HiP > 2026 > People > HiP Manufacturer Rising Star

Photo: Mohawk Group

Reade Palmer is the rare “Manufacturer Rising Star” who combines the grit of a world-champion athlete with a disruptive vision for sustainable design. A former U.S. National Team rower and World Championship Gold Medalist, Palmer translated the discipline of the coxswain into a career that is redefining the commercial flooring landscape. After years of driving market share for national brands, Palmer realized that the industry needed more than just a middleman—it needed a movement. In 2014, he founded Hero Flooring with a mission to merge high-fashion aesthetics with radical transparency. His vision was never just about the product; it was about reimagining the entire client experience through a “fashion-forward” lens of modern marketing and circularity. Palmer’s most significant contribution to the design industry came in 2020, when he positioned Hero Flooring as an authorized licensee of Nike Grind. By grinding reclaimed athletic footwear into sophisticated surfacing, he created a complete market differentiator that proved high-performance rubber could be clean, design-centric, and sustainable. Following Mohawk Group’s acquisition of Hero Flooring, Reade now brings this spirit of innovation to a global stage. As he leads the brand’s growth within Mohawk, he is scaling the reach of circular flooring solutions, ensuring that “Hero” is not just a brand name, but a standard for how the industry moves, works, and heals. Based in Las Vegas with his husband and son, Palmer continues to champion a more vibrant, sustainable future for the A&D community, proving that the most promising contributions happen when we stop following the status quo and start framing what’s next.