Interfloor have reported a continued rise in what they call the “portfolio buyer”. These are retailers who buy both PU and rubber underlay. Steve Woodhead, Interfloor’s marketing director, says, “There’s never been so much choice in underlays. A growing number of retailers are buying both PU and rubber underlay. In the last three years we’ve seen a growth in the proportion of these portfolio buyers from 27% to 37%. This reflects the wide variety of uses for sponge and crumb rubber underlay and the relative ease of creating a range that looks, and performs, differently.”
Interfloor have also found that specialist products continue to grow in popularity. “We’ve seen strong growth in the last year in double stick underlays (such as the Duralay Durafit System) and underlays for underfloor heating (Duralay Heatflow) and wood and laminate floors (Duralay Silentfloor Gold and Timbermate Excel). This proves that high quality, branded underlays that meet specific needs are a key weapon in the retailer’s arsenal,” says Steve Woodhead.
