Features

Famous for Franchise Fixtures

Google “franchise retail fixtures,” and the first website listing that displays is for F.C. Dadson. The Greenville Wis-based company’s top Google ranking is a reflection of the thousands of franchise stores, salons, restaurants and clinics that the fixture manufacturer has helped open during its 44-year history.

Sustainable success

From the beginning, Allbirds aspired to innovate while keeping things simple and sustainable. The strategy worked, so it’s not surprising that the 4-year-old shoe company took the same approach to its retail stores.

A magazine like no other

What sets Surface & Panel apart? That’s a frequent question posed by advertisers and potential advertisers and one I regularly answer when I approach story subjects about featuring their businesses in the pages of our magazine.

From woodworking to WWII

My good friend Stephen Ehle passed away Jan. 15. I affectionately and respectfully referred to him as Uncle Steve. We began our careers in publishing on the same day in 1986 as junior associates at Johnson Hill Press in Fort Atkinson, Wisconsin—he as an editor and I as a salesperson for a magazine called Furniture Wood Digest (ultimately Wood Digest)

Next Level Panel Processing

In Germany, the analogy is strong between the automotive industry—often considered the most vivid expression of what a culture is about in a time—and the kitchen industry. In both, the end product not only has to function, but it has to look great, be efficient to manufacture with regular modifications and give pleasure to the operator.

How It’s Made Matters

It’s no secret to any of us in the decorative surfaces industry that TFL, or thermally fused laminates, may just be the least understood surfacing option on the market. Lack of “brand” identity (and especially strong recognition of its closely allied product, HPL) or lingering perceptions tied to once-imperfect manufacturing standards—who’s to say what exactly is to blame.

Ahlstrom-Munksjö invests, adapts in response to decor market changes

2018 was an eventful year for the decor paper business in general and Ahlstrom-Munksjö in particular. To assess what happened and what lies ahead, Surface & Panel posed a series of questions to Tomas Wulkan, executive vice president, decor, at Ahlstrom-Munksjö, a global leader in fiber-based materials.

Technology, specialization drive growth

Steve Schoenacker knew early in his career as a woodworker that he wanted to own and operate a cabinet-making company that relied heavily on technology and automation. And by early, we’re talking 20 years old.

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