1/29/2018

DOMOTEX from 12 to 15 January 2018 presented itself more future-oriented than ever before. More than 45,000 trade visitors from more than 100 countries deemed a visit to the world's flagship trade fair for carpets and flooring in Hanover to be worthwhile; 65 per cent of them came from abroad. The UNIQUE YOUNIVERSE motto of the trade fair put the focus on individuality and individualisation of products – for example with project inspirations from architecture and design. 

 

The innovative concept set two records: More than 1,600 exhibitors and an exhibition space equivalent to the size of 15 football pitches. This year's flooring show was very popular not only among buyers from the wholesale, retail and craftsmen's trade sectors but also among architects, designers and interior bloggers. The Interprint Design Team also had a look around DOMOTEX and gives guidance on the most important trends and inspirations from Hanover.

 

Oak – the favourite flooring

The best of wood: Oak remains the unchallenged Number One for flooring. No other wood is as omnipresent. Close runners-up are walnut, coniferous wood and tropical wood. Many wooden floors are dark brown or black with a rough, industrial look – similar to the 'Intra' design or the rough 'North Grove Oak' design by Interprint. 

 

Surfaces and laying technique

A withered look and grey hues as surface finish are trendy. Very blonde, hydrogen-bleached oak is also very popular. Special effects and textures produced with mechanical wood processing techniques such as sandblasting, flame-deseaming and the application of coloured oil are strongly represented. 

 

Inventiveness: New interlocking systems allow a more flexible laying of the flooring. Small-strip and large-strip versions are represented. The small-strip versions include a mix of different strip length and width. Fishbone and multi-strip versions continue to be popular. The 'mega-joints', handmade joints in XL width, are real eye-catchers.

 

Natural colours, new materials

Naturalness still dominates the choice of colours: warm oak tones and anything that awakens nature associations. Grey and black complement the colour range.

Innovations can be discovered in terms of materials. Upcycling – one of the four current Interprint trends – plays an important role: natural or discarded materials are set in a new context. Creative ideas in the flooring area are reflected by compressed fir needles or bee wax used as joint fillers.

 

Diversity of combinations

One of the major topics of the flooring season: Material mix. Anything that pleases may generally be combined. Withered material is combined with fresh, new material in the real-wood segment. The interplay of ornaments and wood is becoming a firm trend – whether burnt in, cut in or embossed. Spanish tiles from the factory or the digital printer integrate graphical elements.

 

Guidance welcome

The infinite variety of flooring makes a clear guidance necessary from the customer's point of view. With its six flooring trends for 2018, Interprint offers a focused selection of flooring for home & work environments with emotions.

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