Have you ever been curious about the design conversations that happen behind the scenes at Metroflor? Consider your curiosity satisfied! Check out these snippets from this year's Design Report featuring the 2016 Hospitality Design Expo, straight from the desk of the Director of Design at Metroflor, Robert Longstaff.
The exhibition hall at the 2016 Hospitality Design Expo (HD Expo) was filled to maximum with exhibitors, so much that Mandalay Bay Hotel had to expand the hall to accommodate larger crowds. This is a confirmation that the HD Expo Show has become one of the major shows for the hospitality industry.
The Metroflor product focus for this show was the new Aspecta 10, which received a good response to the ISOCORE concept, how the product felt, its ease of installation, and the design/ color of the flooring. All the attendees who stopped in were excited by the fact that Metroflor is now offering a new, larger size 60” plank length and 18”x 36” tile formats. They all felt that the larger formats made the product look more natural.
Trends
“Blended designs” are being featured in different formats and combinations by many of the carpet tile manufacturers. This is a nice concept because you can break out different looks in surrounding areas while keeping continuity to the adjacent spaces.
Design trends like Industrial Chic continues to be important because of the porcelain tile market producing so many wood grains with that kind of look and color. Contract or residential installations with this look will not be changing out soon, as their investment in this look is too expensive. This rustic, reclaimed Industrial Chic will be around longer than a normal trend thanks to the tile industry.
Color
There was no lack of color at the show, from the bright and vivid accents to the full rang
of greys. Fabrics, carpeting, flooring, bed linens, and accent pieces all presented the full range of warm and grey neutrals to bright or bold mandarin orange, lime green, amethyst, ruby red and royal blue accents. There were more clean “super bights” featured along with the standard accent colors indicating the next level for accents. Blue is being used a lot more from a slight yellow cast blue to the more classic and fresher red or purple based blues.
More importantly, I am seeing a new color direction for the hospitality market, moving from the classic reds, chilies and oranges to more Autumn Canyon colors of aged copper and bronze – close to southwest colors. These remind me of colors you would see in late afternoon in Australia. These new colors also work well with the greys neutrals.
LVT Flooring
Tile is driving a lot of the rustic trend and color in wood grains but also showing new layout
designs with the idea if mixing different colors from one collection. This not only follows the rustic trend but also allows the designer more opportunity to create “custom” looks without having to create a special order or installation cost. Below is a floor that I worked with Kevin Parker to create at our Calhoun Innovation Center using 2 colors from the Engage Reserve Timber design. I selected colors that were close to each other in value and Kevin laid them out in a random manner resulting in a great look at no extra cost.
Engage Reserve Timber
The printed motif is big for the tile market and growing. It is another great way to add a lot
of interest to a space without a special order, lengthy delivery times or increased installation costs. Tile sizes continue to be large, although not as large as in Europe, and different cut or printed shapes are being combined to create mosaic like floors are becoming more commonplace.
Closing Remarks
I left the show with the feeling up beat and excited. I am confident that what we have in the Aspecta range, both design and color, can fill the aesthetic needs of today’s designers and architects. Now the job is making the market aware of Aspecta and what we have to offer.
Robert is a painter/sculptor and a surface designer. His 25 years’ experience with various manufacturers has given him the knowledge necessary to produce effective and innovative designs. Robert is now bringing his expertise to ASPECTA to create new LVT flooring lines for the global contract flooring market.
Big thanks to Robert Longstaff for this report! Want to learn more about how Metroflor is leading the way with design trends in flooring? Check out our Products page and see some of our incredible designs for yourself!