DAY I: Design Influencers Tour
DESIGN INFLUENCERS TOUR - FALL 2022 CLASS
This fall I was selected to be apart of the Design Influencers Tour! I was one of 10 designers that went on a two-day exclusive tour of sponsored showrooms at High Point Market. Each showroom gave us an in-depth look at the exhibitor’s company history, brand positioning, and furnishings products. Here is a review of what we saw and want you can expect to see in homes stores near you.
HOOKER FURNITURE
Founded by the Hooker family in 1924, Hooker is the parent company to a number of brands and design styles including: Hooker Casegoods, Bradington-Young, Sam Moore, Hooker Upholstery , Shenandoah Furniture, H Contract, Pulaski, Samuel Lawrence Furniture, Prime Resources International, Accentrics Home, Samuel Lawrence Hospitality, Sunset West, Drew & Jonathan Home, Scott Living.
There is literally something for every single design style under the Hooker family of brands from traditional, modern and even outdoor furniture. This market featured a Susan G. Komen collection from Melange MARQ which was absolutely stunning!
DRIS DISCOVERIES
Curves and texture were a common theme throughout market and you can see those elements in my round-up of favorites discoveries from Hooker.
Hooker Furniture | www.hookerfurnishings.com | Instagram: @hookerfurniture
DOREL HOME
Dorel Home offers affordable and stylish home furniture options from home office to mattresses. You may even recognize many of these brands: Alphason, Ameriwood Home, Baby Relax, Bertini, COSCO, CosmoLiving, DHP Furniture, Little Seeds, Mr. Kate, Novogratz, NTense, Ollie & Hutch, The Queer Eye’s Fab Five, RealRooms, Signature Sleep and SystemBuild.
During our visit I got to meet with the team behind the Mr. Kate brand and found out they started their line out of a love for DIY and home improvement. And if that hasn’t enough of a surprise, Bob Novogratz was also in the building! He discussed how their line with Dorel started and shared his favorite pieces from the collection. No surprise they were mine too!
The team behind Mr.Kate
Bob Novogratz
DRIS DISCOVERIES
DOREL HOME | www.dorelhome.com | Instagram: @dorelhome
JAIPUR LIVING
Jaipur was a feast for the eyes! Matt was such wonderful guide throughout the showroom. You could feel his enthusiasm about the brand and products. My favorites were the one-of-a-kind artisan rugs. These rugs are made from left over fibers and artist have full creative freedom to design each rug. Design is a passion for Jaipur Living and it spills out in artful colors, patterns and textures.
DRIS DISCOVERIES
So what does Jaipur mean? A city of great beauty. Makes sense right?
Our tour ended with beautiful private lunch experience for our group in one of Jaipur’s many showrooms.
JAIPUR LIVING | www.jaipurliving.com | Instagram: @jaipurliving
DEBRAH INTERNATIONAL
New to market this fall, Debrah International brought modern European style. They introduced low profile coffee tables and seating options which are found throughout Europe. I noticed modern low profile design was a theme at market with other vendors as well, more on that later. Sleek, clean lines and natural materials were the hallmarks of Debrah’s Highpoint debut. Let’s have a look.
DRIS DISCOVERIES
DEBRAH INTERNATIONAL | www.debrahinternational.com | Instagram: @debrahinternational
CRYPTON/ROWE FURNITURE
Rowe furniture is always great to visit at market. They have a huge fabric library which include their expansion to include Crypton Home Recycled Cotton, a first-of-its-kind upholstery fabric innovation. This unique performance textile combines plush, recycled cotton fabrics paired with Crypton’s state-of-the-art stain and odor-resistant technology, offering durable quality. Crypton comes in everything from velvet to leather. For 75 years Rowe has been the world’s most respected domestic custom upholstery manufacturers.
DRIS DISCOVERIES
CRYPTON/ROWE FURNITURE | www.rowefurniture.com| www.crypton.com | Instagram: @rowefinefurniture
UNIVERSAL FURNITURE
Universal Furniture was our last stop for the day. There multi-level showroom offers everything from costal - to modern - to traditional as well as an extensive outdoor collection. The wide-ranging assortment of products makes it easy to mix and match to create an aesthetic full of personality. They also have an upholstery program with 400 fabrics, leathers and 200+ frames to choose from.
DRIS DISCOVERIES
UNIVERSAL FURNITURE | www.universalfurniture.com | Instagram: @universalfurn
