Brett Miller, NWFA's new director of certification and education, will be on hand next week at the NWFA Wood Flooring Expo in Dallas, teaching seminars, leading demos on the show floor and talking with members. We caught up with him in February at the Surfaces show in Las Vegas to talk about his new role, the NWFA, and the trends he's noticed in the industry.
Hardwood Floors: Congrats on your new job with the NWFA. What has your experience been like since joining the staff?Brett Miller: It's unbelievable. I mean I loved my time at Basic Coatings. This is really exposing me to a whole new avenue of all the other manufacturers, finish manufacturers, and all the other manufacturers out there from a whole different side of the industry, so it's exciting.
HF: What is the first thing on your "to-do" list with the NWFA?BM: There's a lot on my plate for first order. We've got a lot to work with on the education, the certification side. And I just got out of a lunch meeting talking about the technical publications that we've got on our plate. So, there's a lot of stuff. I still need to actually sit down and line itemize out what's priority No. 1.
HF: What are some of the trends you're seeing in the wood flooring industry?BM: Honestly, I think being at the show here, I'm really impressed with a lot of the new products that are coming out. And a lot of the new innovations and new things that are out there for our industry to help the contractors out and making their jobs easier and more efficient and more effective. I love that. I'm also getting a real good feel for a big interest in certification, being certified. That's something that too many qualified contractors that are out there haven't engaged with. So that's something that I think has been a hot topic.
HF: What would you say to someone who is considering joining the NWFA?BM: The support that not just the NWFA but the manufacturers-our manufacturer partners-give to our members is huge. There's been a lot of interest with people joining the NWFA; that is really exciting. People are very excited about the Expo coming up, but I would say the biggest benefit that I see out of being a member is the support that you get as a member from not only staff but our manufacturing partners, which is really what makes this whole organization tick.
