Domotex's Wood Flooring Summit 'Very Active,' Deemed Success

After an attendance drop in 2013, Germany's Domotex Hannover trade exhibition rebounded 11 percent to 45,000 visitors. The four-day show, which came to a close Tuesday, attracted 1,350 companies from 57 countries.

The second edition of the event's Wood Flooring Summit was a success, show organizers said, and served as a networking hub for the international wood flooring and laminate flooring sector. "The Wood Flooring Summit at Domotex brings together all the key names in our business," Volkmar Halbe, chairman of the Management Board at Parador in Coesfeld, Germany, said in a statement. "You can tangibly feel how this trade fair gives the industry a boost. All the effort that went into attracting a large audience has definitely paid off."

Russell Kelly, a partner at PJ Lumber Co. (Prichard, Ala.) and longtime Domotex attendee, echoed Halbe. "The Wood Flooring Summit was very active," he told Hardwood Floors. "In comparison to 2013, buyers seem much more focused on availability than price. Most buyers are aware of the tight supply of U.S. hardwoods and are responding more aggressively than this time last year."

Photo courtesy of DomotexThe National Wood Flooring Association hosted a pavilion at the show, with the following member companies co-exhibiting:

• American Hardwood Export Council (London)• Graf Brothers Flooring & Lumber (South Shore, Kent.)• Hardwoods of Wisconsin (Elkhorn, Wis.)• IndusParquet (Medley, Fla.) • LaCrosse Flooring/Midwest Hardwood (Westby, Wis.)• PJ Lumber (Prichard, Ala.)• Robinson Lumber Europe Inc. (Rixensart, Belgium)• Shamrock Plank Flooring (Memphis, Tenn.) • Stoehr Flooring (Cincinnati, Ohio)

The next Domotex will be held Jan. 17-20, 2015.