With so many flooring products, styles, colours, tones and effects to choose from, homeowners have never had it so good – but what were the bestsellers of 2021?
Factory Direct Flooring (FDF) reveals the trends that dominated the flooring space in 2021, and provides the firm’s bestselling product lists across popular flooring categories (see below).
While green may have been hailed as the new grey for the decor colour of 2021, when it came to flooring, grey definitely held its ground. FDF’s sales highlighted that grey remained a key colour, consistently dominating sales, and peaking in the spring. It was the most purchased flooring colour across laminate, LVT and vinyl. With those homeowners seeking longevity of style or a more traditional look, medium oak remained a strong choice – with steady sales throughout the year. White made a strong appearance as a bestseller through summer and autumn, particularly in the vinyl category.
As 2021 was cited to be the year of ‘japandi’ schemes – where Japanese minimalist and Scandi tones combine – this could well have been a driver in the sales of light hues.
LVT has been a popular choice of flooring product in recent years, according to FDF, with a proliferation of DIY plank options. In 2021, while LVT saw consistent sales, laminate and vinyl also enjoyed strong sales – but in the second half of the year vinyl saw significant growth, overtaking laminate sales by a considerable margin. Sales were heavily biased towards wood effects, with medium oak and grey wood being the top sellers.
‘The growth in sales of vinyl was really quite remarkable and unusual for us, as we’ve historically seen higher sales of alternative products. As a result of this popularity, we’ve more than tripled our vinyl stock holding. It’s a great, budget friendly option and can present fewer challenges in installation, both of which may be contributory factors in the popularity of the product this year,’ says Paul Hambidge, FDF md.
‘We must also consider the fact that homeowners these days may be likely to refresh their decor and flooring more often, and so rather than investing in higher cost products with a view to keeping them for longer, they may be tempted to go for options they can afford to update more frequently.
‘Additionally, vinyl flooring manufacturers are always the first in the flooring industry to bring out the most up-to-date designs and colours.’
Wide planks remained popular for a time, offering the ability to achieve a spacious look with fewer joins. But a trend that dominated 2020 and has continued throughout 2021 is the herringbone style. Herringbone styles, according to FDF, saw exponential growth in 2020. While this didn’t continue at the same rate in 2021, the consistency of purchase shows
herringbone is surely here to stay.
Factory Direct Flooring 2021 Top 20 Bestsellers
1 Prestige 7mm Dusky Grey Oak laminate 3532
2 Prestige Century Oak Grey 7mm laminate 4175
3 Ecostep Storm Grey 991M LVT
4 Prestige Plus 12mm Silver Oak Plank laminate 3900
5 Ecostep Rustic Oak 606M LVT
6 Plain Colours Solid White 000S LVT
7 Aqua Plank Shadow Grey Click LVT
8 Ecostep 892 Noblesse vinyl
9 Aqua Plank Fossil Grey LVT
10 Prestige White Oak 8mm laminate 3201
11 Ecostep Grey Chic 977M vinyl
12 Ecostep Mist White 009S vinyl
13 Prestige Classic 6mm Oak Light Grey laminate 3904
14 Prestige Oak Grey 8mm laminate 4175
15 Prestige Herringbone Faded Oak 8mm laminate 3678
16 Ecostep Noblesse 1892 vinyl
17 Ecostep 793 Alba vinyl
18 Ecostep Pale Shadow 741M vinyl
19 Prestige Natural Oak 7mm laminate 3903
20 Plain Colours Solid Grey 910M vinyl
2021 Top 10 Bestselling Laminate Products
1 Prestige 7mm Dusky Grey Oak 3532
2 Prestige Century Oak Grey 7mm
V-Groove Click 4175
3 Prestige Plus 12mm Silver Oak Plank AC4 Click 3900
4 Prestige White Oak 8mm V-Groove 3201
5 Prestige Classic 6mm Oak Light Grey 3904
6 Prestige Oak Grey 8mm V-Groove 4175
7 Prestige Herringbone Faded Oak 8mm 3678
8 Prestige Natural Oak 7mm V-Groove Click 3903
9 Prestige Classic White Oak 6mm 3201
10 Prestige Plus 12mm Mocha Rustic Oak AC5 Click 4731
2021 Top 10 Bestselling LVT Products
1 Aqua Plank Shadow Grey
2 Aqua Plank Fossil Grey
3 Aqua Plank Cool White Oak (pictured)
4 Aqua Plank Ultra Original Oak
5 Aqua Plank Traditional Oak Herringbone
6 Aqua Plank Pumice Oak
7 Aqua Plank Loft Oak Click
8 Aqua Plank Urban Oak Click
9 Aqua Plank Acacia Oak Click
10 Aqua Plank Shore Oak Herringbone
2021 Top 10 Bestselling Engineered Wood Products
1 Abbey Cervara 14mm Oak Matt Lacquer
2 Herringbone Parquet 18mm Natural Oak Brushed Oiled
3 Abbey Sawtry 14mm Oak Brushed Matt Lacquer
4 Abbey Kintbury 14mm Golden Oak Matt Lacquer
5 Abbey Torre 14mm Coffee Oak Brushed Matt Lacquer
6 Herringbone Parquet 18mm Natural Oak Brushed Matt Lacquer
7 Abbey Delapre 14mm Coffee Ash Matt Lacquer
8 Abbey Kempton 20mm Brushed UV Oiled Oak
9 Frankton Oak Matt Lacquer
10 Abbey Sarlat 20mm Golden Oak Brushed Matt Lacquer
2021 Top 10 Bestselling Vinyl Products
1 Ecostep Storm Grey 991M
2 Ecostep Rustic Oak 606M
3 Plain Colours Solid White
4 Ecostep 892 Noblesse
5 Ecostep Grey Chic 977M
6 Ecostep Mist White 009S
7 Ecostep Noblesse 1892
8 Ecostep 793 Alba
9 Ecostep Pale Shadow 741M
10 Plain Colours Solid Grey 910M