Since its inception, NeoCon has always been a show devoted to products — new and innovative furnishings that inform office designs for years to come. While product introductions remain an important part of the annual event that begins three weeks from today, the three-day show is evolving to include experiential exhibits and an emphasis on top-notch programming.
NeoCon visitors will not only see the latest in furniture, floor coverings, textiles, technology and wall coverings, they will also experience new designs from some of the brightest students (at Haworth’s Design Lab), a Gensler-designed pop-up by Project Color Corps and the NeoCon Podcast Lounge. The event also includes Paved States, a gallery-meets-retail experience celebrating Chicago’s brutalist architectural heritage with works by la Kutateladze, Ian Cocohran, Lourenz Krassai and more.
New this year are curated city-wide design tours in collaboration with the Design Museum of Chicago, including an insiders look at the Griffin Museum of Science and Industry, a street art and culinary fusion event with Chef Won Kim at Kimski, a deep dive into historic preservation at the restored Ramova Theatre and a hands-on workshop at Matthew Hoffman’s iconic You Are Beautiful studio.
Add to that daily keynotes that begin with Annie Jean-Baptiste and include Alice Rawsthorn, Chris Barton and seven featured presentation from HOK, Gensler, CannonDesign and more. More than 60 CEUs will touch on topics like neurodivergence, designing for and by Gen Z, AI-driven materials, circularity and more.
If you are in Chicago on the Friday prior to NeoCon, plan on attending “Ask the Experts: Data-Powered Insights to Win in a Changing Industry,” an interactive, choose-your-own adventure-style keynote designed to answer your most pressing industry questions by ThinkLab’s Amanda Schneider. The presentation is Friday, June 7 from noon to 2 p.m. in the NeoCon presentation studio on the second floor of THE MART. You must be registered for NeoCon to attend and you need to RSVP here to attend the event, which includes lunch followed by the keynote. The presentation is sponsored by INDEAL, Palladian West and Thumbprint.
As a furnishings show, NeoCon 2025 looks to be as strong as ever, albeit different than before. According to Vice President of Marketing Lisa Simonian, attendance is on pace with last year’s show. And Vice President and Co-Head of Leasing Byron Morton said the third and 10th floors are fully leased.
“I think we’ve improved the design integrity and the design content, which was my goal from the beginning,” said Morton. “We’re feeling good about this year.”
Of course, NeoCon is about connecting office design with the manufacturers who make the products. A growing number are expanding their showroom presence in the iconic building. Those expanding their showrooms for NeoCon 2025 are wall-coverings, textiles, and specialty surfaces company Wolf-Gordon (3-100); storied contemporary furniture manufacturer Davis Furniture (3-115); sustainable leather manufacturer Green Hides (1062); acoustics innovator Turf (1048) which will unveil the 20,000 square-foot Turf Design Experience Center; and B Corp and carbon neutral Spanish furniture leader Andreu World (300) which has doubled its size with a new 20,000 square-foot space.
In total, more than 175,000 square feet of leasing transactions have been made since 2024 and NeoCon will include more than 450 brands. Even the seventh floor is getting a new look with the introduction of specialized segments, curated activations and enhanced hospitality.
And NeoCon partners like INDEAL, MRL and Metropolis will have spaces again this year. INDEAL, which opened the INDEAL Connection Hub last year on the 10th floor (1086), is expanding its presence with the new INDEAL Education Pavilion on the 11th floor (1144). Educational furniture specialists MooreCo will anchor the space, which will include other education-focused manufacturers.
Not all the changes are happening in THE MART.
Fulton Market has changed as well as more brands take the leap and move to the hip Chicago neighborhood. MillerKnoll, Teknion, Humanscale and other brands are now well established in the area and newcomers like OFS and Steelcase are ready to throw open the doors of their new showrooms for this year’s Design Days.
The OFS showroom is nearly complete and the sign for the Steelcase showroom is up. In an odd twist, Steelcase is leasing Knoll’s former space in Fulton Market, making MillerKnoll Steelcase’s landlord since they are subletting the space. And even though Steelcase is out of THE MART, several of its brands and brand partners remain, including West Elm Work, Viccarbe, Halcon and Smith System, which combined maintain about 10,000 square feet of space in THE MART.
It’s not about taking sides anymore. Fulton Market and Design Days are here to stay and so is THE MART and NeoCon. While the two sides remain at odds (Best of NeoCon remains a NeoCon-only event), the industry needs both to cooperate so both can succeed.
Walking through THE MART and Fulton Market last week found both abuzz with construction. At THE MART, boxes fill the showroom floors as companies refresh their spaces with new products. Construction workers are busy laying new carpet, mudding drywall, adjusting lighting and applying a fresh coat of paint to many showrooms.
It is the final push toward the finish line. Safco, which had a showroom on the 11th floor, is moving into the former Indiana Furniture location on the 10th. Vice President of Product, Sales and Marketing Shawn Green was in Chicago last week to oversee the project. The space is designed to better reflect the overhaul of the Safco brand, which includes the addition of Onsemble. Safco could have moved to a different location in Chicago, but decided to stay in THE MART for a number of reasons.
“(THE MART vs. Fulton Market) is kind of like the difference between the PGA Tour and LIV Golf (an alternative Saudi-backed tour that lured several high-profile golfers). This (THE MART) is the industry and it’s the opportunity to see the industry in its totality. It’s tradition, but it’s also a convenience. And I think it’s a real world way of showing product in a democratized way. When you start to get into Fulton Market and you start to look at what that is, there’s some financial drivers for doing that, but you’re also dividing the audience. I love THE MART. There’s the tradition of it, certainly the fact that you can window shop and that you’re inside in a controlled environment helps too.”
NeoCon runs from June 9-11 at THE MART. Register here. Fulton Market Design Days is held at the same time. Register for Design Days here.
