PID Floors has always been about more than just hardwood flooring – we are a family business that is about crafting extraordinary design experiences and, above all, about sharing our decades of knowledge with others. I literally grew up in the hardwood flooring industry, in a hardwood flooring family, and around people who live to love, to study, to create, to innovate, and to know everything there is to know about hardwood floors. It’s more than a passion; it is our life. That is why, three generations and 36 years later, we are proud to be launching a huge education branch of our company, created to focus on learning and community. We want to inspire, to excite, to educate, and to connect both the current and next generations of the design industry.
Along with all-things-wood-floors, we also happen to love pets. We have always been a pet-friendly showroom, encouraging clients to shop with their dogs. We love it and our clients love it. You often will be greeted by my wheaten terrier, Mylo, or our business development executive’s (also known as my brother, Lawrence) dog, Brady.
Last year, while hosting an event for the American Institute of Architects, New York Chapter (AIANY) at our new flagship showroom in New York City, we were approached about the idea to co-host another event with them, specifically regarding the topic of pet-friendly design. We are seeing now, more than ever, that pet-friendly and pet-centric design has been a huge trend for homeowners as well as the architecture and design (A&D) community. We jumped at this opportunity to spend an evening in discussion with incredible architects and designers while also having the PID Floors flagship filled with puppies. Honestly, what could possibly be better?
This is where and how “AIANY’s Puppy Talk & Pimm’s Cup: A Dog-loving Designer Cocktail Party & Workshop” was born. Last November, AIANY Committee on Residential Architecture and the AIANY Design for Aging Committee co-hosted a cocktail party and conversational workshop at our PID Floors showroom to allow dog-loving designers to share knowledge and experience gained from successfully creating dog-friendly spaces.
As AIANY wrote: “When it comes to designing residential and live/workspaces for clients who share their place in the world with dogs, it is obvious that the design team would need a good handle on what allows for creating practical, attractive, and enduring dog-friendly spaces. However, unlike other aspects of the design professions, there are few sources – and opportunities to share in conversations – regarding how best to do so… The goal of this dog-loving designer event is to raise awareness about the best techniques and materials that are available for creating dog-friendly residential architecture, finishes, and furnishings.”
Panelists included dog-loving designers Elaine Santos, principal from Elaine Santos Design; Christopher Gardner, principal TUNA Architecture; and Namita Modi, principal of Modi Architecture of Design and co-chair of the Committee on Residential Architecture (CORA). Modi opened the event sharing, “We thought it would be fun to have an event that talks about designing for your pets. We get very specific requirements, especially in custom residential work.” That evening, Ilya Meltser, our VP of sales operations, shared some of the technical aspects regarding wood floors and pets.
In the wood flooring industry, sometimes we try to avoid conversations about certain things that are harder topics to discuss, such as pets. Pets are probably on par with moisture for fear factor. It’s a little scary to talk about wood and moisture and pets. However, our job is to educate our clients. To not avoid those harder conversations and to make sure that the proper steps are taken so that their floors can be maintained. Not every space, not every client, not every job is the same, which is so important when we are interacting with our clients and finding out what floors will best suit their homes, lifestyles, and needs. More often than not, people who come to us to buy wood floors care about sustainability. And we firmly believe there is not a more sustainable option for a pet-friendly surface than wood floors.
Life is messy and things happen – especially on a wood floor. That is why lifestyle and approach to maintenance are so important. This is why we ask clients, “How often do you want to do maintenance on your floors?” A UV coating will allow for more time to react after accidents. While oil finishes may stain more quickly initially, they overall will be easier to repair in the future than UV coated floors. Harder species of woods can be chosen to help with preventing scratches and dents as can commercial grade floors that have been created specifically to take more wear and tear. Lighter colors, more matte finishes, and leaning into the big trend of returning to a more natural look and feel with movement and grain will all help with the inevitable scratches and dents that happen with our beloved pets. We also would make lifestyle suggestions for pets and wood floors such as having a mat at the door for wiping paws and keeping our pets’ claws trimmed.
Steven Skutelsky is managing partner at PID Floors in New York City, New York. He serves on the NWFA’s board of directors and is an NWFA Certified Sales Advisor. To learn more about PID Floors’ event and see additional puppy photos visit pidfloors.com/blogs/news/aiany-puppy-talk.
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