Orlando, Fla.–A fairly upbeat mood prevailed at last week's International Builders' Show, despite evidence that there's still plenty of caution about housing and the economy. Although the show filled only one hall of the Orange County Convention Center and attracted about half as many people as the last edition held here, window and door manufacturers exhibiting at the show seemed more focused on the longer term, with less talk about survival and more about positioning for better times ahead.
Although this year's IBS didn't see the crowds previously seen three years ago when it was held in Florida, most exhibitors were pleased with the traffic in their booths.
Attendance for the National Association of Home Builders' annual trade show was estimated to be about 50,000 people. Despite a lower attendance level, most exhibitors expressed satisfaction with the traffic they were seeing. "The people who are here want to do things," said GlassCraft Door's Michael O'Shea. "We see it as a positive sign for business going forward."
One way a number of companies appear to be positioning themselves to move forward is greater emphasis on increasing sales by creating bundles of products beyond windows and doors. One example at the NAHB show was The Designed Exterior Collection, a series of nine housing-style vignettes featured in the Ply Gem booth. The manufacturer of windows, siding, decorative stone and other building products has put together different product groupings—along with guidelines for combining them—to help customers "build architecturally accurate homes with confidence," explained the company's John Stephenson. Window and door dealers benefit because the program inspires customers to look beyond white windows and basic styles toward higher-end decorative options.
Also positioning itself with a bundled product line was Therma-Tru Doors, which was emphasizing not just doors but complete entrances decorated with synthetic millwork products in numerous housing styles. Parent company Fortune Brands had brought Fypon into the Therma Tru fold as a way to save costs, but having the two companies together under one umbrella "enabled us to deliver an enhanced package that delivers real value," said David Randach, president.
Other companies looking to get more from each sale included Andersen Corp., which was highlighting new exterior trim options for its Series 200 and 400 products. Introduced last year with the company's A-Series windows and doors, the exterior trim is made from the company's Fibrex material and is offered in a variety of styles and colors. What's also appealing about the trim package, noted Andersen's Stacy Einck-Eckberg, is the ease of installation. Components can be ordered with windows and delivered cut-to-size and ready to install. "Trimming out the windows in a home typically takes a couple of days. With this package, the job can be done in as little as half a day," she notes.
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