HIGH POINT, N.C. -- Rug showrooms at the fall 2019 High Point Market were magnets for designers and retailers from all channels anxious to see latest product introductions in a category that has become a recognized fashion leader rivaling any of the big furniture names at the semi-annual event.
Indeed, market shoppers were upbeat in the quest for new textures, colors and designs, giving many rug vendors the boosts they needed to end 2019 on a high note. "Market was outstanding; we continue to be a destination for designers and retailers alike," said Justin Yeck, Feizy's vice president of sales and marketing. "When you count our amazing relationships, mixed with the consistent traffic at Market Square, you have a winning recipe for a great market."
And Jaipur Living's expanded Showplace showroom space -- dubbed the Living Lounge -- was standing-room-only for events led by influencers in the interior design industry. "We smashed our record for attendance with close to 1,000 badge scans on Saturday," explained Carl Henrickson, director of brand and digital marketing, Jaipur Living. "Not only did we experience our highest traffic day ever, we had our top three traffic days ever. Overall, badge scans were up 45 percent over fall 2018."
Jaipur Living's newly expanded showroom now includes a "Living Lounge" to host special events. Shown, a panel led by LuAnn Nigara.
And at HRI, the launch of new performance rugs featuring Sunbrella was a game changer, according to Greg Jordt, executive vice president, sales and marketing. "This market is fantastic -- off the chart compared to last market a year ago. The Sunbrella launch is driving traffic: customers come to our showroom to look at our Sunbrella offering, and that exposes them to our other products. It is a win-win."
In this two-part RugNews.com High Point review, we track down the best sellers from more than two dozen rug vendors. Part 1 goes inside the showrooms of Amer to Kaleen; while Part 2 covers top looks from showrooms from LR Resources to Unique Loom in Part 2.
AMER
Amer's rolls out its hand-tufted Abstract collection.
Best of market at the Amer showroom was the Abstract collection -- which is hand-tufted of blended New Zealand wool and art silk yarns, with the blue and teal colorway most popular in High Point, according to director Anupriya Choudhary.
Retailers also loved the price points and styling of new hand-woven collections such as Inara and Vestige, which borrow designs from Amer's best-selling hand-knotted lines. Both are woven from wool and viscose. Another head-turner was the textural Zenith collection hand-knotted in New Zealand wool and raw hand-spun silk.
Amer buyers appreciated the new affordably priced hand-woven Vestige collection.
AMERICAN COVER DESIGN
American Cover Design debuts were a hit at its new High Point showroom. Top-sellers Renaissance, top right, the new Ashton, left, and new Abacus collection rugs on ground.
At the new American Cover Design showroom, IHFC G-26, top sellers included market debuts from the Ashton and Absacus collections. Buyers liked the textural designs and soft hand of the machine-made Ashton, a low-pile frieze with shrink yarn, finished with a self-fringe. The cross-woven Abacus with its antiqued and distressed traditional patterns carried a price point shoppers appreciated as well. Finally the company's popular Renaissance collection of space-dyed polyester designs continues to be a favorite with furniture stores and galleries.
Customers still preferred designs in grays, neutrals and blues and were looking for abstracts and traditional designs. American Cover has been developing designs with a soft hand, and "our customers are responding."
ART RESOURCES
Art Resources's best-seller, a wool flat-weave Southwest design.
At the Art Resources showroom the fall 2019 High Point best-seller was a wool flat-weave featuring a Southwest design in a palette of creams, browns and dusty pink. Its popular -- and growing -- Souf collection was a close second, and behind that the Highland collection.
Art Resources, diamond tribal design
BOKARA RUGS
Bokara Rugs' tonal abstract Winsome collection design
Bokara Rug offered High Point shopper a range of color driven designs but buyers loved the simplicity of the Winsome collection, made of a mix of 60 percent wool, 20 percent viscose and 20 percent cotton. Winsome's tonal abstract in creams and browns was the hit of market with both designers and dealers shopping the show. "Buyers liked like its plain approach, which is so easy to decorate with."
CAPEL
Capel gives its hand-crafted Wanderer braided rug a fashion spin.
Two new stylish additions to Capel Rugs' popular Williamsburg at Home line, Arcadia and Goa Garden, drew an enthusiastic response at market, as did a variety of other fashionable new designs introduced by the company. "We had a great market," said Cameron Capel. "All of our new rugs were well received, and we generated a lot of new placements with both existing and new customers."
The Mahal style, part of the hand-knotted wool Charise range was the top seller in Capel's best-selling High Point collection. And the best-selling rug overall was Makrana in mineral blue, hand knotted of wool and viscose. Buyers also loved a display featuring a fashionable boho treatment of the Wanderer braided rug.
Capel's erased-style Makrana rug in mineral blue was the company's top seller at High Point Market.
CREATIVE TOUCH
Creative Touch won recognition for its booth, which featured its designer lines, Erinn V rugs, hanging center, and Benson-Cobb, left.
Creative Touch won International Market Center's Best Booth at SAMS award for its presentation that included prominent displays of area rugs from its licensed program with designer collection Erinn V. and its Bosphorus collection. Also on view were rugs from licensed lines Benson-Cobb, and architect Robin Gray.
Designer Erinn V's Moda rug greeted guests at the Creative Touch showroom.
COMPANY C
Company C's new Solange in celadon, on floor, features hand-woven jacquard cane motif.
Company C rolled out more than 20 new rug and textile designs and top hits included the new Solange design in celadon from the company's Greenhouse collection. Solange, a hand-woven jacquard features a tile-like geometric design. Also, fans of the company's best-selling wool To-Bay-Go rug were excited to see a performance rendition called Under-the-Sea added to the Summer Brights collection. "Color is the foundation of all our collections, and this season we were most inspired by all shades of green," said company co-founder Christine Chapin.
Company C rolls out the colorful performance Under the Sea rug, on the floor, is based on best-selling wool rug, To-Bay-Go.
COURISTAN
Couristan grows its cow-hide-lookalike Prairie with fashion colors and new geometric designs.
Couristan took its printed cowhide lookalikes to the next level with patchwork patterns in fashion colors that scored with buyers for their designer styling and value price points. Called Prairie, the line's top palettes were purple and grey, rust and teal, and cobalt blue with grey, all with accents of crisp white.
Also on the best seller list at Couristan were the new high-low textured Vibrata collection, a special blend of 60 percent space dyed viscose and 40 percent shrink polyester using one million points of yarn per square meter, and the vividly colored, digitally printed Caledonia collection featured in a show-stopping display.
Texture and watercolor hues star in Couristan's top-selling Vibrata collection.
DALYN
Dalyn's new animal hide designs from Montana and Ranchero are made with polyester pile.
Dalyn Rugs wowed buyers with colorful animal hide designs in two debut collections, Montana and Ranchero, both in polyester pile. Montana's 16 colors range from natural brindle to trending whisky, while Ranchero comes in fashion's newest ginger, cobalt, sage and teal, with a hint of metallic-like luster inherent in the yarn.
Other market hits were classic medallion patterns in fashion-forward colors in the new Amanti, Baku and Rou collections, with buyers loving the color coordination throughout the line (including animal prints) through Dalyn's prismatic color.
Dalyn's Amanti collection was a retail favorite for its medallion designs in fashion colors.
FEIZY
Feizy goes for luxe glam with the lustrous new Bling collection, a best seller in High Point.
Feizy stopped buyers in their tracks with the glamorous new Bling collection, in polypropylene and polyester with transitional high-low designs in lustrous tones of silver, birch and blue tones as well as gold, silver and pewter combinations. Bling, based on Feizy's popular Micah collection, incorporates metallic bronze and rose gold yarns into its designs.
Also topping the best-seller list at Feizy were the hand-knotted, hand-dyed wool Carrington collection's Oushak designs in fresh new colors. Another success at fall market were the easy care, neutral palettes of the Colton collection, which added three new designs for fall shoppers and features soft high-low textures, machine-woven in micro-polyester. What's more, designers were pouring over the company's one of a kind rugs, making the Feizy showroom an early stop in their market agenda to get first dibs.
Traditional Oushak designs take on a new fashion look in Feizy's best of market Carrington collection.
FIBREWORKS
Fibreworks unveils an elegant new showroom in the SALON at Market Square.
Louisville, Kentucky-based Fibreworks, a maker of broadloom and custom area rugs, was chosen to exhibit in the curated SALON, located on the ground floor of Suites at Market Square. "We were selected to be in the Salon and are very honored," said the company's Joe Ramsey. "We couldn't be happier with the expansion and the new eyes taking a look at what we do." The company's High Point Market hit was its wool Calcutta design, a 13-2 wide Soumak-weave broadloom. Another top look is its new Birch Pepper collection of broadloom and cut and sew designs.