Minneapolis to-the-trade showroom Tapis Decor tweaks its approach to area rugs and broadloom focusing on high-end special order products.

MINNEAPOLIS -- Tapis Decor, an interior furnishings trade showroom located in the International Market Square design center, continues to evolve to meet the needs of designers sourcing high-end area rugs and carpets.

In fact, in the early days of the business, which was founded in the late 1990s by area rug dealer Wes Kuske as Weskuske, the focus was more on inventoried and stocked rugs. However, as the industry has evolved over the past decade and a half, so has the showroom's strategy. Tapis Decor has built a reputation as a source for higher-end product, and in the past few years again shifted its strategy to special order rugs and carpets to meet the needs of its designer clientele -- a move that has allowed the atelier to thrive.

"In the early 2000s, people would just come in and buy off the floor and were done," said Jacqueline "Jackie" Cox, who acquired Tapis Decor from Kuske in 2008. "However, with the infusion of rugs into the retail market sector and the availability of so many different types of rugs online, we really found that our business shifted more to special orders, and a slightly higher-end product. Today our product is more thought out, more specialty, more unique and different. And along with that we do a lot more sampling, and we typically have to order it the way our client wants it."

Tapis Decor's evolution of its brand from a retail area rug approach to a high-end specialty rug and carpet designer showroom has allowed the company to expand and prosper. Cox launched a furniture division in 2012, opening a 3,900 square foot furniture boutique across the hall from the original 1,700-square-foot area rug showroom. At that time, she began to tweak the Tapis Decor label offering a unique assortment of not only furniture but a range of unique decor, lighting, wall coverings and fabrics not available elsewhere.
 

The furniture section of the Tapis Decor gallery creates cross-category inspirational vignettes featuring area rugs.
 
"One of my goals has always been to expand the flooring division because that had been my first passion," Cox said. "I always kind of kept my eye open in the building for a larger space, but one that still gave me the visibility I wanted."

Cox waited patiently for the ideal space to open up, which it eventually did. "Patience was key and in about late 2018 or early 2019, I got word that a large space was opening up, which was adjacent to us."

With that space and following a renovation, Tapis Decor expanded to 12,000 square feet. The expansion placed its entire assortment in one location and the showroom celebrated with a grand opening February 27, 2020.


The entry to Tapis Decor features a curated selection of home furnishings to illustrate the company's design point of view.
 
Since then, "business has been going strong and we have been on an upward trajectory," Cox says. Two-thirds of her business comes from area rugs and carpet, which are showcased in more than half the showroom's floor space. “It's over half the space. It's where I actually put in most of my time and energy because I love shopping for rugs, recoloring and designing rugs."

DIFFERENTIATING RUG & CARPET PRODUCTS


A curated selection of customizable area rugs have become a key component of to-the-trade showroom Tapis Décor.

Since Cox acquired her business in 2008, the company has undergone a series of changes to continue to meet the needs of its designer clientele. Initially moving away from the lower-tier rug sector, which, Cox says, is driven by retail consumers, Tapis Decor has positioned itself as a high-end, specialized rug and broadloom purveyor, offering a selection of high caliber area rug labels and bespoke services. The atelier today has earned a reputation as a custom rug specialist working with clients on special orders, recoloring and sizing, "We are more on that high-end design side of the business," Cox explained. While more volume is generated by Tapis Decor's cut and sew business, the value of its hand-knotted rug business has also increased over the years.

"We used to sell area rugs that were hitting a little bit more of that market center, and I sat back and looked at what we were doing. In some cases, we were buying more samples than we were selling rugs," she explains. "So I thought about why we were still catering to this middle market and decided to move away from that segment. Now we offer a more specialty type of product in the rug division."


The Tapis Decor showroom was designed with open sight lines to create an airy shopping experience.

Over the course of the last couple of years Cox has continued to differentiate the Tapis Decor rug and broadloom offering. On the rug side a highly curated selection of rugs and samples is offered, and in the broadloom category, high quality wool options are featured. She has noticed a shift in broadloom toward tufted goods and Wilton pattern design pieces, and a slow move toward pure wool tufted carpets.

WORKING WITH TAPIS DECOR


Tapis Décor differentiates its offering by focusing on best-in-class area rugs and customer service.

Tapis Decor is very selective about the rug and broadloom manufacturers it works with, looking not only for quality product but also the customer service and support behind those goods. "We are very customer-oriented and service driven. I enjoy partnering with companies that will support their product the way we support our clients.

"We do have great people we work with in the hand-knotted category -- partnership is key to me," Cox says. "For broadloom, we really stick to broadloom specialists because that is their strong suit."

Cox explained that the manufacturers that remain focused on either rugs or broadloom often are the ones developing new techniques with fresh designs, collections, and weaves to make their product special. She says her partners also support the weaving community -- which is "very important to me."

MERCHANDISING TAPIS DECOR


Fully coordinated vignettes showcase Tapis Decor's point of view, highlighting its unique and curated cross-category offering.

In 2012, when Tapis Decor entered the furniture category, Cox used the offering to inject a bit more edge into her showroom, presenting a slightly different vision for some of her products.

"What we consistently sell is going to be to the tried and true, but we also want to inspire and present a bit of vision and creativity with a selection of more edgy pieces," Cox adds. "We always ask what else can we bring that's fresh and new? How can we innovate a little bit? And that is not to say that everything is completely innovative, but the vision we put together as a showroom tells a story."

Tapis Decor's 12,000 square foot showroom features fully furnished vignettes showcasing standard and custom made furniture upon entry to the showroom. The flooring showroom is divided into two distinct areas, hand-mades and wall to wall. "We do have stacks of area rugs, but they never get too high to make sure there are site lines to all products. We also have upright walls with the ladder bars for hanging rug samples."

Adjacent to the area rugs are wings which feature flatwoven goods ("They’re perfect for pairing with handmade area rugs"), and behind that is Tapis Decor's broadloom and wall to wall assortment, featuring wool, natural fiber and synthetic broadloom carpets.

The showroom was designed with sight lines for high visibility of the product to create a harmonious experience for clients. "We often hear how much our clients love the feel of our showroom, how they feel welcome, and that we have the best selection which is exactly what we strive for," Cox says.

"When a customer leaves our showroom, they feel good about their experience, and confident in our brands. Beautiful, quality product and a great experience while working with us!"


Tapis Decor's ladder displays present a range of trends from color stories to fresh geometric looks.
 

Jackie Cox prides herself on telling a unique story with her selection of home furnishings, decor and rugs.