ISFA 2015 Countertop Forecast Predicts Another Solid Year

ISFA Q! industry forecast lead-inA few weeks ago, the International Surface Fabricators Association (ISFA) published its annual Countertop Industry Outlook for 2015 in its magazine Countertops & Architectural Surfaces. This forecast for the coming year is the only one of its kind published openly that we are aware of, and it is not specific to only one kind of surfacing material. It is researched and written by the magazine’s editor and ISFA Communications Director Kevin Cole, who predicts fabricators and others involved in the countertop industry can expect “another year of continued growth.”

This is expected to be the third year in a row of industry growth after the economy began to recover from the Great Recession. According to the 2013 industry forecast, the economy was still a bit sluggish, but was beginning to look up. Since that time, growth has continued in the general economy and most industries.

Because there are very few sources available that specifically focus on countertops, the Industry Outlook is based on data that is indicative of countertop demand, beginning with the general economy and then looking at more closely allied areas, such as U.S. housing starts data, nonresidential building construction, home improvement product sales, remodeling predictions, cabinet sales and more. If you aren’t ISFA members receiving this publication, we strongly suggest you sign up for it. Right now subscriptions are free to qualified individuals in the United States.

Taking all of the sources into consideration, the forecast from ISFA has been anchored for the last three years by a 382-page report from The Freedonia Group offering predictions on the countertop market through 2022. According to this report, demand for countertops in the United States is expected to increase by 5.1 percent through 2017, spurred by building construction, single-family home completions and a relaxation in credit requirements for remodeling loans.

According to the Freedonia report, the demand for laminate countertops is expected to decrease from a 60 percent share of the market 10 years ago to 47 percent by 2017. Natural stone is predicted to make the largest gains with quartz surfacing/engineered stone coming in a close second. In addition, countertops made of “other materials,” such as concrete, metal and recycled products, should grow by 7.2 percent per year through 2017. It also makes predictions about tile, solid surface and other cast polymers.

Other specific factors that led to the favorable outlook for 2015 include the expected growth of the national GDP of 3.1 percent and increase in housing starts from 924,900 in 2013 to more than 1 million in 2014. In addition, predictions for nonresidential construction are up across the board.

However, beyond the ISFA forecast, one of the strongest indicators of a great 2015 for the countertop industry comes from anecdotal evidence provided to us by our general audience, which includes thousands of fabricators across the country. Talking with fabricators at KBIS and TISE this year and communicating with many others online and by phone, we have heard very little bad news. Most of our readers cannot deny that business is up, and many are expecting growth to continue in the future.

We are currently working to uncover specific information about the countertop industry (as well as how we are doing serving you) through our own Countertop Industry Survey, and we would love to hear what you have to say. To help you make our data as complete as possible, we invite you to take the survey and have your name entered for a drawing to win one of two $250 gift certificates to Best Buy. You can start the short survey by clicking here now.