Reshoring survey finds U.S. manufacturing momentum building

Sarasota, Fla.—U.S. manufacturers are showing greater interest in reshoring, but policy uncertainty, workforce shortages and import competition continue to create challenges.

The findings come from the 2026 USA Reshoring Survey, conducted by the Reshoring Initiative and Regions Recruiting. The annual study surveyed 249 U.S. manufacturers, including 118 original equipment manufacturers and 131 contract manufacturers.

The survey found more OEMs have reshored or are actively engaged in reshoring compared with 2025. Manufacturers cited tariffs, geopolitical risks and proximity to customers as leading reasons for bringing production back to the U.S.

Companies also reported measurable operational benefits. Improved speed to market and on-time delivery ranked among the strongest positive impacts of reshoring.

Capital investment continues

Manufacturers also indicated plans to invest in domestic operations.

Additionally, 63% OEM respondents said they plan U.S. capital expenditures in 2026 or 2027. Those investments will support reshoring or other domestic expansion.

The report found planned investment remained strong even among companies still considering reshoring. Roughly two-thirds of those companies expect to make domestic capital investments.

At the same time, satisfaction with reshoring declined from last year. In 2026, 65% of OEMs said they were satisfied with their reshoring results, down from 96% in 2025.

Dissatisfaction increased to 25% from 4%. The report attributed some of that shift to labor costs, vendor gaps, inflation and implementation challenges.

Policy uncertainty creates pressure

Policy uncertainty emerged as one of the clearest concerns among manufacturers.

Fifty-seven percent of respondents identified changing trade policies as their primary challenge. That ranked well ahead of market pricing and supply chain complexity.

The report said manufacturers are seeking a more predictable framework that allows them to plan long-term investments.

Steel and aluminum tariffs also created challenges for contract manufacturers. Fifty-seven percent said tariff increases hurt their ability to compete against imports. Only 15% reported a positive impact.

Geopolitical risk has also become a larger factor in sourcing decisions. The report found geopolitical concerns now rival tariffs as a driver of reshoring.

Contract manufacturers see growing pipeline

Contract manufacturers reported increased reshoring opportunities.

The percentage of CMs currently quoting reshoring projects doubled to 32% from 16% last year. Meanwhile, 79% said at least some customers discussed reshoring with them during the past 12 months. Still, domestic manufacturers face considerable price pressure.

CMs reported competing against imports on an average of 38% of quotes, up from 31% in 2025. When they lost business to imports, respondents cited price as the primary factor 94% of the time.

Half of CMs that lost orders on price said the winning import bid was at least 30% below their own.

The survey also found growing adoption of Total Cost of Ownership, or TCO, among OEMs. Forty percent now use TCO when comparing domestic and offshore sourcing options, up from 30% in 2025.

Skilled labor remains a barrier

Despite the encouraging results, workforce availability remains another major obstacle to reshoring. Manufacturers reported the greatest difficulty filling skilled-trade positions, particularly technician and maintenance or repair roles. Roughly two-thirds rated hiring for those positions as very difficult or worse.

Companies are increasingly turning to trade schools, internal training programs and community colleges to build their workforce. Those channels ranked ahead of four-year universities in the survey.

Manufacturers remain cautious about whether technology can close the competitive gap. Only 33% believe advances in AI and automation will make U.S. manufacturing competitive enough to cut imports by 50% by 2040.

The 2026 survey marks the second year the Reshoring Initiative and Regions Recruiting have tracked manufacturers’ responses to reshoring, trade policy and domestic investment.

Read the full report here.

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How a socialist society could impact your business

You don’t need me to tell you that it’s election season. Turn on your TV and you’re either going to hear about midterms or floods. But this year seems a little different. We’re seeing a lot of socialist candidates winning elections. Many cities have elected socialist mayors and a bunch of socialist upstarts are defeating establishment candidates.

This drove me to do a little research. First, I wanted to find out why this was gaining momentum, and what socialism could mean for small businesses. For the record, as small business owners, FCNews is no different than you combatting the challenges every small business faces on a daily basis. (Full disclosure: I favor a capitalist society where the goal is to make as much money to afford us the best lives possible.)

So what’s fueling this socialist movement? The biggest reason: Many young Americans feel the economic system isn’t working for them. Housing, health care, college, childcare and basic living costs have risen substantially, while many younger people feel that owning a home, building wealth and achieving the same standard of living their parents had is increasingly difficult.

A recent 2026 poll of 18-34-year-olds found 96% were concerned about living costs, with 40% saying they were “extremely” concerned. That creates fertile ground for a message that says: “The system is rigged. Government should make sure people can afford housing, health care and a decent life.”

When younger Americans say they like socialism today, many are thinking about universal health care, affordable housing, free or subsidized college, higher minimum wages, stronger unions, paid family leave, higher taxes on billionaires and government regulation of large corporations. At the same time, young people have become much more skeptical of capitalism. A 2025 Harvard Youth Poll found only 39% of young Americans supported capitalism.

But let’s say all of a sudden this country turned from a capitalist society to a socialist one. How would this impact a typical floor covering dealer? I came up with four major ways:

1. Taxes: A more aggressively progressive administration could try to raise taxes on higher-income individuals and profitable businesses. The effect would be particularly noticeable to an owner who earns $250,000-$1 million+ from the business; operates as a pass-through entity; wants to sell the business; owns the building in which the business operates; or is trying to reinvest profits into expansion.

2. Labor costs: A more aggressively pro-labor administration could push for higher minimum wages, expanded paid leave, stronger overtime requirements, greater employee protections, easier unionization, scheduling protections and higher employer contributions to benefits.

3. Rent and real estate: A progressive government could pursue policies involving commercial rent regulation, commercial property taxes, stronger tenant protections, restrictions on landlords, zoning changes and higher taxes on commercial real estate.

4. Regulation: A socialist administration could increase regulation, particularly regarding labor, environmental standards and consumer protections.

Let’s put all this into practice. How might this affect a flooring retailer doing about $5 million a year? I called on everyone’s new best friend, ChatGPT, for some answers. These numbers are illustrative, but they are designed to resemble the economics of a real flooring company.

Our hypothetical $5 million flooring company has a gross profit of $2.25 million, assuming a gross margin of 45%. (Sales of $5 million minus cost of goods of $2.75 million. Yes, I’m optimistic.) Let’s say salaries and wages are $700,000, payroll taxes and benefits are $210,000, sales commissions are $250,000, rent is $180,000, advertising/ marketing is $80,000, freight/delivery is $180,000, vehicles/travel is $75,000, software/accounting/legal is another $75,000, insurance is $70,000 and other overhead is $100,000. I’ve come up with an operating profit of $330,000, or a 6.6% operating margin.

Now, let’s introduce a strong socialist policy environment. Imagine a government that substantially increases wages, employee benefits, payroll costs, business taxes, paid leave, labor protections, compliance requirements and commercial-property costs while leaving private ownership intact.

Employee compensation is probably the biggest immediate impact. Suppose average compensation—including wages, payroll taxes and benefits—increases by 15%. The company’s current $910,000 becomes approximately $1,046,500. The problem is wage compression. If you raise the bottom of the wage scale, the employee making $25 wants a raise, too. That’s why a minimum-wage increase can ripple through an entire payroll.

Next, let’s look at benefits and paid leave. Imagine a government adding more generous paid family leave, additional mandated benefits and other employee protections. Let’s assume another $40,000 per year in incremental benefit/leave costs.

Then we have taxes. A strongly progressive government could raise business taxes or reduce preferential rates for certain small businesses. Let’s assume the company’s effective combined state/local business-tax burden increases by $35,000 annually.

Now, suppose additional labor reporting, scheduling requirements, legal compliance, HR administration and regulatory requirements cost the company $25,000 per year. Bottom line: The starting profit of $330,000 becomes $93,500. That’s a 72% reduction in operating profit. Nothing was confiscated, nothing was nationalized, the company still does $5 million in sales and is still profitable. But the owner’s economic reward for taking the risk has fallen dramatically.

I can’t believe the owner is going to sit there and accept that. He has three ways to respond:

1. Raise prices. But if competitors don’t raise prices as much, he could lose business.

2. Cut employees. Suppose he eliminates two positions and reduces other labor costs by $100,000. Profit goes back toward $193,500 but now fewer people have jobs and the remaining employees have more work.

3. Accept lower returns. The owner could simply accept making $100,000 instead of $330,000. But it changes the economic incentive to own the company.

A flooring retailer is particularly vulnerable because labor is everywhere in the business. A government policy that increases the cost of labor affects almost every step.

And, remember, we are assuming this retailer operates on 45% margin. If it’s more like 37%, the same policy changes could push it very close to break-even. At that point, the owner starts questioning why he is taking the risk of owning a business.

Food for thought.

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Tuesday Tips: Show customers what’s possible

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, Tom Jennings, retail training expert, explains how helping customers visualize what’s possible can influence buying decisions and make it easier to solve their flooring challenges.

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Dan Frierson takes stock of carpet industry changes

Dan Frierson, chairman, The Dixie Group,

Dan Frierson, chairman, The Dixie Group, shares changes that shaped the flooring industry.

The impact of Stainmaster

When I started in this business, we had a mill that ran waste from our cotton mills, which we fed to the chenille operators and then the bath rug producers. We were making tufting yarns out of the waste from our cotton mills, then we went to rayon, acrylic, spun poly and polypropylene and finally to nylon filament because each one provided a better product than the previous fiber. It wasn’t like the world just started in 1986, but when DuPont came out with Stainmaster, they put enough money behind it to make it a brand. And to this day, I think it is the only consumer brand the industry has responded to. Stainmaster changed a lot of things— and it was also about the time they were able to make solid color product out of filament—and that was a huge change for the industry. You had filament nylon you could use, but we typically made high-end critical products, so we could not use much of the nylon filament that was being produced. It wasn’t consistent enough. It wasn’t just the advent of filament nylon; it was the ability to use it in critical products along with the Stainmaster brand.

Advances in manufacturing technology

Product development and differentiation started years ago with the spinners. You had no filament to operate with. It was the spinners that would develop a lot of different products out of a blend of fibers or a blend of yarns. It then moved to the fiber producers who started making lots of different products, different deniers, different sizes, different denier per filament, different dyeing capabilities and so forth. But then it came to the tufting machinery manufacturers who started making equipment on which you could make products that looked more woven. This really began to change product development in the industry.

Mills extruding their own fibers

Extrusion was a dramatic change that started when the mills proved they could make polypropylene successfully. However, it made a lousy carpet. The industry did sell a lot of berbers though. If you remember, DuPont went into the polypropylene business and got their head handed to them. And Amoco was big in their Genesis products. It became clear that if the mills could extrude it, they could do it a lot more inexpensively and have their own colors. It began with polypropylene, but it quickly went to nylon. That led to filament polyester. Spun polyester was a lousy product. There was a lot of it sold, but it hasn’t been a major factor after 1986. The backward integration put the last fiber companies out of business: DuPont, Monsanto, Honeywell, BASF. They really had a major influence 40 to 50 years ago, and that, of course, is totally gone.

Solution-dyed polyester

There was a movement to solution-dyed filament polyester; Bob Shaw led that charge. You had Mohawk with their PTT, which is similar, but that only impacted them. I wouldn’t put it on the same level as what has happened with PET extrusion because the market is now 80% to 90% PET.

The growth of LVT

One of the smartest guys in the industry was whoever decided that vinyl tile ought to be called luxury vinyl tile. This accelerated the erosion of carpet’s share. Because at one point it was just carpet and sheet vinyl. People were still covering up wood. They hadn’t figured out yet they could rip up that carpet and refinish the wood.

The growth of the buying groups and big boxes

Today, I believe the big boxes are losing market share in soft floor covering, but they gained it for years. Everybody was in fear of them. But, if you remember, The Great Indoors (Sears) and the Home Depot Expo Design Center looked like they were going to eat the world, but they determined they excel in DIY-type applications. The home centers scared a lot of the retailers and probably made them better, but they did take a lot of volume out of the specialty retail segment.

The Great Recession

The Great Recession resulted in the most dramatic decline in business our industry has ever faced. You just didn’t know where the bottom was as you were going down. But once we got to the bottom, the industry was off about 40%. It was horrible, but we shot out of it pretty quickly and the carpet industry—and this is what I think is going to happen when we make the turn this time— grew for about eight years. We were able to double our market share over the next five years because we continued to invest as things were going down. But it was a difficult period, no question. This period has not been as severe, but a heck of a lot longer.

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Mercier: A pioneer in prefinished wood flooring

Every great innovation begins with a simple question: There has to be a better way. A devoted husband and father, and a cabinetmaker with an unwavering passion for wood, Marcel Mercier believed that every piece of timber deserved to reveal its natural warmth, character and beauty. His craftsmanship reflected a deep respect for the material—a philosophy that extended well beyond the workshop.

Marcel and his wife cherished the hardwood floors in their home, but maintaining them was another story. Refinishing meant moving the family and their furniture out for weeks, enduring clouds of sanding dust, overwhelming varnish fumes and the disruption of daily life. The process was messy, time-consuming and far from practical. Rather than accept the inconvenience, Marcel imagined a different approach.

Inspired by the flawless finishes he applied to custom kitchen cabinets, he wondered: “Why couldn’t hardwood flooring be finished before it was installed?” It was a bold idea at a time when on-site finishing was the only accepted method.

His solution was as ingenious as it was unexpected. Using a wringer washing machine, Marcel coated hardwood planks with finish outside the home. What began as a simple solution to a family challenge soon transformed an entire industry. That spirit of curiosity and craftsmanship became the foundation of Mercier. From breakthrough finishing technologies to industry-first solutions, the company continues to push the boundaries of performance, durability and design.

As the industry evolved, many manufacturers started incorporating nanoparticles in floor coatings to improve performance. Wanting to protect people’s health and with the willingness to stop using petroleum-based products, Mercier took an entirely different approach. The company started adding plant-based oil in its finishes. Thanks to this innovation, Mercier won an Eco-innovation Award.

Advent of aluminum oxide

Nobody believed Mercier could, but it”non-toxic” aluminum oxide into its finishes to improve the protection and durability of wood floors—an industry first. To prove how ingenious the concept was, Mercier would rub the surface of its floors with steel wool!

Next, Mercier focused its R&D efforts to achieve even higher technical performance levels. The goal was to maximize our floors durability and resistance to impact, scratches, water, abrasion and other wear and tear, all while preserving the original beauty of the wood. This was a technological tour de force! Thanks to its livUP finish, it is now possible to enjoy wood flooring in commercial applications and high-traffic areas, without compromising durability. (Note: Mercier was the first manufacturer to guarantee its finish in commercial applications with direct outdoor access.)

The introduction of layering coats of stain

In the beginning, the whole industry was confronted with a problem: Due to wood’s inherent coloring, nobody could achieve some of the neutral colors that customers craved by simply sticking to the traditional staining process. To keep complimenting wood’s natural beauty while achieving these colorations, Mercier started decomposing stain colors and adding them in layers, creating shades that previously could not be attained. Its proven process is now used throughout the industry.

The Naked Collection: As natural as it gets

At Mercier, the focus is on what wood “wants to unveil,” rather than forcing it to become something that it is not. To pay tribute even more to wood’s sublime nature, the company created the Naked Collection, featuring raw-looking boards with an exclusive finishing process that seals the color of the wood before applying a protective finish. With the Naked Collection, the floor’s grain remains natural and does not fade over time.

A pioneer in sustainability

Mercier is one of the industry’s pioneering manufacturers that has a long-term vision to reduce its ecological footprint for generations to come. The company understands the importance of wood as a natural resource—and trees for the Earth’s future. That is why it has implemented the most advanced environmental policies and sophisticated production methods throughout its entire supply chain to maximize sustainability.

Sustainable practices

Mercier is committed to sourcing wood only from environmentally responsible suppliers. All the species come from sustainably managed North American forests and adhere to rigorous traceability standards. With Mercier’s wood flooring, customers are guaranteed peace of mind knowing they are benefiting from outstanding quality and environmental stewardship.

Mercier’s approach to sustainability is so thorough in that it achieves the lowest amount of waste in the industry—2% vs. 5%, the industry norm. What’s more, the company reinserts 100% of its residues back into the plant to heat its factory, for example. All our products are packaged using recycled and recyclable packaging.

Greenguard Gold certification

Mercier is one of the few manufacturers of prefinished wood to be certified Greenguard Gold , the highest standard on the market. This certification confirms that its finishes are free of thousands of chemical substances that are harmful to human health, such as VOCs and other pollutants. The goal is to provide peace of mind to clients who are concerned about the air they breathe.

LEED-certified flooring

Mercier’s high-quality floors also contribute to making buildings LEED-certified, an essential requirement for facility mangers, architects and designers.

Passionate about wood

Mercier’s passion for genuine hardwood is undeniable. It is naturally noble, undoubtedly authentic and inimitable. The company has mastered the art of handling wood because it respects its true essence—from its initial preparation to its finish. Each plank—from its color, texture and grain— is unique and should be treated as such.

In order to create high-quality wood floors, Mercier rigorously selects only the finest wood, and it optimizes each step of the production process to ensure impeccable and consistent quality, all while reducing waste.

Being vertically integrated for over 20 years, Mercier’s Drummondville, Quebec, hardwood sawmill provides the raw lumber materials utilized in its flooring products. The installation is also the home of the company’s kiln drying units and production lines where the raw planks are transformed into wood flooring boards. The meticulously manufactured solid and engineered wood floorboards are then sent to Montmagny, Quebec, to its head office, which regroups finishing operations, from the finish and staining applications to delivery. It is at the Montmagny facilities where Mercier’s floors get their final finishing touch and quality approval. Mercier counts on the hard work and dedication of nearly 300 wood specialists.

Thanks to its high-performance finishes, Mercier wood floors can be installed in both residential and commercial applications where they will continue to make people proud of their living and working spaces for a long time. Mercier believes in both the timelessness of wood and its ability to be fashionable today, and it has always been steps ahead in terms of its technological innovations as well as its designs. Mercier offers one of the industry’s broadest selections of products and features. While its wood flooring collections are profoundly aligned with the latest in interior decorating, they are nevertheless infused with a classic style to remain striking day after day, year after year. Every Mercier wood floor reflects the care, craftsmanship and dedication that have defined its work for generations—qualities the company’s customers can see and feel in every plank.

Growing with great partners

Across North America, Mercier’s valued partners, distributors and retailers continue to recognize the value the company brings to the market through exceptional Made-in-Canada quality, sustainable practices, reliable service and supply.

For more than 45 years, Mercier has continued to grow by listening to its customers, embracing innovation and building lasting partnerships.

In closing, Mercier Wood Flooring proudly congratulates Floor Covering News on its 40th anniversary. Here’s to celebrating another team that shares our passion for excellence and our commitment to advancing the floor covering industry.

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Mohawk’s Lorberbaum marks pivotal points in carpet’s history

Jeff Lorberbaum, chairman, Mohawk Industries

As our industry has changed over the past 40 years, it has rarely been due to a single moment. In some instances, a series of events over a few years has led incrementally to what we can later identify as a significant shift.

Jeff Lorberbaum, chairman of Mohawk Industries, says these are the most impactful transitions for our industry since Floor Covering News began in 1986.

Carpet industry consolidation

Carpet manufacturing in northwest Georgia began as a highly fragmented industry comprised of hundreds of small, entrepreneurial companies. Those businesses were started with limited capital and focused on producing specific products or supplying a few customers. Over time, the industry evolved into a professionally managed, capital-intensive sector that leveraged investments in manufacturing technology, logistics, product development and marketing to deliver better value and service for customers. Mohawk was a good example of this change, transforming its business from a niche manufacturer of premium tufted and woven carpet into a fully integrated flooring leader that was supplying products across all categories, including residential and commercial applications.

During the 1980s and 1990s, the industry underwent dramatic consolidation as larger manufacturers realized substantial competitive advantages through scale. Greater size enabled companies to invest in advanced production facilities, national advertising campaigns, broader product portfolios and more efficient operations. Mohawk was a driving force behind this consolidation, particularly after going public in 1992. Through the acquisition of more than 20 companies during this era, Mohawk expanded its manufacturing capabilities, strengthened its supply chain and added some of the most respected brands in the industry.

During this time, Mohawk developed a nationwide network of distribution centers and a fleet of trucks supported by specialized sales organizations that became valued resources for retailers. These investments enabled us to deliver superior product availability, customer service, merchandising and marketing support. Retailers benefited from improved service and product selection, while consumers gained greater access to higher-quality and more innovative flooring solutions.

Consolidation is a natural outcome of a maturing industry. The benefits can be seen in how the industry leaders expanded into complementary flooring categories to offer a comprehensive product portfolio and how the scale of the large companies provided additional value to the industry and consumers.

Fiber manufacturing shifts to carpet producers

When the tufted carpet industry began, fiber production was controlled primarily by large chemical companies as a natural extension of their resin and polymer businesses. These organizations dominated fiber innovation, product development and much of the marketing that influenced residential carpet purchasing decisions.

Over time, advances in technology made fiber extrusion accessible to carpet manufacturers. Leading companies recognized an opportunity to gain greater control over product design and performance as well as cost structure by investing directly in fiber extrusion and polymer development. This transition fundamentally changed the competitive landscape of the industry.

Mohawk was at the forefront of this transformation. We invested heavily in fiber extrusion assets during a period when the industry was shifting away from dependence on third-party suppliers. By controlling fiber development internally, Mohawk accelerated product differentiation and delivered meaningful consumer benefits in style and performance.

Among the industry’s most significant advancements were the development of softer fibers that enhanced comfort underfoot, new technologies that improved design options, durability and ease of maintenance. These developments not only enhanced product performance but also helped create stronger brands and greater value for consumers.

Transition from nylon to polyester & Triexta

For most of our industry’s history, nylon was the dominant fiber used in carpet manufacturing. It earned its position through outstanding durability, resilience and flexibility, allowing manufacturers to create a wide range of styles, textures and colors. Over the last two decades, however, the industry has undergone a major shift toward polyester with another sizable share of the market moving to our proprietary collections made with Triexta.

Mohawk played a leading role in driving the shift to polyester. We invested hundreds of millions of dollars in patented manufacturing technology that converts recycled plastic bottles into high-quality polyester fiber. In the early 2000s, we introduced filament polyester products that laid the foundation for much of the industry’s evolution toward polyester-based flooring solutions. Today, our polyester recycling and extrusion investments provide significant competitive advantages by improving quality consistency, reducing environmental impact and increasing the affordability of products for consumers.

While polyester was gaining ground in the market, we became the exclusive manufacturer of carpet produced from Triexta fiber, which is made partially with renewable, plant-based materials. Triexta was the first fiber approved by the Federal Trade Commission since nylon in 1959, so it represented a generational advance in terms of softness and stain resistance. Our SmartStrand collections were the first ultra soft products on the market, and their luxurious feel led to immediate success in the premium carpet category. Today’s polyester and Triexta carpets offer a combination of luxurious softness, sophisticated style, improved durability and better overall performance that would have been difficult to achieve two decades ago.

Evolution from solid colors to sophisticated visuals

For much of the industry’s history, the residential carpet market was dominated by solid-color, cut-pile products. In a more colorful era, manufacturers offered extensive palettes of colors to satisfy consumer decorating preferences, while patterns and complex visuals represented only a small portion of industry sales.

Over the past decade, consumer tastes have changed, with trends favoring more sophisticated and visually interesting carpet designs versus solid colors. Advances in tufting technology, yarn engineering and color development have enabled the creation of highly styled products featuring barber-pole constructions, multi-color flecks, heathered textures, tonal effects as well as intricate patterns.

Mohawk’s styling innovations have led to carpet collections that better complement modern interior design trends while providing greater flexibility for homeowners, designers and builders. This evolution from basic solid-color products to highly engineered and fashion-oriented designs represents one of the most significant changes in the modern carpet industry. It has allowed us to deliver products that not only perform exceptionally well but also serve as an important design element within residential spaces.

Evolution of carpet distribution channels

Since 1986, the consolidation that reshaped carpet manufacturing was mirrored throughout the industry’s retail channels. Over time, virtually every major sales segment—including specialty retailers, home centers, new residential construction and multifamily housing—experienced significant consolidation. In the face of this change, the resiliency of specialty flooring stores operated for generations by individual families has been remarkable. These entrepreneurs have managed to thrive for decades by providing personalized design and installation services.

At the same time, larger retail chains began to emerge as stores expanded into new geographies by opening new locations and through acquisitions. These growing retail groups operated more efficiently, developed stronger brands and enhanced their service capabilities. Combined with the support of manufacturers, these investments contributed to making carpet one of the most affordable and stylish flooring options.

Mohawk has consistently adapted to these changes by offering the broadest carpet portfolio in the industry balanced by an appealing array of hard surface alternatives.

Through leading brands, innovative product designs, distinctive aesthetics and advanced merchandising systems, we help retailers communicate product benefits effectively to consumers. These capabilities enable consumers to identify the flooring solution that best meets their performance, design and budget requirements.

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Bauwerk Group: The epitome of innovation

If size matters, Bauwerk Group holds a clear advantage.

As one of the industry’s largest wood flooring companies, Bauwerk maintains a wide manufacturing footprint and global presence. Its North American portfolio alone includes two formidable brands— Somerset Hardwood Flooring and Boen— while the namesake Bauwerk Parkett line is sold throughout Europe. With state-of-the-art production plants in Somerset, Ky.; Switzerland; Lithuania and Croatia, the Bauwerk Group has established itself as a global market leader in the high-quality, real wood flooring sector.

“We constitute a very large organization with a global footprint that’s driving great innovation, beautiful products and super performance,” said Steve DeCarlo, CEO of the Boen and Somerset brands. “It’s an impressive ladder of products—including 2 ¼ inch solid all the way up to three-layer engineered hardwood as well as specialized hardwood floors—that we can bring to the marketplace.”

Bauwerk’s deep experience in hardwood flooring production, combined with its international manufacturing operations, allows the company to leverage its scale and expertise. “We have a great milling operation, and we support that with utilization of our associates who are highly trained,” DeCarlo added. “And because we have manufacturing in Croatia, Lithuania, Switzerland and the U.S., we do a lot of creative idea sharing among those four regions so that we’re not just isolated to one plant here in the States. We have a cadre of top-notch engineers and manufacturing experts that share information, processes and best practices. The amount of brain power, manpower and resources is unrivaled.”

Some standouts of the two most popular brands in the company’s lineup:

SOMERSET

Even prior to Bauwerk’s acquisition of the Somerset brand in 2022, the U.S.-made product had established a long history (36 years, to be exact) of producing quality, American-made hardwood flooring. Moreover, Somerset sources raw materials from the Appalachian region—an area known for its robust lumber supply.

“We can also combine European lamellas with U.S. platforms engineered here,” DeCarlo said. A case in point is Somerset’s Euro Wide Plank. This stylish collection, introduced in 2024, fuses Somerset’s expertise in hardwood finishing with a premium, precision chassis produced by the parent company in Europe. This stunning 8.25-inch-wide European white oak floor serves as the perfect canvas for a variety of colors specifically designed for the North American market

BOEN

Boen, which has been manufacturing building products since the 1600s, has a rich history in its own right. On the hardwood flooring side, the company boasts unique capabilities, especially engineered hardwood. This includes its popular Chaletino plank, whose long/wide boards span nearly 10 feet. In fact, the boards coming out of Boen’s European operations are some of the widest planks available in the market today.

“Boen represents our premium brand, which is 100% European-engineered,” DeCarlo said. In keeping with its spirit of innovation, Boen plans to expand its lineup later this fall with new colors. This includes six European light neutral color tones available across three engineered hardwood platforms: 9/16 x 5 7/16 x 86 5/8; 9/16 x 8 1/4 x 86 5/8; and 3/4 x 11 3.4 x 108.

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