NeoCon 2012 Welcomed Thousands of Attendees

CHICAGO – Attendees at the 44th annual NeoCon® could see and feel the upswing in the economy and the contract furnishings industry. This year’s show, held June 11-13 at The Merchandise Mart in Chicago, hosted 40,947 interior designers, architects, and trade professionals. For three days, The Merchandise Mart was alive with activity, excitement and most importantly, business was getting done. This influx in activity comes on the heels of a record-breaking year for leasing activity with the Mart’s contract furnishings showrooms, nearly tripling activity for a typical year.

“NeoCon 2012 proved to be very successful. The number of renewals and expansions are clear indicators of the validity of the show, and we are pleased to say exhibitors upped the ante with their designed displays of new products that generated considerable visitor traffic,” said Mark Falanga, President and CEO, MMPI.

Year to date, MMPI has signed 29 new, expansion, and renewal contract industry leases totaling 119,021 square feet of permanent showroom space during calendar year 2012. The renewals, early renewals, and significant expansions of permanent contract industry showroom space in The Mart feature leading names in the contract furnishings industry including AIS, Exemplis, Haworth, Momentum Textiles, and Shaw. These companies cross over into all product categories, including systems furniture, modular walls, seating, floor coverings, and textiles.

“All of the major players in the contract industry have made long-term commitments to being part of The Merchandise Mart. Our commercial furnishings business and the NeoCon shows are the strongest and longest-running businesses in our portfolio,” said Falanga.

The long-standing contract industry companies with long-term leases at The Mart, include Allsteel, Gunlocke, Haworth, Herman Miller, HON, Interface, Knoll, Krueger International, OFS Brands, Paoli, Shaw, Steelcase, and Teknion, accounting for more than 275,000 square feet of permanent showroom space.

While leasing activity on the permanent showroom floors flourished at this year’s NeoCon, the same was true for the nearly 500 exhibitors in the temporary exhibit spaces on the 7th and 8th floors of the Mart. The temporary exhibitors were comprised of a diverse group of internationally-based exhibitors from more than 20 countries, as well as large and small manufacturers bringing the latest in product innovations and technology. All combined, more than 700 exhibitors featured their products in more than one million square-feet of space of The Merchandise Mart. The 2012 Best of NeoCon competition had 364 entries and thousands of new products were presented at the show.

NeoCon included more than 100 CEU accredited seminars for attendees. Programs included keynotes from five industry leaders: Richard M. Daley, former Mayor of the City of Chicago, Primo Orpilla and Verda Alexander, Principals of Studio O+A, Gary Lee, Principal of Gary Lee Partners, and Ian Schrager of Ian Schrager Company.

Hosted annually during the second week in June indefinitely, the NeoCon 13-year schedule has been announced through 2025.

NeoCon: Future Dates

NeoCon 2013 June 10-12

NeoCon 2014 June 9-11

NeoCon 2015 June 15-17

NeoCon 2016 June 13-15

NeoCon 2017 June 12-14

NeoCon 2018 June 11-13

NeoCon 2019 June 10-12

NeoCon 2020 June 15-17

NeoCon 2021 June 14-16

NeoCon 2022 June 13-15

NeoCon 2023 June 12-14

NeoCon 2024 June 10-12

NeoCon 2025 June 9-11

 

For more information about NeoCon, visit www.neocon.com or call (800) 677-6278 (MART)

NeoCon® is a registered trademark of MMPI.

Source: MMPI

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