What Replaced TrafficMaster Allure? Line History
Nothing fully replaced TrafficMaster Allure. The original GripStrip planks are still sold at The Home Depot in a reduced range, while many of the thicker click-lock Allure products were dropped as the store moved its mid-range and premium vinyl under the LifeProof name, launched around 2018. Both brands come from the same supplier, Halstead New England, so LifeProof is best understood as a successor line rather than a one-for-one swap for a discontinued Allure color.
What replaced TrafficMaster Allure: a short history
TrafficMaster is The Home Depot’s long-running entry-level flooring label, used on laminate, carpet and resilient products. Allure was the name given to its vinyl plank and tile range, which Halstead New England, a company in the HMTX Industries group based in Norwalk, Connecticut, designed and supplied. The planks themselves are manufactured overseas.
The first Allure products used GripStrip, an adhesive edge strip that bonds each plank to its neighbor instead of to the subfloor. The installation manual describes the floor as free floating, needing no underlayment, and suitable over existing vinyl, concrete, wood or even ceramic. GripStrip was offered in several formats, listed in the manual as tile, plank, Plus, Contract, Commercial and Large Format.
Later Allure generations switched to click-lock joints and thicker construction. The Allure Ultra line, a 5 mm solid vinyl click plank, is one example and is covered in its own entry on TrafficMaster Allure Ultra. When LifeProof arrived with rigid and flexible click planks marketed as waterproof, it took over that part of the shelf. Several industry sources describe LifeProof as an effective rebranding of the upper Allure tiers, and Halstead continues to supply both names.
Current GripStrip planks
The GripStrip format is the part of the Allure family that has stayed in production. As listed on The Home Depot’s GripStrip category page in 2026:
| Attribute | Current GripStrip plank |
|---|---|
| Brand / supplier | TrafficMaster / Halstead |
| Plank size | 6 in. x 36 in. |
| Wear layer | 4 mil |
| Carton coverage | 24 sq. ft. |
| Installation | GripStrip adhesive edge, floating |
| Example colors and model numbers | Khaki Oak 185312, Oak 11053, Cherry 12012, Alberta Spruce 821958, Emerson 103918 |
Colors rotate, so a shade bought ten years ago may not be in the current list even though the format survives. Check the color name and the run number printed on the carton ends before assuming a current product will match.
Why an old Allure floor is hard to patch
Three things change between product generations: the joint, the thickness and the print. A GripStrip plank cannot lock into a click plank, and a 5 mm click plank will sit higher than a thin adhesive-strip plank next to it. Even within the same color name, Halstead’s manual warns that slight color variation happens from run to run, which is why it recommends buying cartons from one run number and keeping spares after the job.
For a repair, the order of preference is usually leftover planks from the original job, then planks with the same color name and joint type from leftover stock, then a deliberate break in the floor at a doorway or threshold using a different product. Sourcing options such as online marketplaces, liquidators and Habitat for Humanity ReStores are listed in the guide to finding discontinued TrafficMaster flooring.
Is LifeProof a substitute?
For a whole room or a new area, a LifeProof plank is a practical modern equivalent to the upper Allure tiers, since it comes from the same supplier and fills the same price band. For patching an existing Allure floor, it rarely works, because LifeProof planks use different thicknesses and locking profiles. The differences are set out in more detail in TrafficMaster vs LifeProof vinyl plank.
Frequently asked questions
Is TrafficMaster Allure discontinued?
Partly. Many click-lock Allure collections are no longer sold, but GripStrip planks under the TrafficMaster name remain available at The Home Depot in a smaller color range.
Who makes TrafficMaster Allure and LifeProof?
Both are supplied by Halstead New England, part of HMTX Industries, and sold only through The Home Depot.
Can I mix GripStrip planks with click-lock planks?
Not in the same field. The joints are incompatible, so the two should meet only at a transition strip or threshold.
Featured image: “Briarlake | 12101 Briarlake Manor OKC” by okchomeseller, licensed under CC BY 2.0, via Openverse.
