BDNY 2018: BDNY continues to elevate design within the hospitality sector - Jan 2019

By Kemp Harr

The Boutique Design New York (BDNY) trade show held November 11 and 12 at the Javits Center in Manhattan-now in its ninth year-continues to raise the bar and set an example of the right way to put on a show. This show, focused on the design elements in the hospitality sector, is close to its target audience; well-orchestrated with germane education sessions held both in classrooms and on the floor; compact with no single exhibit space larger than 400 square feet; and empathetic to the four groups of attendees that it’s targeted to serve.

Those groups-architects and interior designers, major hotel brands, purchasing agents and property owner/developers-all flock to this show each year to discover the latest in furniture, fixtures and equipment (FF&E) tailored for the hotel and restaurant business.

One of the unique features of the show are seven collaborative spaces that serve as lounges and discussion venues but also spotlight the latest design thinking in this sector. Each space features products from sponsoring exhibitors and is designed by some of the leading firms. This year, the seven spaces were curated by Wilson & Associates, Studio Partnership, BAMO, Studio 11 Design, Duncan Miller Ullmann and Marriott Globaldesign.

Much of the buzz at this year’s show was centered on Chinese tariffs: Design in Tech, which considers not only how something looks but how consumers interact with it; brand central, promoting the lifestyle or sub brands rather than the parent brand: smart specs, intelligible to all four groups involved in hospitality specification; and lighting.

The show was 9% larger than the previous year, with 140,000 square feet of exhibit space used by over 700 exhibitors that attracted well over 8,000 attendees. This show has grown every year since its inception, and it threatened the long-term viability of the mammoth HD Expo held every May in Las Vegas. As a result, in October it was announced that Emerald Expositions, the owner of HD Expo, had purchased BDNY from ST Media Group. At this point, they are planning to keep the brands separate. It will be interesting to see how much the show changes under the new ownership.

Naturally, the big three flooring suppliers in hospitality-Shaw Hospitality, Durkan and Tarkett-were on hand with 69 other flooring companies, offering rugs, tile and stone, carpet, hardwood, LVT and other resilient products. While this sector is extremely budget conscious, designers and hotel brands recognize that the properties that win are the ones that offer the overnight guest a memorable experience, and flooring contributes to that aura. Much of the flooring used in this sector is customized in an effort to make that property stand out.

Flooring trends we noticed while walking the show were elevated prominence of LVT, more texture and patterns in soft surface, area rugs and real hardwood flooring. Novalis, one of the leading LVT producers, came to show this year for the first time to promote its Ava brand. Sunbrella, which has been an exhibitor for years, launched its Dickson woven vinyl flooring at this year’s show.

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