Kaleen
  • Printer Friendly Version
  • Decrease Text SizeIncrease Text Size
  • PDF

06282016 Summer Market Preview Part 1: Buyers Want Innovation & Fashion, Vendors Respond

By Carol Tisch & Lisa Vincenti
6/28/2016

 

 

 

 

 

 

Summer Market Preview Part 1
BUYERS WANT INNOVATION & FASHION, VENDORS RESPOND



ATLANTA -- Kicking off the summer season, buyers attending the Atlanta International Gift & Home Furnishings Market, running from July 12-July 19, said the focus will be on innovation and fashion to help them differentiate their product offering in a industry brimming with lookalikes. 

 

In our exclusive two-part report, RugNews.com queries retailers planning to shop the Atlanta show and previews the latest products that vendors have developed to fill their needs.

 

WHAT BUYERS WANT

 

"We're looking for that next big thing: I'm looking for innovation, new color, new techniques. I have to keep my customers excited, and give them a reason to come back to the store. What's the next texture, the next fiber? We're in the fashion business," said Igor Yakovenko, rug buyer at Airbase Carpet and Tile of New Castle, Del.

 

"The way I see it, if I go to Atlanta and I find one good solid product, it's a good show. If I find two products, the market is really good. If I find three good items -- it's an unbelievable market."

 

John Murse of award-winning Rugs as Art in Sarasota is coming to Atlanta this summer on the hunt for hand-knotted goods in contemporary styles and coastal colorations. "We are finding that are customers are starting to buy up," he told RugNews.com. Murse will also look for contemporary styles in medium-range gun tufted rugs, again in coastal colors.

 

"This is Sarasota: they want it a little beachy. If we had a store up north, we'd be selling reds, blues and ivories, whereas here you sell teals, aquas and soft yellows. We like to stay with coastal colorations and then look for those colorations across the wide spectrum of gun-tufted, handmade, machine made, etc.," Murse explained. 

 

Gerry Yost, director of area rugs and window treatments for Avalon Flooring, said he'll be looking in Atlanta for more of what customers are buying at the 14-store chain in New Jersey, Pennsylvania and Delaware:  traditional designs combined with modern, vibrant colors. He's also looking for differentiation in the marketplace. "With so many options on where to buy rugs -- the Internet, furniture stores and other home accessory retailers -- finding the right styles, colors and price points for our customers remains a constant commitment," Yost said.


Our Part 1 guide to the summer market includes Amer Rugs, Capel, Couristan, Dynamic Rugs, French Accents Rugs, Harounian International  (HRI), Jaipur Living, Kalaty, KaleenKarastan,Kas,Kashee, Loloi, Louis de Poortere and LR Resources. But the market introductions and innovations don't stop there, read our Atlanta Market Preview Part 2 to find out what Momeni to Trans-Ocean are doing to capture the eye of retailers.

 

 

 

 

AMER RUGS


 

A year after the launch of its first indoor-outdoor collections, Piazza and Moro Bay, all-weather rugs have become a "big, big category" for Amer Rugs says Joe Barkley, VP of sales and marketing. At summer markets, the big push is on Piazza (shown below), with the introduction of 20 new designs (read full story). "We used a soft fiber system, a microfiber system that made the point of difference in the marketplace. And, with a retail of $249 in 5x8 it's perhaps a little lower than competitive products, but really superior." Amer is introducing nine collections, including Dwell, a cut and loop, tight low pile collection of superior blended New Zealand wool and with art silk highlights ($199 in 5x8). Shown below, Piazza design PAZ-9 in navy. AmericasMart, 1-5D-2. 

 

 



CAPEL


Capel puts the focus on fashion for the summer fairs introducing six new collections (read full story). From modernized Gabbehs and no-pile traditional designs, to minimalist linear styles, Capel is offering something for everyone (including new additions to its popular license programs Williamsburg, Kevin O'Brien and Genevieve Gorder. Shown below is a striking design from the new Callista collection, hand-tufted in India of pure wool, with a suggested retail of $449 in 5x8. AmericasMart, 1-3C-15.

 

COURISTAN

 

 

 

Couristan, which kicked off its 90 anniversary celebration at the January edition of Atlanta market (read more), focuses on the recently unveiled Sperctrum and Solace collections (read more). Both are face-to-face Wilton woven with  ultra soft and plush 100 percent heat-set Courtron polypropylene in Belgium. Shown, Solace 6482/0831 Great Plains in sand-rust color combination. AmericasMart, 1-6E-3.



DYNAMIC RUGS


Dynamic Rugs introduces a series of collections that feature novel constructions for the upcoming markets in Atlanta and Las Vegas (read full story). The debuting Milan collection, 9401 pictured below, is hand tufted and then hand printed of 100 percent wool in India. Milan is available in five patterns and 10 colorways. It carries an MSRP of $7 a square foot. AmericasMart, 1-3A-11.


 

FRENCH ACCENTS RUGS

New York City rug gallery French Accents Rugs showcase a range of contemporary styles for shoppers of the Atlanta. From Aubusson flat weave designs to updated oushaks to transitional designs (such as design 7941) in fashionable color combinations, FAR gives traditional techniques and elements a modern twist. AmericasMart, 1-4E-18. 

 

HAROUNIAN INTERNATIONAL (HRI)

Harounian International, which is moving to a larger space in Las Vegas (read full story), focuses on its latest transitional lines including Avalon, Rosewood and Castle. Castle, shown below CS-12 in charcoal-copper color combination, is crafted in India of a blend of New Zealand and Bikaner wools. The collection's classic Persian motifs are outlined in subtle pastel shades of finely spun viscose. AmericasMart, 1-5C-10.


 

JAIPUR LIVING

Jaipur Living, which added 300 products to its portfolio this spring (read more), showcases a range of trendy looks for buyers, including additions to its designer programs Kate Spade New York and Nikki Chu. Pictured below is Giza by Chu, which gives a classic Moroccan motif an earthy twist. AmericasMart, 1-12F-9.



KALATY

 

Kalaty introduces six new high-end hand-crafted rug collections (Equinox, Luxe, Juno, Eclipse, Horizons and Lynx) and adds to its Josie Natorie license program for the Atlanta show (read full story). The soon-to-be-seen Horizons collection, shown below in design HZ-431, features traditional floral motifs with an erased effect and high-low texture and is hand knotted of premium wool and Silkette. AmericasMart, 1-4G-14.

 



KALEEN


Kaleen introduces three new collections and updates its best-selling Regency collection for summer show shoppers. Introductions include the super soft polyester shag Cotton Bloom series, Rosaic, which plays with mosaic motifs, and Pastiche,  PAS02-3shown below. Made of pure wool in India the artistic-inspired range is available in 15 styles and color combinations and carries a $299 MSRP in 5x7. AmericasMart, 1-3C-9.



KARASTAN


Karastan will introduce its first domestically made indoor-outdoor collection and a new contemporary line (Cosmopolitan) that is driven by the trend for soft, tinted neutrals at the markets in Atlanta and Las Vegas (read full story). The company will also add new designs to its Spice Market range. Shown below is Portico, made of solution-dyed polypropylene with added UV protection. AmericasMart, 1-3A-1.
 


KAS


Kas turns the focus in July on promoting its new easy-care, stain repellant Retreat collection and focusing on its indoor/outdoor selections (read full story). Retreat, style104 shown below, is machine made in Turkey of 100 percent polyester chenille with a non-skid backing. The fibers are treated with a special finish that prevents liquid from penetrating the rug to repel stains. AmericasMart, 1-4C-5.


 


KASHEE


Kashee unveils 37 new designs in its Kashee Wilton weave collection formally launching at he summer Atlanta International Rug Market, opening on July 13 (read full story). With a suggested retail of between$649 to $875 in 5x8s, the Kashee Wilton range divided into the six design series. Shown below is Himalaya 04, crafted wool with bamboo fiber accents for luster. AmericasMart, 1-4E-8.


 

LOLOI


Showing in Dallas, as well as Atlanta and Vegas, Loloi expects another hot market, thanks to its new collaboration with celebrity Joanna Gaines (read full story). New Loloi collections include Carrick and Juneau, and shoppers at the summer shows will get to check out the Joanna Gaines for Magnolia Home licensing program for the first time. In addition, Loloi adds new designs to its shaggy power-loomed Enchant collection, shown below in EN-19IVLB. Made in Turkey of pure polypropylene the latest styles marry bold graphic patterns and varying pile heights for high-low effect. AmericasMart, 1-4E-1.

 

 

LOUIS DE POORTERE

The Skyline rug will be introduced to Atlanta market shoppers as a complement to the successful Mad Men collection from Louis De Poortere Deco. "The entire Louis De Poortere Deco is on fire. Designers and Millennials find our patterns interesting, our color palette different and our texture is a fit for the post-urban residences of today," said Thierry Flamant, U.S. VP of sales. The destructed line is woven of wool on power looms in Belgium. AmericasMart, 1-3E-1.


LR RESOURCES

 

LR Resources highlights its Kareena Oushak collection additions (shown below LP21001) at market. The company is adding six new designs to the hand-loomed Naturals collection, and a machine made Soft Shag collection with tailored patterns in six designs. Launched at January 2016 markets, the Kareena collection of hand-knotted Oushaks has been so successful, additional hand-knotted lines are on the horizon. AmericasMart, 1-4F-9.

 

 

Save
trans-ocean ad spot hri rugs