I remember my first day in the floor covering industry like it was yesterday. But it was far from yesterday. It was 31 years ago—May of 1994, to be exact. I had decided to transition from the horse racing industry (long story for another day) and was sitting in my office at Floor Covering Weekly, still lamenting that the position for which I had interviewed two weeks prior was not at Esquire.
Immediately upon arrival, I was informed that the person who hired me had resigned before I ever walked in the door. Hence, I was acting editor on day one with no knowledge whatsoever of flooring. Five minutes on the job and the phone rings. A man with a deep, Southern drawl is on the other end. He introduces himself as Cal Calhoun, the advertising guy. He asks what to me was the strangest question: “Do you want me to put a man on NeoCon?” NeoCon. It had been 20 years since 8th grade science, but I was pretty sure a 10th planet had not been discovered in our solar system. NeoCon. And why would we want to put a man on this place or thing?
I would soon learn that NeoCon was the country’s premier event for the commercial design industry. Thirteen months later, I attended my first NeoCon. It did seem like an alternative universe. I was enveloped by the energy. The pace at which people walked. The purpose in their steps. The wrap-around lines at every elevator bank. Hallways as congested as the 405 in LA at 5 p.m. This NeoCon was a big deal.
Three days was hardly enough time to cover NeoCon. Flooring was the second-largest segment. You had many permanent showrooms on floors 3, 10 and 11, and temporary setups on floors 7 and 8. I felt like I spent three days in stairwells because there was no time to waste waiting for elevators. I walked up more steps than Rocky Balboa. Bathroom breaks? Forget it. But it was just one of the elements of NeoCon. You fed off the energy.
Flash forward to 2025. The Greek philosopher Hericlitus once said the only constant thing in life is change. NeoCon is still a big deal—make no mistake. But its once-impenetrable armor has been pierced by something called Design Days. Or maybe the attack comes from an upstart part of town called Fulton Market District. It’s a section that is reminiscent of New York’s Meatpacking District. The area is cool, chic. Trendy restaurants galore. It is known for its vibrant design community and has become a magnet for showrooms. And guess who started moving into those showrooms? Tenants of the Merchandise Mart. It began with some of the larger office furniture companies. Steelcase. Miller Knoll. Others.
Flooring companies quickly followed. I’m going to say Tarkett was the first, abandoning their longstanding third-floor space at the Mart. This week, aside from Tarkett, we visited J+J, Mohawk, Milliken and a Bentley pop-up at Fulton Market—all former tenants at the Mart. And it’s not about cost; some people say they are paying double their former rent at the Mart.
What’s more, those 7th and 8th floor temporary spaces were consolidated to one floor years ago, and today the only flooring company left is AHF Products. Gone are what once were mainstays: Karndean, Roppe, Flexco, American Biltrite, Gerflor, Toli, Ecore, Taj, Forbo, Chilewich. I’m forgetting a bunch. Some other companies were victims of consolidation or would take space periodically.
So who is left at the Mart in the flooring space? Aquafil, Shaw, Patcraft, Mannington, HTMX, MSI. That’s it. Interface, Bentley and Daltile are across the street.
This begs the question: what happened? Maybe it’s simply evolution and market dynamics. Remember, on the residential side, there once were regional markets in Atlanta, Chicago, Dallas and San Francisco that eventually gave way to one unified trade show called Surfaces. Maybe NeoCon never fully recovered from the pandemic. Manufacturers were forced to reach the A&D community in ways other than one large market, and those methods were either equally successful or more cost efficient. Because let’s face it: The A&D community was much slower to re-embrace big gatherings than the residential side.
Then you have the rise of remote work and hybrid models that have changed how companies approach office space, leading to a focus on optimizing existing layouts or reducing their physical footprint and leasing less office space. Some say NeoCon is evolving its exhibit base to focus more on a narrower range of office furniture and accessories like acoustic treatments, textiles and work pods, potentially impacting overall attendance. Some industry professionals feel the perception of the show has shifted to focus on networking and showcasing products rather than driving a large influx of potential buyers.
Despite the perceived shift, NeoCon reported a strong number of attendees, indicating that the event continues to be a valuable platform for industry professionals. But you now can get on an elevator and don’t need to bring a fullback to get through the hallways as people split their time between the Mart and Fulton Market.
As Bob Dylan famously sang, “The times they are a changin.’”
