Tufenkian Carpets Readies Las Vegas Showroom for 2008 Opening

Furniture World Magazine

One of the world’s leading designers and suppliers of hand-made Tibetan and Armenian carpets has announced plans to open a new showroom in Las Vegas. Tufenkian Carpets will open a 4,627-square-foot showroom in building C of Las Vegas Design Center next year, said Harry Fry, vice president, sales & marketing for the New York-based Tufenkian, which is known as a leader in the handmade carpet industry. Fry said he personally visited World Market Center in the very early stages of the home furnishings campus and that Tufenkian decided to open a Las Vegas showroom in direct response to customer demand. “We had a dealer council meeting with many of our key dealers, and our dealers told us Las Vegas was the wave of the future. The accessibility to and entertainment options in the city were appealing to our customers as well,” Fry said. “We agree that Las Vegas is an ideal fit for who we are and who we cater to as a company.” Tufenkian’s Las Vegas Design Center showroom will cater to the hospitality, contract and residential business. “We are far more focused on the design trade than the retail trade, so the year-round to the trade showroom is truly ideal for us,” said Fry, who added that the showroom will be open in July, 2008. With a wide variety of styles – including traditional, modern, primitive chic and solids-- Tufenkian has a patented product display system and a “Designers’ Reserve” collection geared to the design trade, featuring pieces by such design icons like Barbara Barry, Clodagh, Kevin Walz, Vicente Wolfe, Mark Pollack and James Tufenkian himself. Tufenkian has a leadership position as a philanthropic company with responsible environmental practices. In fact, its green policies were recently featured on the Eco Zone project. James Tufenkian's mandate to “leave the places we touch a little better than we found them” is at the core of everything the company does. From using traditional handmade processes such as carding, spinning and shearing by hand to transporting some materials by yak, Tufenkian's dedication to minimizing its impact on the environment began long before it was the suggested or required thing to do. Over the years, Tufenkian has taken exceptional steps to preserve and improve the environmental conditions in the workplace and the community. William Grenewald, general manager of Las Vegas Design Center, said, “We are thrilled to have Tufenkian in our third building and are confident that the company's hallmark high-style design and fine quality will be a year-round draw for our design community.” Open from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. Monday through Friday, Las Vegas Design Center at World Market Center (495 South Grand Central Parkway) is the first of its kind, year-round, professional design resource in Las Vegas. Offering 400,000 square feet of the newest products, trends and styles in furniture, lighting, floral, accessories, rugs and wall décor. World Market Center is a trade-only facility. Consumers wishing to access The Design Center at World Market Center should please consult a design professional. About World Market Center World Market Center is an integrated home and hospitality contract furnishings showroom and trade complex in Las Vegas. Next Summer when Building C opens, World Market Center will stand at more than five million square feet of space, exceeding the size of any wholesale merchandise mart in the United States. When fully built, at 12 million square feet in 8 buildings, World Market Center will be the largest trade show complex in the world. The $3 billion, state-of-the-art campus will showcase furniture, decorative accessories, lighting, area rugs, home textile and related segments, as well as the Las Vegas Design Center (LVDC) open year-round to the trade. World Market Center produces the semi-annual Las Vegas Market, held every January and July, and is the fastest growing home furnishings trade show in the world. The Winter 2008 Las Vegas Market is scheduled for January 28 to February 1, 2008 at World Market Center’s Buildings A, B and Pavilions and tradeshow at the MGM Grand Hotel. For more information about World Market Center, and to find out about leasing or exhibiting opportunities, visit the website at www.LasVegasMarket.Com or call 888-WMC-SHOW (962-7469).