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The Global Color & Design Center

Let us help you create your next great custom finish.

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If you're looking for ways to enhance and protect the beauty of wood while going to market with finishes that satisfy your consumers needs, the Sherwin-Williams Global Color & Design Center (GCDC) is the perfect place to start. This facility in Greensboro, NC is where inspiration and innovation meet.

From providing insights into the latest color and finish trends, to collaborative product design sessions defining your own proprietary finishes and how to bring them to life in production, we have you covered. Our color and design artisans are completely immersed in their craft - enhancing the natural beauty of wood while helping you go to market with an on-trend finish, every time. 

For more than 150 years, we have contributed to the success of our customers in industries including:

  • Residential, Contract, and Hospitality Furniture
  • Kitchen and Bath
  • Flooring
  • Architectural Building Products
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Trend Forecasting:

The experts at our GCDC don't just study trends - they are immersed in them, living and breathing them every day, studying the influences behind them, and translating them into color forecasts specific to you and your industry. As the market for painted wood products continues to grow, our color experts know what's trending when it comes to both pigmented and stained finishes.

The lifespan of a trend depends on the product, and consumer preferences continuously shift, but our team never rests. The knowledge gained from constant market research drives our innovation when it comes to developing industry-leading custom formulations, proprietary finishes and time-tested techniques, such as glazed, distressed, rub-through effects and metallics in a variety of stain and paint technologies. And we're able to do it quickly, so you can meet demanding design cycles and deadlines.

 

Color Consultations:

The experts at our GCDC are truly your partners in product development. Leveraging data both from the industries we serve, and from architectural paint color data gained across more than 4,800 Sherwin-Williams paint stores in North America, we have our finger on the pulse of what's selling, and what will be selling in years to come. Sit down with one of our experts to discuss how you can translate these insights into actionable change when it comes to the colors and finishes you offer during a one-on-one palette assessment*, where we will review your current color offering and identify ways you can be optimizing your offering for the best results.

* Available to qualifying customers 

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Our talented team of color stylists at the Global Color and Design Center is constantly innovating to help customers maximize the quality of their finishes based on their performance and process requirements. Our color and design tools, paired with our extensive industry knowledge, continues to give manufacturers access to best-in-class finishing solutions.

Lauren West

Global Color & Design Director, Sherwin-Williams

Research & Development:

It's not enough to simply point out the trends - our team works with you to make tomorrow's trends today's reality. The GCDC is part of a fully-functioning wood finishing operation. Visit our Application Lab, where we can replicate your finishing conditions, application methods and substrate to bring your desired finish to life. Technical expertise and guidance is also available to help make your finishing line more efficient and cost-effective. Our partnership can extend even further as we conduct hands-on training seminars* with your finishing team, and help you develop color standards so your new look is consistent and reproducible.

* Available to qualifying customers

 


Let's Connect

Interested in learning more about how the experts at our GCDC can help you stay one step ahead of the trends with the next great finish? Get in touch to learn more - we love to collaborate!

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