach, Calif.: Jan. 27-28, The Waterfront Beach Resort
Surfaces in Las Vegas: Feb. 2-4, Mandalay Bay
“Retailers are balancing the demands of running a business with the need to stay ahead,” said Laura Bartley, Mohawk’s vice president of customer loyalty and rewards. “We want to make that next step easier. Through the Mohawk Momentum Roadshow experience, our retail partners can connect what they learn with what they do every day. Our goal is for them to leave with fresh ideas, clear actions and greater confidence in how to win with Mohawk.”
Registration for Mohawk Momentum Roadshow 2027 opens Oct. 12.
Las Vegas—Registration is now open for The International Surface Event (TISE), North America’s premier marketplace for flooring, stone and tile professionals. Taking place here at the Mandalay Bay Convention Center, Feb. 2-4, 2027, the event will spotlight breakthrough design technologies, innovative products and forward-thinking solutions shaping the industry’s future.
This flagship gathering combines an extensive exhibition floor with four days of in-depth educational programming, bringing together the industry’s most influential brands and thought leaders who are redefining surface materials.
With construction momentum building across the country and consumer demand shifting toward smart, environmentally responsible solutions, TISE 2027 serves as the year’s first major industry event. It provides a vital meeting ground for retailers, distributors, fabricators, installers and other professionals adapting to this dynamic marketplace.
“The flooring, stone and tile sectors are experiencing remarkable transformation fueled by evolving consumer expectations and technological advancement,” said Dana Hicks, group director, TISE. “Industry professionals are now serving buyers with different priorities and requirements, from global supply chain considerations and intelligent products to sustainability and versatile solutions. TISE 2027 creates a collaborative space where businesses can thrive and successfully manage these shifts.”
TISE 2027 delivers a robust four-day education program designed to address evolving industry demands through both show floor experiences and classroom learning. Topics span business optimization, advanced installation methods, effective marketing and technology adoption. Returning programs include the Working with Natural Stone Architecture & Design Program and the Women’s Leadership Program, as well as certifications, training sessions and seminars from the Natural Stone Institute, International Certified Flooring Installers Association, National Wood Flooring Association and additional organizations.
The Education+ Pass offers complete access to all educational sessions and materials, maximizing attendees’ learning investment. As market dynamics shift and customer expectations evolve, TISE 2027 represents the essential event where innovation meets opportunity, offering direct product exploration, progressive solutions and valuable connections that accelerate business success.
The all new Connect+ Pass offers five pre-scheduled meetings with exhibitors who are matched with attendees’ product interests and business needs in a comprehensive, done for you, service.
TISE unites retailers, flooring distributors, contractors, fabricators, installers, architects and designers within the flooring, stone and tile industries. It serves as a platform for curated product showcases, informative seminars, networking opportunities and hands-on experiences. Attendees are invited to explore the latest products, technologies and design solutions while connecting with industry experts and peers to drive business success and stay ahead in a competitive market.
RC Willey has seen sales climb 2% year-over-year despite store traffic being down 5%.
The U.S. economy in 2026 has been a tale of two cities. On the one hand, it’s the engine that has motored through inflation, tariffs and higher borrowing costs, resisting a recent spike in Treasury yields and a Fed rate increase along the way.
At the same time, the all-important housing market has stagnated, with mortgage rates for 30-year loans now above 7% and the lock-in effect keeping inventory tight.
Clearly, it has been the kind of year that tests the mettle of even the most experienced and savvy flooring retailer. There is still business to be had, retailers told FCNews, but it takes a much more robust effort to grab it.
“This year has been very unpredictable,” said Bruce Odette, president of Denver-based Carpet Exchange with 17 locations. “The first half was very robust, right up until the start of the Iran war. Even with that uncertainty, we continued to see slight increases and still had good momentum in the business. That changed around Labor Day. Once mortgage rates pushed past the 7% mark, we started seeing sales flatten out, with some weeks actually down.”
Because of that, Carpet Exchange’s focus has been to execute faster, putting great emphasis on getting quotes back to customers quickly and creating a sense of urgency around the purchase.
“I keep telling our team that our No. 1 competitor right now is ‘postponement,’” Odette said. “If we don’t execute the sale while the customer is engaged, too many things can get in the way. The hot water heater goes out. The car needs new tires heading into winter. Something unexpected comes up with the kids. Suddenly, the money going toward new flooring gets redirected somewhere else.”
The reality, according to Odette, is that we’re in a “want” business more than a “need” business. “People can usually live with their existing floor a little longer, and that means it’s up to us to create an experience that makes them want to move forward and gives them a reason to spend those discretionary dollars with us,” he said.
Flooring dealers are generally split on their expectations for the fourth quarter. Beyond the challenges of the housing market and dwindling consumer confidence are the highly contentious midterm elections set for November.
“My expectations for the fourth quarter are for it to be a soft quarter,” said Tom Heffner, owner of About All Floors, Douglassville, Pa. “I think we will hear a lot about the upcoming midterm elections all through October, and the news will most likely be negative. I expect that to soften demand for residential flooring.”
Heffner said there is business to seize out there, but you must look sharp to earn it. “We’ve focused on updating showrooms and recently completed a renovation of our main store both inside and out,” he said. “We want our customers to be very comfortable in our space.”
Flooring retailers have been battling through economic headwinds for most of the year.
Some retailers have focused on operational efficiencies to improve their prospects. A case in point is Marshall Flooring in Mayfield Heights, Ohio, which devoted 2025 to implementing a new business strategy that required it to update its processes. But in so doing, it let go a large number of staff.
“We took an expected dip [in 2025] and now we are clicking as a unit and seeing the fruits of our decision,” said Matt Wien, partner. “We are up 27% over last year, and it feels good. It got a little hairy there for a minute as we were wondering if we made the right decision to implement such a massive change to a very established business.”
In the end, Wien said the move to proactively upgrade its business for the future was the right one. “We have doubled down on our technology and processes to allow our sales team to strictly focus on sales,” he said. “Providing our sales team the tools to increase the average ticket and reduce the sales cycle has been a recipe for success. We’re also partnering with vendors that value our relationship and are willing to work with us on private-label collections and exclusive lines so we can keep our margins where we want them.”
Salt Lake City-based RC Willey, with 13 locations across four Western states, has seen sales climb 2% year-over-year despite overall traffic being down 5%. The good news: “The customers that are coming in are serious buyers, and I’m seeing a trend to better goods,” said Eric Mondragon, division manager/flooring buyer.
It didn’t hurt that RC Willey offered incentives/sales promotions to seal deals. “We offered a free Ninja CREAMi ice cream maker with a $2,000 flooring purchase during the summer months, and it was a huge success,” Mondragon said. “It gave those customers that were on the fence about purchasing a reason to buy. Our Labor Day sales were really good, and that usually is a good indicator of how the fall/winter selling season is going to be. We just started our semi-annual flooring sale, so if that momentum continues, we should end the year up between 2%-3%.”
Fellow NFA dealer Baker Bros. Area Rugs & Flooring, with nine locations in the Phoenix market, is among those facing harsh economic headwinds. “Business continues to be a grind,” said Phil Koufidakis, president. “We are pretty much flat to last year but having to grind much harder to stay there. The place we see the most opportunity is with the aging-in-place boomer generation. With housing continuing to be at a stall and likely to be so for a while, the upper-end boomers should be the most motivated for home renovations. This group has also acquired the most wealth and disposable income. In the end we need lower gas prices. We will see what happens.”
Rising gas and diesel fuel prices, tariffs, spiking grocery prices and 7%-plus mortgage rates have impacted businesses throughout the country, including Ohio, where Flooring Partners operates three retail stores. “The walk-in business is off year over year in our stores, and I think consumer sentiment is driving this negative trend,” said Craig Phillips, executive advisor. “Our builders still report softer sales and don’t see an uptick in the next few quarters. We have committed resources and have hired additional outside sales help to go out and get business in our multi-family, builder and commercial businesses. On the retail side, we have committed to a nice digital campaign to get in front of retail flooring consumers in our markets. All this is starting to make a positive impact.”
Dalton—The World Floor Covering Association (WFCA) released a new “Tuesday Tips” this week. In the series, WFCA experts present short video tips for improving customer service and optimizing staff performance. In the end, it’s all about understanding the importance of doing 100 things just 1% better than your competition.
In this week’s Tuesday Tips, learn how to validate AI output and determine what business information is safe to share.
Turnhout, Belgium—i4F has appointed Thibault Lanchon chief commercial officer for Europe, the Middle East and Africa (EMEA). He also joins the company’s global management team.
In his new role, Lanchon will lead commercial and sales activities across the EMEA region. He brings 15 years of international leadership experience across Europe, the U.S. and Asia. His background includes commercial development, operations, sourcing, logistics and supply chain management.
Most recently, Lanchon worked at USFloors International, part of Shaw Industries. While there, he oversaw global sourcing, logistics and technical operations supporting COREtec. Lanchon also held senior roles at Haworth and other multinational organizations. His experience includes sourcing strategy, supplier management, quality and global operations.
“Thibault is a fantastic addition to i4F and our global management team,” said John Rietveldt, founder and CEO of i4F. “He knows this industry inside out. He has built strong relationships in the flooring world and brings a truly international perspective from his years working across Europe, the U.S. and Asia. Equally as important, he understands the full supply chain as well as customer needs and knows how to turn those into commercial opportunities. I look forward to working with him as we embark on the next phase of our growth across EMEA.”
Lanchon, a French national, has lived and worked in China and Europe. He holds a master’s degree from ESC Rennes School of Business and is Lean Six Sigma Black Belt certified.
Lorberbaum has demonstrated a leadership approach that can best be described as strategic, aggressive regarding growth, operationally disciplined and constantly focused on product differentiation and serving the customer. He is the prototypical business builder. At the same time, he transformed Mohawk from a carpet company to an all-encompassing flooring supplier.
Lorberbaum emphasized Mohawk’s commitment to enhancing style and design across all product categories. He stresses the importance of introducing new design capabilities that were not yet available in the market, noting Mohawk’s leadership position. His philosophy: better design yields differentiation, which results in a better product mix—which in turn yields higher value and better margins.
In this FCNews exclusive, Lorberbaum talks about the importance of style and design and how it has contributed to Mohawk’s leadership position.
During your time in the industry, design has changed a great deal. Before we discuss innovations and products, what does good design mean to you personally?
When my career began in the mid-1970s, burnt orange shag carpet and overstuffed windowpane plaid furniture were the height of home fashion. Now, we look at photos from that era and question what people were thinking. Home décor is driven by trends, and you have to separate passing fads from timeless design, which has proper proportion, balance and visual interest. You’ve heard people say, “I like how that looks, but I can’t explain why”—that’s how good design works. The rules of design create a sense of harmony that pleases the eye. We apply that to Mohawk’s product launches, which focus on elevating color and design, so our collections are clearly differentiated on the sales floor. We want our products to inspire and delight the consumer, which translates into greater sales for our retail partners.
You mentioned trends versus timelessness. Is there a way to be both trendy and timeless?
There definitely is, and we’re delivering those products now to help retailers increase sales and profitability with designs and features that promote upselling. Wood floors are the epitome of timeless decor, and our waterproof laminate, resilient and hybrid collections offer homeowners a practical, more durable alternative with visuals indistinguishable from natural wood. The longer and wider planks are ideal for elevating the presence of a room, and these collections represent an unbeatable value for homeowners who want luxury that fits their budget. Stone is another timeless design element, and our porcelain collections replicate the look and feel of marble, travertine and more to create spa-like bathrooms, chic kitchens and unforgettable foyers.
Over the past few years, we’ve introduced many beautiful patterned and sculptured carpet collections that add visual and textural depth to every room. Some of these styles are inspired by classic designs while others are more organic and reflect how our advanced technology creates appealing new designs. All of these options feel fresh and sophisticated today, and they’ll still look great in homes years from now.
For our retail partners, these unique collections provide a way to promote upscale design options at popular price points. Currently, affluent consumers are investing more in home remodeling, so it’s essential for retailers to have products that will appeal to that buying segment. Our distinctive, premium offering ensures retailers can provide discerning consumers with many elegant options for their homes.
Karastan’s LuxeCraft LVT.
The Karastan brand has always had a reputation for design leadership. How does design define that brand today?
Along with Godfrey Hirst, Karastan is an exclusive brand that represents our most luxurious offerings. Karastan’s heritage dates to 1928, and the brand continues to be the most widely recognized and respected in the industry because of its exceptional design, quality and performance. Consumers who invest in Karastan pay a premium for the exceptional color and design that distinguishes the collections in the marketplace. We’ve carefully protected the brand’s legacy and maintained a limited distribution strategy to ensure that its exclusivity remains a meaningful benefit to our retailer partners. Our ultra-luxury Karastan Black Label collection elevated the brand to a new level. These designs interpret classic patterns in exciting ways with meticulous craftsmanship, contemporary colors and sophisticated textures. In addition to showcasing these exceptional carpet collections, our Karastan Black Label merchandising highlights how they can be paired with complementary Karastan hard surface products. Our Karastan product extensions reflect the same uncompromising standards of the brand while bringing extraordinary design into other product categories.
Karastan’s Black Label carpet.
With carpet, SmartStrand was a major innovation when you launched it in 2005. At that time, the story centered around performance and renewable resources. Does the consumer sacrifice anything in style and design with Triexta versus, say, nylon?
SmartStrand was a gamechanger from the moment we introduced it, and there’s still nothing like it in the market. Triexta is the only new residential carpet fiber approved by the Federal Trade Commission in the past 70 years, which makes SmartStrand a truly generational breakthrough. It has inherent, permanent stain and soil resistance that never washes or wears off, and the renewable, bio-based content remains unique in the industry. Since SmartStrand was launched, we’ve gained a better understanding of all we can accomplish with the fiber from a product engineering perspective. We’ve created collections with enhanced visuals, unsurpassed softness and superior performance. This year, we’ve added another major breakthrough by adding Pur-Ease to SmartStrand Color Wall collections, which represent the world’s only Allergy and Asthma Friendly treated carpet. Our groundbreaking Pur- Ease technology dramatically expands the carpet market by making these products a great option for every household.
More generally, how important is it today to have wide color lines in every carpet collection?
We ensure the colors consumers want are in every collection so retail associates have the choices that will close a sale. Each Mohawk product has a fashionable array of colors to suit its design and price point. We analyze sales patterns and home fashion trends to balance changing consumer preferences with the core colors people desire each year. This process ensures a consumer has choices that satisfy her design needs without presenting so many options that she feels overwhelmed. We also support our retail partners with sophisticated merchandising systems that present color choices and product features so consumers can confidently select their best option.
RevWood has emerged as the go-to laminate brand for many specialty floor covering retailers.
What have been some of the best technologies/innovations that you have put in place over the years to enhance styling and design? In hard surfaces, I would assume the Signature and GenuEdge technologies are among the most important. Talk about what that has done for the company and, more importantly, for dealers.
We’re proud to lead the industry in innovation because it provides an opportunity for our retail partners to transition from selling price to selling value. Consumers have consistently demonstrated that they’ll pay more for a product that offers greater beauty, performance and cleanability. Each year, Apple introduces another iPhone model with new features that they use to justify a higher price point, and people continue to trade in for the new models. We have to embrace that mindset of selling leading-edge innovation to grow margins. Every innovation story represents an opportunity for upselling if the benefits to the consumer are emphasized.
You mentioned Signature Technology and GenuEdge. Those two features elevate our waterproof hard surface collections by creating visuals so realistic that even Mother Nature would be impressed. These two unique features support a premium value proposition across our collections. The superior appearance of our hard surface collections with Signature Technology visuals and GenuEdge bevels gives retail sales associates a great story about how consumers can obtain the look of natural hardwood at a tremendous value.
Switching to ceramic, how has Reveal Imaging changed the game? Would you say that’s been the greatest innovation from a style and design standpoint in ceramic? You could say it allows a consumer to have an authentic wood look in her kitchen if she doesn’t want real wood, correct?
Reveal Imaging was a transformational breakthrough in ceramic tile. For decades, U.S. ceramic tile choices consisted mostly of single-color squares in various sizes. Reveal Imaging completely changed how people thought about using ceramic tile in residential and commercial spaces. Our Italian ceramic business pioneered this technology in 2009 with tile that looked like wood planks, and we continued to invest in it to improve the quality and variety of our collections. Beyond wood visuals, Reveal Imaging allowed homeowners to install porcelain tile that replicated the appearance of marble, granite, slate, travertine and polished concrete, all while offering the durability and waterproof properties of porcelain.
Today, we’re building upon the legacy of Reveal Imaging by further enhancing visuals with state-of-the-art 3D printing, which creates ridges, knots or veining that can be felt to the touch. We additionally embellish the surface with a proprietary technology that creates greater dimension with varying gloss and matte finishes. As light hits the raised points and shadows fall into the recessed areas, the tiles display incredible depth and nuanced color, which has enhanced the level of realism in our collections. We’re applying this printing process across collections from mosaics to large slabs to create dramatic design options for any space.
As great as Reveal Imaging was, it was only a starting point for the remarkable work that we’re now delivering in ceramic tile. In any product category, you can never rest on successful past innovation. You have to continue pushing for the next breakthrough. That’s the only way to deliver the best products imaginable. Our 2027 collections will debut in December at Edge Summit in Dallas, and I know our Edge retail partners will be excited to see the new designs that will influence flooring trends in the year ahead.
Solon, Ohio—Tarkett Home flooring was featured on HGTV’s renovation competition series “Totally ’90s House,” which premiered Aug. 26.
The six-episode series followed two teams of television stars from the 1990s. The teams searched across the country for homes that retained their original decade-inspired designs.
After selecting their homes, the teams competed to update the spaces while preserving their nostalgic character. The winning team earned $25,000 for its chosen charity.
Flooring played a key role in the renovations, helping transform dated interiors into more modern living spaces.
“Totally ’90s House was such a natural fit for Tarkett Home because it shows just how much a floor can change the way a home looks and feels,” said Lauren Schnakenberg, senior director of marketing and design at Tarkett Home. “There’s something fun about celebrating the best of the ’90s while giving these homes a fresh start. We’re excited for viewers to see our flooring as part of that transformation and hopefully find a little inspiration for their own homes.”
Throughout the competition, the teams revisited recognizable design trends of the 1990s. Each renovation combined nostalgic elements with updated materials and contemporary styling.
“Great flooring isn’t just about a great first impression,” Schnakenberg said. “It’s about everyday life happening on top of it, kids, pets, spills, all of it and having the room still feeling exactly like home.”
Tarkett Home products featured on the show
The series featured two Tarkett Home flooring products: EverGen WPC and ProGen Plus.
EverGen WPC offers realistic wood-inspired visuals with a pressed bevel edge that defines individual planks. Its waterproof construction and scratch- and dent-resistant design help protect against everyday wear. The collection also provides comfort underfoot and complements various interior styles.
ProGen Plus luxury vinyl plank flooring features a hickory-inspired design with a pressed bevel edge. Its waterproof, scratch-resistant and dent-resistant construction makes it suitable for busy households with children and pets.
Both collections combine hardwood-inspired visuals with performance features designed for everyday residential use.
Dallas—Mohawk Momentum Roadshow will return for its seventh year beginning Jan. 6, 2027, in Dallas.
Las Vegas—
Turnhout, Belgium—
Solon, Ohio—