Page 56 - History-of-flooringLR

History of flooring: floorwise

Floorwise has been supplying the trade with installation products and At roughly the same time its first underlays and grippers hit the market,
accessories for 40 years. After a discussion between a group of like-minded Floorwise also launched its F599 Heavy Duty Spray Adhesive, which is still a
delegates at a supplier conference in Leicester’s Port House back in 1981, and toolbox favourite this very day. The high-adhesive content of F599 is known for
following subsequent meet ups at Watford’s Spiders Web and London’s Hotel its fantastic hold and delivery, something the supplier has recently reflected
Lily, Floorwise Group Ltd was incorporated in 1982 with 10 founding members. with the launch of a brand-new spray adhesive.
With the idea to pool resources for greater buying power, the group of
independent flooring wholesalers gave trade customers better quality and value A lot has changed in the last 30 plus years since the launch of F599, including
across a range of installation products and accessories. awareness of the potential harm in solvents and propellants used within spray
adhesives. So, after a long period of development, this year Floorwise launched
Since its launch, Floorwise has grown into one of the flooring industry’s most its F597 Heavy Duty Spray Adhesive that’s 100% dichloromethane free. Offering
recognised brands. Today Floorwise has distribution depots covering the UK and the same great hold and application of the best-selling F599, the new F597
Ireland, giving increased access to quality and value across a broader range of eliminates this potentially harmful chemical and is a safer and healthier
products than ever before. alternative that’s already finding a wide fan base. Its launch is testament to the
continual work of Floorwise to develop products that are better to use, without
Launching its first underlay product to its own specification in around 1986, compromising quality.
floorwise hasn’t looked back since and has built one of the industry’s largest
underlay portfolios. With carpet underlays across recycled PU, rubber sponge It’s a long-standing commitment to quality that’s seen Floorwise build a
and waffle, rubber crumb and felt, as well as wood and laminate, LVT, acoustic catalogue of award-winning products over the last 40 years and become the
and underlays for underfloor heating; the supplier is considered one of the trusted source for installers in everything from underlays, gripper and profiles to
leading underlay brands in the country. adhesives, screeds, tapes and a world-class collection of tools from leading
brands. With its distribution depots providing the exceptional quality and value
Products such as Longevity, launched in 2001, have been familiar feature of the of Floorwise products and the benefits of independent, local service; for many
flooring landscape, but with the launch of the Hyper collection in 2011, installers it’s an unbeatable combination.
Floorwise established itself as a major contender in the recycled PU underlay
sector. Hyper, with its forward-thinking approach to marketing, was the Richard Bailey, managing director, Floorwise, says: ‘We’re delighted to be
forerunner to the supplier’s current recycled PU collection, including fitter marking our 40th anniversary this year. Throughout that time, the industry has
favourites such as Vitality and Tread. It established a defined performance changed hugely, but our reputation for quality and value, as well as the best in
structure to various densities of foam, using now familiar terms such as SHD local service, has remained an unwavering constant. Of course, we’ve
and UHD+ that were easily understand in qualitative terms by consumers. developed our products to keep up with the times and I’m exceptionally proud
that for four decades Floorwise has worked hard to exceed its customers’
The original Hyper collection transformed the approach to talking about expectations. While having changed and grown over the years, our independent
underlay durability and comfort, establishing the bouncebackabilty scale as a membership continues its long record of investment in product development
way for customers to make an informed underlay purchase. Now with 25 and is committed to ensuring that our customers are provided with excellent
different options in recycled PU alone, its legacy is clear and floorwise continues service at every opportunity. We believe it’s Floorwise’s unique approach to the
to develop new products that keep it at the forefront of this highly competitive market that is the foundation of our success and a recipe that will continue to
part of the market. deliver well into the future.’
Continuing its journey, the release of the Feel the Difference collection in 2017 01509 673 974
marked another fresh approach in underlay from floorwise. Bringing together a wiseup@floorwise.co.uk
premium collection across recycled PU, recycled rubber crumb and rubber www.floorwise.co.uk
sponge; it was the first cross-category offer to deliver a consistent brand feel
and unified marketing message. Providing a collection of high-specification
carpet underlays, Feel the Difference is for consumers looking for the very best
in comfort and longevity beneath their carpet, whatever their preference.

It’s not just in underlay in which Floorwise has made something of a name for
itself, and its Diamond Gripper has become something of a default choice for
high-quality carpet installations. Launching its first gripper back in 1986, over
the next three decades floorwise saw the industry slowly engineer value out of
the product. Suppliers had reduced the quality of plywood and number of pins
and many installers were compensating with double runs to ensure sufficient
hold on heavy or deep pile carpets.
Floorwise launched Platinum Gripper back in 2008 in
response to this negative industry trend. Now called
Diamond Gripper, it came with a specification much
closer to grippers of the 80s with a wider, better-
quality plywood less prone to failure and with a higher
pin count for a firmer hold. Diamond Gripper is now
favoured by many installers and can often be found
alongside Feel the Difference underlays in high-
quality domestic installations.

56 The History of Flooring