Coverings, the largest international tile and stone exhibition and conference in North America, announced the list of the Coverings 2021 Rock Stars Winners.
The Coverings Rock Stars program recognized 16 emerging leaders in the tile and stone industry. The program commemorates its seventh year in 2021, and it furthers Coverings’ mission to support the growth and success of the industry.
A committee of tile and stone industry leaders thoroughly reviewed a bevy of nominations to select the 16 inductees for the seventh assemblage of Coverings Rock Stars. The 2021 Rock Star honorees include the following:
Designer Category (2):
- Rebecca Oehlschlaeger, Designer & Special Projects Manager, Bellew Tile & Marble, Sandwich, Mass.
- Raquel Raney, Designer, EoA Group, Miami, Fla.
Distributor Category (3):
- Bruna Da Silva, Purchasing Manager, StoneHardscapes LLC, Ft. Lauderdale, Fla.
- Blakely Dent, RID, Commercial Sales Specialist, Florida Tile, Lexington, Ky.
- Annie Llerena, Branch Manager, D&B Tile Distributors, Doral, Fla.
Fabricator Category (1):
- Steven Miranda, Production & Facilities Manager, NOVUS Building Services, Sterling, Va.
Installer Category (3):
- Ken Ballin, Owner, Skyro Floors, West Creek, N.J.
- Mikaela Fedor, Owner, Tile Titan LLC, Bath, Pa.
- Nick Struzik, Owner/Setter, Syndicate Tile and Stone, Burr Ridge, Ill.
Manufacturer Category (2):
- Adam Abell, Senior Market Manager – Tile & Stone and Surface Prep Products, Bostik, Wauwatosa, Wis.
- Sarah Williams, Marketing Director, iQ Power Tools, Perris, Calif.
Retailer Category (2):
- Meagan Jensen, Co-Owner, Bella Pietra Design, Honolulu, Hawaii
- Nicolas Valderrama, Sales Manager, Casa Linda Tile & Marble, Miami, Fla.
Trade Associations Category (2):
- Christopher Ellis, Tile, Marble, Terrazzo Field Representative, Bricklayers & Allied Craftworkers Local 1 WA/AK, Lacey, Wash.
- Amanda McMillan, Director of Member Experience, Rockheads Group USA, Beachwood, Ohio.
Other Category (1):
- Jennifer Diliberto Riquelme, Senior Development Chemist, MAPEI Corporation, Deerfield Beach, Fla.
The 2021 Coverings Rock Stars will be recognized Wednesday, July 7, in the Coverings Lounge, booth 3919, at Coverings 2021. Featured programming created for young professionals will include an interactive session from Dahlia El Gazzar, founder of Dahlia+Agency. Past Rock Star winners will be involved in the session to speak about how their careers and personal growth have changed since winning the coveted award.
Coverings 2021 will host new onsite activities and learning sessions geared toward the show’s segmented audience. One of the newest and most interactive components of Coverings 2021 is the Coverings Lounge. This space is set to host the Artisans in Tile Program and Presentation, hosted by the National Tile Contractors Association (NTCA). The Lounge will also host Engage Interviews with industry leaders, a mosaic project being developed by Luna Mosaic and the Society of American Mosaic Artist’s One Hundred Moments in Mosaic exhibit. Coverings will also offer industry professionals both a virtual experience and an in-person event during Coverings 2021.
