From the Sector

Heimtextil kicks off the new trade fair year with over 3,000 exhibitors from 65 countries. At the opening, architect and designer Patricia Urquiola presented her installation ‘among-us’ at Heimtextil.

“The steady growth and the very high level of internationality confirm the strength of Heimtextil. As leading international trade fair for home and contract textiles and textile design, it is an indispensable partner for the global industry – this is more important today than ever before. Especially in challenging times, Heimtextil offers companies the opportunity to strengthen their market position: through international visibility, the identification and realisation of potential and the development of new global business partners”, says Detlef Braun, Member of the Executive Board of Messe Frankfurt.

Visitors to the leading trade fair for home and contract textiles find a globally unique range of products on 16 hall levels. This spans from wallpapers, upholstery fabrics, mattresses and sleep systems, towelling products, textile designs, fibres and yarns to carpets. The Carpets & Rugs area counts three times as many exhibitors in 2025 and is growing by several hall levels.  

The Heimtextil Trends 25/26, curated for the first time by the Milan-based design platform Alcova, offer inspiration and sustainable solutions. In the Trend Arena in Hall 3.0, they are spectacularly staged. They are looking at material qualities, colours and innovative production processes.

The content programme covers the most important industry topics. It addresses different visitor groups – from retailers, wholesalers, industry, designers, furniture and bedding shops, interior architects, interior designers, architects, contract furnishers and many other decision-makers. At the Retail Stage in Hall 12.1, topics ranging from sleep and sustainability to AI in retail and optimising the customer experience are being highlighted. The Texpertise Stage in Hall 4.0 focuses on materials for contract furnishings, trends in hotel design, carpets and the Heimtextil Trends 25/26.

Installation by Patricia Urquiola: design concepts for retail and hospitality
At the Heimtextil opening press conference, star designer and architect Patricia Urquiola presented her design installation ‘among-us’ in Hall 12.0. The area contains products made specially for Heimtextil. For example, a hanging carpet created by the traditional dhurrie technique. Patricia Urquiola developed the unique pieces together with partners such as Kettal, Moroso, cc-tapis, Aquafil and Cimento®. Embedded in the installation, they show retail and hospitality the possibilities opened up by the textile design of tomorrow. Patricia Urquiola emphasises holistically designed rooms and objects, living areas that merge seamlessly as well as materiality and versatility.

“‘among-us’ is a convivial and intuitive textile installation that shows the evolving possibilities of textiles, exploring their hybrid potentials across various scales – from product design to one/off pieces. The title, among-us, refers to the concept of being together and reflects the intent of the installation to celebrate hybrid new relations”, explains Patricia Urquiola.

In ‘among-us’, physical and virtual worlds merge through a grid on the floor inspired by drafting software. At the centre are textile elements in abstract and organic forms such as a sofa or an upholstered sculpture. They demonstrate the interplay of materials and technologies. Screens show their virtual counterparts and encourage interaction. At the same time, ‘among-us’ shows how textile innovations influence design processes. Textiles combine functionality, aesthetics and sustainability and create unique possibilities. The installation also shows how traditional craftsmanship can be integrated into the design of spaces and products.

Heimtextil will launch the new 2020/2021 trend season with the general theme “WHERE I BELONG”. For the official Heimtextil Trend Preview, Stijlinstituut Amsterdam director Anne Marie Commandeur  introduced the new design themes. The presentation in the run-up to Heimtextil (7-10 January 2020) took place at the Textile Museum’s Textile Lab in Tilburg, the Netherlands on 11 September 2019 and was streamed worldwide.

This season, Stijlinstituut Amsterdam is responsible for the Trend Book content and Trend Space implementation at the upcoming international trade fair for home and contract textiles. Alongside Stijlinstituut Amsterdam, London-based studio FranklinTill and Danish agency SPOTT trends & business contributed to the 20/21 global forecast for perspective-related interior design. Together with the Heimtextil management team, these Trend Council participants gave insights into future styles during a workshop.

At the annual international Trend Council workshop, identity was an ever-present topic: part of a broader discussion on gender and cultural diversity, on tolerance and curiosity. Today, the self-identification process seems more complex than ever. Identities are now formed through experiences that take place simultaneously, on different levels. Locally, nationally, globally, both online and offline. Identity therefore can consist of many different layers. In fact, individuals can all have multilayered identities.

Heimtextil Trends 20/21 Overview:

MAXIMUM GLAM

Pleasure seekers revel in layering theatrical influences and glamorous showtime aesthetics, forging a fantastic marriage between the crafted and digitally rendered. Textiles show a ‘more is more’ attitude through a mash-up of glam, gradients and spectrums, fake fur, pile and fringe, jacquard weaves and fantastic prints. The flashy, kitsch colour range becomes brutally glam thanks to electric sheen, synthetic shimmer, digital glitch and artful blur. A riot of clashes and rebellion.

PURE SPIRITUAL

Idealists seek perfection and purity, restoring equilibrium by connecting with the uber-natural. They embrace technology for good while shifting between realism and mysticism in pursuit of a personal haven. To address a renewed bond with nature, organic matter, raw materials and pure textiles are selected which show nature’s traces, organic structures and irregularities. Shades are created from the earth and cultured by man. An elemental and pure range reflects the source of their existence.

ACTIVE URBAN

Urban dwellers confront the challenges of the fast paced, shape-shifting, man-made environment by searching for utilitarian, adaptable solutions. They value tech performance while making smart use of  available and renewable resources. Functionality is prioritised, while looking cool and working well remains key. Interior/sportswear hybrid textiles show smooth surfaces and a fun mash-up of graphic textures. The palette shows uniform blue, asphalt grey and caterpillar yellow.

HERITAGE LUX

Preservers of historic legacies treasure sensuousness alongside the uncanny, enlightenment together with darkness, for a whole new immersive experience. This new narrative translates to a love for luxury and splendour, decoration and embellishment. Finding beauty in history and nature through ornamental patterning and alluring surface enhancement. Reflecting on ancient history results in a palette featuring enigmatic blood red, sapphire and a lustrous mother-of-pearl.

MULTI-LOCAL

Hyper-locals go global, celebrating inclusivity over appropriation, honouring traditional craftsmanship and adjusting the world’s gaze to embrace exchange, creative integrity and diverse identities. Indigenous style meets global influences. This is a celebration of crafted and decorative pattern, from tribal and folkloric to geometric and abstract. Textile colours become part of a wider cultural narrative, linked to local community, cultural heritage and private identity.

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