4 minute read
Made in York, Covering the Globe
Q&A with DeAnna Hain, Executive Vice President of Marketing at York Wallcoverings
BY MEGAN KREISER | ASSISTANT VICE PRESIDENT, EVENTS
Look around your local hotel, hospital, office building, restaurant, or even your house. Chances are the wallcovering you’re looking at was made in York County. Established in 1895, York Wallcoverings is still working from the same factory location in York. As one of the only wallcovering companies that design, manufacture, and sell their products, they have continued to evolve with the ever-changing market and new technologies to grow into an international company.
Q: What’s the history behind York Wallcoverings?
We have been in service for over a century and transitioned through names from York Paper Company to our current name, York Wallcoverings What’s unique about us is that we are not just a selling and marketing organization, we are a full manufacturing company comprised of departments such as design, color specialists, factory production, marketing, sales, and more. You can find our products in 85 different countries. We have seven different printing techniques that we do in our factory and another building serves as our warehouse and fulfillment center. Our heritage is tied to the nation’s, contributing to the restoration of President James Buchanan’s home Wheatland, curation assistance for The Immersion Room of the Cooper-Hewitt Museum in New York City, and our wallpaper adorns the walls of the White House Oval Office today.
Q: Wallcoverings seems like it could cover a broad aspect of interior design options. Can you speak to more of what you offer?
York Wallcoverings, the parent brand of our company, has several brand divisions to appeal to different markets. Our DIY brand division and the Roommates brand are our peel & stick, fast and affordable wallpapers, and decals, and marketed for those who shop at Home Depot Lowe’s Walmart Target, and other big box retailers. This product is durable, but also easily removable for that renter who wants to spruce up their walls, then take the items down before moving out. These brands have entertainment licenses with Disney, Marvel, Star Wars and Lucas Films, Nickelodeon, and Netflix.
Our parent brand, York Wallcoverings, is known as our legacy brand offering traditional, residential wallcoverings to consumers and the interior designer community. Celebrity brands part of this group include Magnolia Homes, Candice Olson, and Ben & Erin Napier from “Home Town.”
The York Contract division serves commercial markets such as hospitality, healthcare, and corporate spaces. Different federal standards are required for commercial buildings, so this division creates those wallcoverings. Most recently, we worked with the Yorktowne Hotel!
Q: What are your future goals and plans for York Wallcoverings?
We continue to innovate our product offerings that meet the changing needs of home and commercial spaces. Through acquisitions and mergers, we are expanding our lines to include acoustical products performance textile wallcoverings and more. A recent merger with another established wallcovering and home fashion brand based in Boston, Brewster Home Fashions, puts us in the path of category domination… allowing us to integrate and expand in exciting new ways. We are more closely studying buying habits of consumers and trade members to make the user experience as seamless as possible, and are continually shaping our company to be pioneers in the interiors marketplace delivering first class service and exceptional products. It’s a very exciting time for York Wallcoverings as we continue to grow at a rapid rate.
Q: What is something unique about York Wallcoverings?
Every single person at our company has magic and passion behind what they’re doing. Our press operators are knowledgeable about the presses and experimenting with new textures. Color specialists are applying colors in different layers to come up with new options. And our sales team is reporting back what they’re finding at trade shows that’s inspiring them. We’re proud to both hire from the creative arts community, and support employees who have been with us for decades.
