The flooring market in India is growing and does not show signs of slowing down. One of the sources for office flooring is the growing need from corporations to cater to domestic requirements, rather than just outsourced operations to accommodate the rest of the world. Says Todd Jarvis, Global Marketing Director, Shaw Contract, “Growth in office space supply will automatically generate need for premium quality flooring materials like carpet tiles and luxury vinyl tiles (LVT) due to their performance and design aesthetics. Hospitality is another segment where we expect growth due to a strong economy, rising global and local consumer purchasing power. All these factors have fueled record growth in the travel and hospitality industries and have created need for high end flooring materials. Overall, we are bullish about the India market and the growth opportunity for premium quality flooring materials.” He shares more… For what type of flooring are you witnessing demand? At present, in India, we are addressing the flooring needs of commercial applications that include start-ups or new offices trying to make up an impressive portfolio. Older and established companies also prefer to refurbish their interiors including flooring. Today, flooring is specially designed to reflect the needs of modern-day employees and invoke collaboration, flexibility, and mobility. As modern offices continue to evolve and adapt their workplaces to changing technologies, workplace design and premium quality sustainable modular carpets and coordinating hard surface flooring will play a pivotal role in reflecting the latest trends in alternate work styles and company culture. Also, Shaw Contract is the only carpet manufacturer that has products that can contribute to LEED v4 credits of energy-efficiency, lower carbon emissions and healthier environments. What is the emphasis laid by the company on R&D? We serve the corporate and hospitality sectors which always have a proper HVAC (air-conditioning) system in place. Hence, our flooring products are not subjected to drastic climate conditions. Our products are manufactured as per the industry standards. Tell us what's trending.Technological advancements in the flooring industry are lending many flooring solutions; much more than ever before. For example, LVT, the vinyl flooring with beautiful wood, stone and other visuals. It is durable, easy to maintain and less expensive to install. Keeping this trend in mind, we have launched a set of new products under LVT and engineered vinyl tiles (EVT) segments, which have Cork backing through COREtec patented technology. Our Global Design Studio continues to innovate with carpet tiles that combine cut pile, loop and intricate weaves. These new carpet products create ways for design to go in many new directions – be it an interesting carpet tile project, banded throw rug or a broadloom installation. A few of our new Carpet collections include Kindred, Inside Shapes and Suited. The Suited collection has been awarded the Silver Award by NeoCon, one of the largest global commercial interiors shows in the world. What keeps the company ahead in terms of growth? We built our business with our customers’ needs in mind. Leveraging the financial stability of the group company (Berkshire Hathaway), we offer a broad range of design-forward products to meet specific market segment needs, while providing innovative sustainable solutions, unmatched service, quality and performance. Our Universal Selling Process is vertical integration. Our dependability is directly related to our vertical integration. We control our products at every step of the process to maintain quality standards. The environmental guarantee that accompanies our EcoWorx-backed products ensure reclamation and cradle-to-cradle recycling into new EcoWorx material. Our innovation and sustainable efforts keep us ahead of the competition.