September marks the start of the exhibition season within the textile and design industry, and at Sampling International we love to see our clients showcasing and launching their wonderful new designs and innovative manufacturing methods that keep the industry thriving and keep our homes beautiful.
We are honoured to provide our role of taking these designs and creating beautiful, bespoke sampling solutions that help to showcase the hard work and dedication that goes into producing every single project, whether it is fabric, wallpaper or flooring.
We also love to take inspiration from other designers to see what is happening within the industry, keeping us up to date with the latest trends, and ensuring we can provide the best possible service to all our clients.
Sampling International has been serving the industry for almost 50 years. We have the knowledge, experience and accrued wisdom of the ages (!!) to provide the best support and advice on how to display and produce samples – be that as swatches, books, binders, presenters or anything else you need.
The Flooring Show:
15th – 17th September
This year’s Flooring Show was an exceptional experience, allowing us to catch up with customers old, new and possibly future. We have seen some fantastic sampling solutions and celebrated milestone anniversaries with some industry-leading manufacturers and designers.
The Flooring Show had a real focus on sustainability this year, including the importance of recycling within the flooring industry. We believe that sustainability will become a core value of everyone in our industry, and it takes true innovation to make sustainable practices the rule.
British Wool was very well represented with the ultimate in sustainable material – and we even got to meet Shaun the Sheep! It was a ‘sheer’ pleasure to see him there.
Some notable exhibitors were Westex, Victoria Carpets, Tarkett, Penthouse, Carpet Recycling UK, Carpenters and Associated Weavers. We enjoyed seeing all of their wonderful displays.
At Sampling International, we don’t just work with the flooring you can see – carpet, wood, LVT – we also work with the flooring that you can’t see. We supply many thousands of underlay samples to the industry – hangers and presenters for retail along with samples and swatches for consumers – if you are looking for a solution to your underlay sampling, please just give us a call.
Focus:
16th – 20th September
The sun shone on us at the Focus exhibition, and Design Centre Chelsea Harbour looked glorious in the beautiful sunshine. It was notable this year, with the closing of several Kings Road Showrooms that DCCH became once again the hub of the industry activity, and did make us wonder – with the growth of the fabulous avenue of designers and the event extending out through October with ‘The Longer View’, will this see the start of Decorex and Focus once again sharing the same dates and locations to bring back the biggest and best Design and Decoration Show in the UK?
The DCCH certainly served an amazing atmosphere for all of the beautiful fabrics, furnishings and wallpapers on display this year.
We absolutely adored the Harlequin x Henry Holland collaboration, showcasing exciting new fabric patterns that celebrate the creativity of our industry with alluring prints. They will no doubt have us redecorating! The stunning Cole & Son installations also caught our eye this year.
Some of our favourites were Harlequin Fabrics, Cole & Son, Marthe Armitage, GP&J Baker, Chase Erwin, Osborne & Little, Jennifer Shorto and Holland & Sherry.
Design Central:
24th – 25th September
The locations for the Design Central exhibitions never fail to impress us, and this year was no different! Capesthorne Hall in Siddington was chosen to host this wonderful industry gathering and it provided the perfect backdrop for all the stunning fabric and wallpapers on display.
We were pleased to attend some of the sessions with engaging speakers at the Speaker Hall. Every session was bursting with energy and people from around the industry learning from each other’s experiences.
Our favourite stands included Little Greene Paint Company, Brand McKenzie, Swaffer, GP&J Baker, Colefax and Fowler, Sketch Twenty3, Moon, Drapes UK and Andrew Martin International.
The Bed Show:
24th – 25th September
And our final exhibition of the month made us want to put our feet up in more ways than one!
The NBF Bed Show is always busy, always fun and always full of the most tempting looking beds.
The mood boards, books and ethics on display at Hypnos made everyone pause for thought. Those eye-catching Joyfully Bold and City Chic fabrics on the headboards, bookending the iconic Union Flag bed made for a fantastic looking stand – not to mention the EV lorry stationed in the car park, reinforcing their Comfort with Integrity message.
Kudos to Sleepeezee on celebrating 100 years of mattress manufacture – the cupcakes were a treat!
And congratulations to Harrison Spinks on being awarded Bed Manufacturer of the year.
Our HQ in Batley really is perfectly placed in the home of bed manufacture and we are proud to be a part of this progressive industry that never seems to rest!
Final Thoughts:
September has been a whirlwind of inspiration and connection. We’ve loved immersing ourselves in the latest textile and design trends at this year’s exhibitions. From stunning new product launches to captivating mood boards, it’s been a fantastic opportunity to reconnect with our customers and discover the future of the industry.
At Sampling International, we are dedicated to providing the highest level of service to our clients, and we have been supporting the textile and design industry for almost 50 years. With our vast industry experience we can help you bring your designs to life.
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