By Louis Iannaco
ATLANTA—Contrary to what some in the industry may have believed preceding it, the recent winter edition of the Atlanta International Area Rug Market, featuring the National Oriental Rug Show (NORS), enjoyed better results than expected, according to exhibitors. Run concurrently for the first time with the Atlanta International Gift & Home Furnishings Market, which was highlighted by the opening of a new building, the rug market offered buyers and sellers the largest selection of area rugs in the country, including new styles, designs and collections.

The new building, Two West Wing, features 1.5 million square feet of new product. An open environment resembling more of a shopping mall, the new space is comprised of product categories like garden, gourmet, coastal lifestyles, gift, resort and housewares.

“In addition to a lot more exhibitors, that building has brought in a different type of buyer,” said Chas Sydney, senior vice president of area rugs, AmericasMart. “What it does is set the stage for the future where it will help the home business because some of those industries were housed in the Merchandise Mart. We had to relocate those businesses to the new building.”

Sidney explained plans are set to add two more floors of furniture to Building One, which will help the home business and also translate to the rug business as well. “The type of furniture we’ll be putting in those floors is the medium to high-end, companies, which we believe will ultimately help the high-end rug business.”

“This is the first time the market has run both shows at the same time in January,” said Amir Loloi, founder of Loloi Rugs. “I believe it has helped create a little more buzz and excitement. Obviously, the rug industry is a much smaller industry than the home/gift industry. So, it has created more excitement and added a little more traffic on our floors.”

While admitting traffic may have been down, Steve Mazarakis, president and CEO of Hellenic Rug Imports, noted, “It was definitely not the gloom and doom some people were thinking it might be. People who came were buying. After all, if you’re in the rug business and you’re not in Atlanta, you’re not in the rug business.”

According to Sydney, the good news is the market “pretty much had the same number of exhibitors as we’ve always had. We’re thankful for that in light of the economic situation that the entire home industry is going through. Our buyer attendance is off a little bit, but the folks who are here are buying, and that’s a good sign.”

One such buyer was Ruth Sharian Garner of Sharian Oriental Rugs & Rug Cleaning in Atlanta. “We’ve found some nice new pieces here, which feature some good colorways. Business has been quiet, but we are looking for better times in 2009.”

At Karastan, Elise Demboski mentioned that by making so many appointments with buyers, the mill had enjoyed a successful show. “Being aggressive in that pre- planning stage is very important. Plus, Karastan has many great introductions, smart debuts that will sell well in this market. They transition well.”

Creating a buzz at the show for Karastan was Eastport, named after an unspoiled stretch of Maine’s coast. Eastport features a Prussian blue, which is striated through the placement of color. The rich, textural ground is covered in a landscape of palmettes and flowering vines, softened by earthen accents of terra cotta, hemp and jute.

“When you look at Karastan,” she said, “its introductions are so well thought because everything new blends with everything old. Everything here fits within one house. Even if it’s contemporary, the palettes just blend well. And if it’s the newer colorations, lighter shades, they work well with the deeper rich, traditional styles coming out.”

And this seemed to be a common theme at the market. The mills that continue to be innovative during tough times, especially those which come out with products that blend with old ones or offer coordinating product collections featuring everything from rugs of all shapes to runners, attracted more visitors.

Kim Barta, brand manager for Shaw Living, believes that in terms of design, the magic word is transitional. “Contemporary continues to grow, but transitionals bridge traditional to the contemporary and represent the largest group of customers. Transitional and casual florals, scrolls, damasks, paisleys, these are all images that can be tied together in a patchwork arrangement to draw in the largest audience from contemporary to rustic, country to the traditional customer.

“Also emerging is the trend of simplifying these classic designs by pairing them with simple borders and edging,” she explained. “Traditional rugs are a mainstay, but of late, the trend has been to create color combinations that are unusual and play up today’s color trends. For instance, the brown and blue story, the coral and brown, or the green and brown; in short, the best way to describe design direction is casual elegance.”

For Shaw, its new Structure collection attracted a lot of attention. The textural, high-end grouping of tufted New Zealand wool features the look and feel of handmade rugs. Incorporating various tufting capabilities—shag, loop and cut—the collection features a carved, sculpted look with organic textures.

At Sphinx by Oriental Weavers, Kim Reynolds, vice president of marketing, said, “The people who are here really want to invest in their store. Those people who sit back and wait for things to turn around are going to be left behind. You have to invest in your future, and that’s what we’ve done with all the new products we have and the new technology we’ve brought in.”

The company showcased several new introductions, including its tufted Fusion collection of polyester shags featuring a lustrous sheen and an extra-plush cut pile. The mill’s machine woven, heat-set polypropylene Hudson collection consists of traditional to casual designs with modern colorways, while its hand tufted Bentley collection offers relaxed traditional motifs, which feature handspun wool and a special luster wash.

Alex Peykar, Nourison’s president, said the market “has been a little better than we thought it would be coming in. It is still not a typical January market, but everyone is in the same boat. We hope and believe we are at the bottom or very close to it, and having hit the bottom there is only one way to go and that’s up.”

Nourison’s new products included Touch Stones from its new Perspectives collection, which offers a geometric design. Hand tufted of wool and made in India, the three-dimensional pattern comes in five color combinations. The Next Generation Nourison Series 3000 features Persian motifs handmade in China of New Zealand wool and pure silk with hand carved details.

Omid Chaman of Antique Look, one of the temporary exhibitors at the market, came all the way from New York to show product. “So far, in a slow market, we’ve been doing well. We didn’t come with high expectations, but our product is always one-of-a-kind, and people specifically come to see us.”

At Loloi Rugs, which had expanded its showroom, Loloi was extremely pleased with the reaction to the company’s products. “The people have said we offer some of the best products they’ve seen at the market. And that is what is driving our business: The newness and the freshness of our products.”