Chicago—The 55th edition of NeoCon, the commercial design industry’s premier tradeshow event, kicked off here earlier this month where suppliers across commercial product categories focused on several main themes, the most prominent being sustainability with a particular focus on circularity this year. This theme is growing in importance in the design world as it shifts to a more holistic approach to manufacturing and design.
The show itself, according to show management, grew in attendance and vibrancy for the 2024 edition. “Attendance was up this year,” Byron Morton, vice president and co-head of leasing, NeoCon, told FCNews. “Our numbers [were] steady each day, including a buzzy and active Sunday before the show. It’s been a fantastic show with lots of positive energy. Exhibitors seem incredibly happy with the turnout. Both exhibitors and attendees appreciate the focused nature of NeoCon—there is so much to see and experience that is unique to NeoCon and the Mart—and all under one roof.”
Flooring played a large role in the vibrancy and innovation of this year’s event, Morton noted. “Shaw Contract stood out as a leader at Best of NeoCon, bringing home five Best of NeoCon awards. Bjelin, Mannington Commercial, Patcraft, HMTX Industries also took home honors.”
While several flooring brands have migrated over to the Fulton Market District for Design Days, two returned to the NeoCon show floor. Karndean Commercial, for example, showcased its new commercial branding and recently launched Art Select collection. The Art Select collection aims to elevate LVT design, combining artistry, craftsmanship and cutting-edge technology to replicate hardwood and stone in exacting detail—all the way down to a hand-etched emboss precisely tracing a wood grain.
Commercial segments
Overall, suppliers agree the commercial market is moving into a good space this year and several market segments are leading that charge. “2024 started off strong, particularly given the fourth quarter [of 2023] was a little slower,” said Whitney LeGate, senior vice president, commercial product, Mannington Commercial. “Healthcare is still a very strong segment for us. Higher education we’re seeing as a very strong segment. Senior living—we’ve done more in the last few years there and that’s been a good segment for us as well. And then hospitality; we’re not a traditional hospitality company, but we have some products that fit really well there.”
For Tarkett, the market is also booming in 2024. “[For the first five months,] our business is solid across everything that we do right now,” Antonio Bucca, senior director sales operations, Tarkett, told FCNews. “I’d say from a flooring product standpoint, the volumes are way higher than we anticipated. Senior living and then, obviously, healthcare. Those are the key segments. Education—we’re probably stronger in K-12. We’re historically a good education company across all of our product platforms. That’s probably one of the best segments we have.”
One of the segments still struggling is workplace. Work-from-home lifestyles continue to reign, forcing the industry to regroup and innovate. “Definitely corporate has been more challenged—it’s emerged that most people are now working in the office in a hybrid setting,” said Jeff West, VP of marketing, Shaw Contract. “I think a lot of people are at the point where some of those leases are coming up and now the companies are saying, ‘Hey, I need less footprint.’ I think there’s no doubt if you look at a snapshot of the workplace square footage in 2019 vs. 2024, ‘19 is probably going to be more than ‘24. But we haven’t seen the drop-off like we saw back in 2008 or 2009. So we have seen a little bit of a flattening and even a drop, but not as aggressive as some places.”
Mannington’s LeGate agreed. “Office got kicked pretty hard, but we think it’s coming back a little bit. We’ve seen a lot of renovations, people moving into new spaces. They’re not as large as the space they used to be in, but they are updating them. So there is plenty of workplace business to be had. Workplace is still the absolute largest segment in what we target.”
Commercial product
Commercial product has moved beyond just thinking about aesthetics and shifted toward a holistic approach to people and planet. That was evident on the show floor, as was a new focus on recyclability.
“Sustainability just continues to grow in terms of who it matters to, and it’s not just in commercial markets either,” said Ian Burt, director of sales and marketing at Aquafil USA, makers of Econyl. “We’re experiencing huge growth in fiber.”
Aquafil’s Econyl carpet yarn is made entirely of ocean waste and was used by several manufacturers this year to provide a sustainable solution to one of the industry’s historically wasteful product categories—carpet.
Bentley Mills, for example, introduced Pacific Standard Time, inspired by its 45-year brand legacy and history in California. “It’s a 100% solution-dyed Aquafil nylon, so it’s got great carbon numbers, which everyone’s tracking nowadays,” said Victoria deVuono, VP of product and marketing.
Interface featured its Etched & Threaded collection using Econyl. The collection is designed to bring the warmth of luxury textiles into commercial spaces, featuring patterns and forms found in nature. “I think naturalism is one of the key trends that we’re seeing inspire our products,” explained Kelly Simcox, head of global design.
Milliken previewed two new collections using Econyl fiber, expanding its environmentally conscious portfolio: First Sight and Clean Break. Milliken may be known for its soft surface, but it also put the focus on hard surface in an effort to provide a total solution to its customers. Whether soft or hard surface, Milliken is focused on providing sustainable products across constructions. “We’re going into a real mission to drive sustainability as a company and as a division,” said Patrick Keese, EVP and president of Milliken’s floor covering business. “We’re about 50% there now on our 2030 goal, trying to get to zero net carbon by 2050—so a real commitment around sustainability.”
VCT made a comeback at NeoCon this year. The product is considered a sustainable choice as it’s made from recycled content and can even be recycled at the end of its life cycle—a fact not many flooring categories can boast.
“The school districts are driving that growth [in VCT],” explained Fred Reitz, vice president of sales-commercial, AHF Contract. “They’re coming to us and saying, ‘Hey, the LVT’s been down for three or four years and we’re having to tear it out.’ And the product that was down before was 30 years of VCT, which they didn’t have a problem with. So they’re comfortable going back to it. It was so crazy we had to expand capacity twice last year.”
At the show, AHF Contract launched two domestically produced lines of VCT, Iliad and Highlights. The two lines offer up 45 colors between them with the ability to cut shapes and patterns allowing for complete customization. “It’s not just the white square any longer,” Reitz said. “You can create whatever you want.”
Tarkett has also found VCT growing in popularity. “We had very nice growth in VCT last year,” Bucca said. “We are seeing the switch back to VCT. People are used to putting the five to seven coats and it looks brand new. LVT has wear layers that can scratch and look beat up.”
For Patcraft, it was all about what it calls Materiality, which focuses on the circular use of materials. “The overall theme is around materiality and circular design and how we integrate sustainability, but we’re telling the journey through three areas: re-imagination, reuse and recycle,” explained Kent Clauson, Patcraft’s director of performance markets.
Waste Knot is an example of a new collection that speaks to that mission. “This is a PET hybrid product; it looks a little bit like hard surface, a little bit like soft,” Clauson explained. “It’s made from plastic bottles. But not only is it a 100% recycled product at the beginning, at the end it can be taken back and re-made back into itself.”
Shaw Contract also put its money where its mouth is with a sustainable launch for 2024. Art + Science is Shaw Contract’s first EcoWorx Resilient collection, building upon the success of its EcoWorx carpet tile backing. EcoWorx Resilient is a PVC-free/non-vinyl flooring product that is fully recyclable and covered by Shaw’s Environmental Guarantee through its re[TURN] Reclamation program. “We had circularity [with EcoWorx] before circularity was a buzzword,” said Carrie Edwards Isaac, VP, hospitality, Shaw Contract. “And so this particular product is made almost exactly the same, except for the difference is one’s soft surface and one’s hard surface. So we’re proud, really, to introduce EcoWorks Resilient.”
Design Days
For its second annual show, Design Days took over the Fulton Market District in Chicago. It has drawn attention from the design world and even added to its growing list of flooring brands.
According to show management, the event has grown in attendance, too. “Last year we really didn’t have a lot of metrics for how many people actually came out to Fulton Market,” Rob Tivadar, Design Days director, told FCNews. “We had a view from brands that we personally worked with and what they were pulling in, but we had no idea what attendance was like. So this year, having a registration and seeing who’s coming out was massively helpful because now we know what the numbers are and we know what we can cater to every year as we grow. This year we’ve got over 7,500 registered, which is higher than any of the showrooms got last year in their individual areas. Also, it’s a voluntary registration.”
Mohawk and Milliken were added to this year’s roster along with J+J and Tarkett, which both have permanent showrooms in the space. Mohawk will have a permanent showroom that will be unveiled for next year’s event.
This year, Mohawk focused on people and planet, showing off its focus on “Culture of Care” at its temporary pop-up on Fulton Street. Inspired by biodiversity, native plant species and the balance between urban spaces and nature, its flooring launches at the show were designed to foster a culture of care.
J+J also focused on recyclability at the show. It’s Kinetex brand is a composite flooring that is a soft surface with attributes of a hard surface. What’s impressive is the entire collection’s ability to be turned back into itself at the end of its life. “I love talking about Kinetex,” said Marie Moore, designer manager, Kinetex and LVT. “One thing about Kinetex is it’s a reduced footprint flooring product. It’s made from recycled content, and then it can turn around and become itself again. So this is a great sustainability story.”
