Industry Outlook published by NWFA
What I read this week by Maria
Industry Outlook published by National Wood Flooring Association. (Part 1)
A greater number of respondents were pessimistic about the next year than in recent years’ surveys. Nearly a quarter said they expected sales to be down, either somewhat or significantly in 2020 compared with 2019. In 2018, just 9 percent said the same about 2019.
The shift seems in line with other national surveys that indicate a slight slowdown in spending on items like flooring. The Leading Indicator of Remodeling Activity (LIRA), released in July 2019 by the Joint Center for Housing Studies of Harvard University, estimated that annual gains in homeowner expenditures for improvements and repairs would shrink from 6.3 percent in the current quarter to just 0.4 percent by the second quarter of 2020.
The researchers blamed declining home sales and home building activity coupled with slower gains in permitting for improvement projects. But the slowdown may soften, said Chris Herbert, managing director of the Joint Center for Housing Studies, if mortgage interest rates continue to fall, incentivizing home sales, refinancing and remodeling
activity. National Association of Home Builders data for the first part of 2019 reflected a similar assessment: growth will continue, but not at the same rapid pace.
Market conditions would be better if not for labor shortages and rising construction costs making it difficult to complete some projects at prices homeowners can afford.
In fact, when asked to rank their concerns for 2020, the potential for economic slowdown tied with competition from non-wood flooring as the No. 1 issue that keeps NWFA members up at night. And about two-thirds indicated that non-wood products were having a negative impact on their wood-flooring revenue.
Forecast: Lighter Style
The style trends in hardwood floors that manufacturers, distributors, and retailers see coming in 2020 can be summed up in four words: wider, longer, lighter, and natural. “
When you’ve got this modern minimalist design where everything is very clean looking… there are definitely more white floors than there were a few years ago.” For Arimar the demand for the clean look has grown, we will be adding to our prime collection new floors arriving by mid-May.
“Matte sheen is increasing in popularity as people want a natural, ‘organic’-looking floor,” said one survey respondent. Reason why we offer the Bona Natural finish first develop for commercial purposes.
“Textures are still in demand,” one survey respondent said, “however, preference for the type of texture is evolving.” Consumers want a “lighter degree of scrape” that provides dimension but doesn’t change the feel. Check our Floor Art collection, we are the perfect fit.
Among species, oak is king – particularly white oak – and domestic species continue to be in higher demand than exotics. “Domestic hardwoods continue to hold their share because of cost, availability, and quality,”
Expected Demand by Color in 2020
Gray Stains & Finishes: 26% more, 23% less, 47% same, 4% don’t sell.
Dark Colors: 11% more, 31% less, 51% same, 2% don’t sell.
Natural Wood Colors: 41% more, 15% less, 43% same, 1% don’t sell.
White Stain: 35% more, 27% less, 34% same, 4% don’t sell.
Expected Demand by Type in 2020:
The engineered category will grow even more, expect lighter wire brushing, less texture, long boards & wide planks. We offer a wide range of floors you can choose from.
Expected Demand by Species:
Maple, Red Oak follow by White Oak, Hickory Pecan and American Walnut.
(will continue)
