Coverings 2015 opened yesterday morning to a bubbling of excitement as the first attendees filtered onto the show floor. More than 1,100 exhibitors displayed new products in impressively designed booths that spanned 430,000 net square feet and attendees sought out exciting product introductions and unparalleled educational sessions offered by the show.
The show kicked off with a Keynote from Eric Astrachan, Executive Director of the Tile Council of North America (TCNA) where attendees learned about the latest news on thin tile and draft standards, noting ongoing research regarding key considerations for working with this increasingly popular material. Astrachan also reviewed key revisions and updates to the TCNA handbook.
Day 1 also served as the announcement for this year’s awards and accolades, including the Best Booth Awards, the CID Awards, and the announcement of the first-ever recipients for our Coverings Rock Stars, An Emerging Leaders Program.
In its annual return the Best Booth Awards highlighted those exhibitors with impressive, imaginative booth designs that really went above and beyond. Stonepeak (booth 3823) was recognized as the Overall Best in Show display. Rodolfo Panisi, CEO of Stonepeak, described the feng-shui influence of the booth’s design, which featured a layout comprised of four “houses” distinctly decorated to reflect four personalities – Energy, Relax, Knowledge and Creativity. Each house was constructed in a different brightly colored tile, showcasing a variety of looks achieved from Stonepeak’s tile portfolio. Product lines represented in the space include Aura, a beautiful wall tile in matte and glossy finish; Zebrino, lineal high-tech porcelain marble; and floor tile in Arabescato Vena, one of six new colors from the large-format porcelain tile line Plane.
Stonepeak – Overall Best Booth Winner
Additional honors were extended to Saloni Ceramica (booth 2023), for successfully integrating tile with lighting and furnishing in its design; Unicom Starker (booth 4551), whose booth showcased a variety of ceramic tile collections in a design marked by crisp lines and a unique fencing effect; and Antolini Luigi (booth 4885), whose booth featured an attention-grabbing, backlit stone display.
Saloni Ceramica – Best Booth Winner
Unicom Starker – Best Booth Winner
Antolini Luigi – Best Booth Winner
The day concluded at the CID Awards & Opening Night Celebration, where the outstanding projects of the 2015 Coverings CID Awards and a class of emerging industry leaders, the Coverings’ Rock Stars, were honored and applauded by industry peers.
