Established in 1978, Decorex provides unparalleled opportunities for the international design community to meet, exhibit, flourish and grow. This year, the physical event takes place at Olympia London, from 10-13th October. "As the leading destination for high-end interior design, I’m so excited to return to Decorex this year,” declares director Matthew Wailes. “There is simply no substitute for face-to-face events like this.”
“In line with my commitment to eco-friendly creativity, our key focus this year will be on upcycling and sustainability,” notes Matthew. “For the first time, we are joining forces at the show with interior designer Juliette Byrne and her team, to preview our new ‘green’ collaboration.” In addition, we will showcase a number of new collections and initiatives, including new Fusion rugs. We will also present our ground-breaking SoteriaAV anti-allergy/anti-viral fibres. And you can expect to see selected designs from The Earth Collection – our collaboration with artist Jan Erika. Other innovations on show at the Matthew Wailes' Decorex stand are the brand new ‘Inside-Out’ collection featuring product, which is suitable for both indoor and outdoor living.
The power of partnership
“I have had the privilege of working with Juliette on numerous projects over many years,” notes Matthew. “I have always greatly admired her sophisticated style of interior decoration. During our time together we have created many specifically tailored custom pieces on a project-by-project basis. We felt that a natural progression would be to formulate a collection of unique rug designs. These would complement Juliette's project schemes. However, they would also have a wider appeal to the interiors industry as a whole. We will be launching eight designs at Decorex, three of which will be full rugs on display.”
Matthew continues: “Juliette and her team are strong advocates for sustainability and the re-use of waste materials as are we. For example, we have used regenerated waste plastic and nylon within both hand-knotted and hand-tufted production.” He adds: “We regenerate this from land and ocean waste, such as discarded plastic bottles and fishing nets, which would otherwise be destined for landfill, or abandoned within our natural environment.”
“We have worked with Matthew for 15 years, and count him as one of our most reliable suppliers,” notes Juliette, whose multi award-winning Chelsea-based studio specialises in high-end residential projects in the UK and Europe. Juliette and her team have a reputation for designing elegant, functional and tailored interiors. Her portfolio ranges from English country houses and Grade II listed buildings, to contemporary riverside penthouses and boutique hotels.
“Matthew’s innovative collection of rugs and carpets are easily customisable to suit different styles and budgets, and our clients especially appreciate his extensive knowledge and flexibility,” Juliette explains. “Both Matthew and I are motivated to promote sustainability in our design work. So, we are looking forward to launching our new ‘green’ collaboration in a fair as prominent as Decorex.”
The importance of upcycling and sustainability
Full details of Matthew Wailes’ new collaboration with Juliette Byrne are still under wraps. However, we can reveal that three rugs will be previewed at Decorex. “We wanted to develop a range of contemporary, stylish rugs that are practical, easy to clean, and don’t contribute to the spiralling issue of plastic pollution,” Juliette explains. “Our collection uses a type of upcycled fibre that is constructed by melting down clear plastic waste recovered from the ocean and extruding it into a new polyester fibre. We will also feature rugs made from natural sustainable fibres like bamboo and wool that have been treated with non-toxic dyes. The design industry can be very wasteful. So, our hope is that these eco-friendly rugs will be become the norm someday.”
Juliette continues: “Three rugs from our exclusive collection will be displayed alongside information on the eco-friendly material and methods that Matthew is using to manufacture them. Our section of the stand will have an “ocean” theme to shine a light on our need to preserve the beauty of nature. We are also sharing the stand with Objet Luxe, one of our favourite suppliers for luxury home accessories. They have kindly loaned us a variety of marine-themed bowls, jars and objets. So, these will complement our upcycled rugs very well.”
New opportunities
“Decorex is an amazing opportunity to network with our industry partners. In addition, it provides the chance to catch up with other suppliers, who may not have showrooms in London,” concludes Juliette. “We also like to invite our clients to see the show. So, they can gain inspiration from current trends and the latest design innovations.”
She adds: “We are also looking forward to seeing stands from other brands. It’s always interesting to see new ways of exhibiting new collections. It will be great to meet new suppliers that we can work with on future projects too.”
The big reveal
There will be no shortage of innovation on display at the Matthew Wailes Decorex G178 stand. One of the highlights will be our new Fusion collection. “This features various heavily textured designs created by combining two different production techniques,” Matthew explains. “We are producing every Fusion rug and carpet (both back cloth and pile fibres) with 100% upcycled fibre, which has been produced from plastic ocean waste.” This collection follows on from our original Upcycle LuxuryEco collection. If you recall, this pioneered the process of transforming plastic ocean waste into new added-value products.
Our new Fusion rugs can also incorporate our unique SoteriaAV anti-allergy/anti-viral fibre. All SoteriaAV products have been independently tested to ISO18184 in microbiological laboratories both in the UK and USA. Results show that our AV Technology inactivates viruses with 90% + more effectiveness than non-AV products. SoteriaAV textile products use technology, which disrupts the food chain of dust mites. This is the main cause of asthma allergies. AV Technology also prevents the growth of bacteria and fungi.
An artistic alliance
Other innovations on show at the Matthew Wailes' Decorex stand are a new Inside-Out outdoors collection. And, at long last, the official reveal of The Earth Collection, by Jan Erika for Matthew Wailes. Both ranges are available for design and creation using our upcycle yarn.
“A mutual friend introduced me to Jan Erika in 2019,” Matthew recalls. “We very quickly recognised the potential for her beautiful artwork to be used within our products. We set about transferring pieces into workable designs for rug production. The difficulty was ensuring that her use of texture and colour was adequately represented within the final collection. We have used combinations of fibres such as wool and silk, and added texture by means of high/low pile, cut and loop. We are absolutely thrilled with the outcome. As a result, we are very excited to finally officially launch the collection, which was planned last year.”
Featuring six stunning designs all inspired by our natural environment, The Earth Collection rugs feature traditional Nepalese hand-knotted techniques. Each design celebrates the bold use of colour and pattern, creatively reinterpreting elements of nature, such as oceans, forests and mountains. “I’m really excited to showcase six stunning pieces of original art for the floor,” Matthew confirms.
The Matthew Wailes team (and partners) look forward to seeing you at this year’s Decorex show on Stand G178.
Decorex International 2019 which was held at Olympia
This 'plastic' water bottle, hand-tufted, made from upcycled fibre represents how 
More examples of our LuxuryEco collection including our Manila rug which has 
A beautiful frosted glass vase from Objet Luxe
These daffodils have been handmade from waste