Issue #00008 : January 8, 2026

Hello dear Readers, I hope you’re staying warm!

January is always the hardest month in the design business. For 30 years, I’ve watched the same cycle: the whole industry shuts down for the holidays, and waking it back up feels like pushing a boulder uphill. As a business owner, these weeks still tie my stomach in knots. It’s never comfortable watching sales pipelines dry up, even though you have a hundred year history of them filling up again by February. 

If you’re feeling the same anxiety, you’re not alone. We’re all in this together, counting down the days until the machine starts moving again. We are a resilient industry and will eventually shake off the slumber—we always do, usually by the end of the month. By then you’ll probably hear me complaining I’m too busy.

I’m expecting a massive year for my businesses and the industry as a whole. I hope you are too. If not, may this journal shine light on an idea that might become something great for you!

For now, the news machine never stops. Keep reading to find out why silence just became a $26 billion industry, how origami fixed the umbrella, and why skirted sofas are coming back. 

See you next week from Paris Design Week!

LA fires: A year later, almost nothing rebuilt
I was saddened to see Realtor.com’s photo roundup of celebrity homes destroyed by the Palisades fires, including Paris Hilton, Anthony Hopkins, Mel Gibson, and Billy Crystal. It’s a long, grim list of beautiful architecture reduced to ash. Natural disasters in wealthy regions typically create windfalls for the design industry, but LA’s recovery has been suffocated by red tape and bureaucracy.

It’s unbelievable that fewer than a dozen homes have been rebuilt since the fires, and how much resistance there is. Meanwhile, billionaires like these Kiwi toy makers are buying up scorched land with plans to airdrop in prefab developments made in China.

LA desperately needs leadership capable of overseeing the rebuilding of one of the most beautiful and valuable stretches of real estate on earth. Until that happens, the design opportunity remains trapped in permit hell while the land sits vacant.

What we can learn from fashion’s AI revolution
The fashion industry isn’t just adjacent to interior design, it’s a leading indicator. We share the same luxury consumer base, and the same business model: aspirational, hedonistic commerce at fantastical price points. So I paid close attention to the State of Fashion 2026 annual report from Business of Fashion. 

Surprise, surprise, this year it’s all about AI disruption, and design industry leaders should read it as a preview of what’s coming for us. 

Here’s what the data shows:

AI will automate 36% of fashion work by 2030—or far more if companies commit aggressively to adoption. Manufacturing faces 42% task automation, procurement 39%, and marketing 22%. Zalando already generates 70% of editorial content via AI, cutting production time from six weeks to four days.

The merchandising bit really interested me. AI can detect microtrends via social listening and “translate them into actionable guidance.” Many of us are showing new collections next week during Paris Déco Off and Maison & Objet. Imagine if we could advertise our new collections directly to customers in real time based on their social signals? Sounds creepy, but honestly, our world is flooded with millions upon millions of SKUs across scores of different categories. Using AI to help customers discover the right product faster would be a game changer, if these technologies become affordable. 

For now, all the big boys are into it. LVMH just built “a centralized research team of data scientists and engineers to work across its brand portfolio”; Pandora integrated demand and financial planning into a single AI platform; Zegna launched an AI app to turn customer data into personalized recommendations. But the report is explicit: these tools are designed to “elevate the shopping experience,” and, if executed well, they should enhance—not replace—clienteling or human connection. If there’s one thing to learn from our fashion friends: AI can’t replace taste, but firms that use it to amplify their expertise will crush those that don’t.

The condo crisis
Condo prices posted their biggest annual decline since 2012, falling 1.9% year-over-year, reports the Wall Street Journal. More than one in 10 condos are now worth less than their purchase price.

Boston illustrates the pain. The St. Regis Residences kicked off sales in 2019 with 114 luxury units. Six years later, 47 units remain unsold, and even the developer is trying to unload his own $49.5 million penthouse. A decade ago, Boston developers tried emulating New York and Miami’s flashy high-rises. But the buyers didn’t show up.

It’s all down to soaring HOA fees, post-pandemic downtown deterioration, and financing difficulties since the 2021 Surfside collapse in Florida. I feel like Boston should be a tremendous design market but it has always been considered “mid”—not at the level of New York, Chicago, or even Dallas. These distressed luxury condos represent an opportunity for designers to partner with desperate property holders and reposition buildings that need more than price cuts.

Eye on the markets
I watch the stock market so you don’t have to.

The market kicked off 2026 with serious momentum. Investors are bullish and AI hype continues driving the optimism.

For design industry stocks, this week was quiet, but don’t let that fool you. Keep your eyes on this section—there’s plenty of news coming.

Restoration Hardware (RH) continues its slow climb upward, already up nearly 13% in 2026. The momentum is building.

Wayfair (W) remained strong, extending its impressive run as a mature, profitable company. I see a massive year ahead for them on all fronts.

Silence is golden
The Financial Times reports a trend worth watching: the commodification of quiet. More than 40% of the UK population suffers from harmful noise levels, and 84% of US consumers now factor noise into purchasing decisions. I grew up in a third-world city, and as I approach 50, I’ve noticed how noise affects my psyche—background traffic and distant sirens create a constant subliminal race. I didn’t realize I was stressed living in the city; I just felt it. Moving to the country during Covid made the difference measurable. Our industry should be delivering more of this quality-of-life design. 

The acoustic insulation market is forecast to grow from $17 billion in 2025 to $26.5 billion in 2034—nearly 5% annual growth. Now interior designers are making quiet a design principle. Irenie Cossey of Irenie Studio starts with thick rugs and underlays. Venetia Rudebeck at Studio Vero has used blue grasscloth for sound absorption. Robert Douge of Arya Douge Architects notes acoustics have shifted “from compliance issue to quality-of-life issue.”

Meanwhile in London, the £2 billion ($2.69 billion) development The Round, designed by Foster + Partners, puts silence at its core with triple-glazed windows and binaural soundscapes. “Silence is not an afterthought—it’s a design principle,” says Jasmine Dillon at Hines. Hear me now: designers who understand acoustics will soon command premiums.

1st Dibs predicts 2026
1stDibs just released its annual designer trends report, polling hundreds of designers across 17 countries. The curation draws from designers who move markets: Studio Shamshiri (a brilliant LA talent I’ve worked with), Chango, and Alessandra Branca (one of my all time favorite designers and a Chicago powerhouse).

Here’s what they’re all saying: Maximalism continues its climb, with 39% of designers layering textures and eras. Color drenching is ascendant—burgundy holds strong at 21%, while pastels like butter yellow, cornflower blue, and pistachio are breaking through. Chocolate brown remains most-cited, nearly doubling to 33% in four years.

Art Deco is surging, especially internationally (30% of non-U.S. designers). The skirted sofa, once left for dead, leaps into the survey at 24% popularity. A-list designers like Studio Ashby and Fabrizio Casiraghi are giving it modern relevance. Furniture trends favor curves (though it’s cooling slightly), cane and rattan, and Murano glass. Wallpaper just continues its never ending hot streak—designers are wrapping entire rooms, ceilings included. I have a feeling the “cover everything” trend will continue with the sudden rise in popularity for wall-to-wall carpet (one of my favorites). 

Two business notes: 72% of designers plan domestic sourcing to dodge tariff uncertainty. AI adoption tripled to 29%, though designers are keeping it firmly in back-office tasks, not for creative direction.

My takeaway: If you’re still playing safe with neutrals, you’re toast.

Individuality is the future, says NYT
The New York Times just forecast how homes will look in 2026, betting on two themes: craft and individuality. They surveyed 15 experts across mass market and high-end design, and the consensus is clear—homes are becoming refuges from global uncertainty.

Here’s the rundown: Brigette Romanek sees clients gravitating toward unique pieces over trendy items spotted online. Katie Stout describes eccentric textiles as “soft sculpture.” Adam Charlap Hyman reports his clients are ditching overpriced contemporary furniture for antiques with “virtuosic” craft—think Art Nouveau inlay tables. David Alhadeff at The Future Perfect says shoppers now want visible imperfections in handmade pieces, attributing it to digital fatigue.

On color, Farrow & Ball’s Joa Studholme predicts all-white trim “will really disappear” in favor of colorful baseboards and moldings. Sherwin-Williams sees whites shifting to warm khakis. And Tyler Hays at BDDW expects bright colors in muted patterns across rugs and seating.

It’s clear to see that Americans are designing for their own idiosyncrasies, creating sanctuaries that feel personal rather than Pinterest-perfect.

Who will be design’s first unicorn?
Forbes just reported that Beyoncé has become music’s fifth billionaire. This week I enjoyed AD’s rundown of her flabbergasting $300M dollar real estate portfolio. There’s a record-breaking Tadao Ando concrete palace in Malibu, an $88 million bulletproof Bel Air compound with four pools, and a Stanford White mansion in the Hamptons that was literally rotated for better views.

Designing for unicorns doesn’t make you one—but land a client with a nine-figure budget and your career is set for life.

This got me thinking: who becomes the first billion-dollar design firm? My money’s on Kelly Wearstler or Joanna Gaines.

Remembering two design greats
Our industry is massive financially but small when it comes to community. This past week saw the passing of two of my favorites—complete opposites of each other.

Pam Katch was a designer’s designer. Ask any pro who they’d want to design their home and you’d often hear the Katch sisters. Their attention to detail, quiet but powerful design, and mastery over materials is hard to replicate. Pam was a kind soul who will be missed.

Thomas Britt was the opposite: a bombastic, epic, old-school New York legend. (Mitchell Owens at The World of Interiors broke the sad news on Instagram.) Thomas used to scare the crap out of me as a young kid working out of the D&D building. I later learned it was all an act—he was kind, loving, and devoted his life to our industry. He was cut from that old-school cloth, and we’re losing too many of these legends. Here’s hoping a new generation of design lovers replaces them.

Sandow acquires Architonic
Adam Sandow—the design industry’s Jeff Bezos—just acquired Architonic, according to Fred Nicolaus at Business of Home. His firm Material Bank has gone quiet lately, which tells me something big is brewing.

Their residential fabric launch hasn’t caught fire. I see it firsthand in the market, where I’m deeply entrenched. But Martyn Lawrence Bullard just did an Instagram video for them, so the investment continues.

It’ll be interesting to watch what Adam gets up to this year.

Studio Four on the great wallpaper flood
I loved this latest episode of Dennis Scully’s podcast. The industry’s most gracious voice just interviewed Stacy Waggoner from Studio Four NYC. If you don’t listen to Dennis, start now. He’s an experienced elder statesman who knows the ins and outs of our industry and keeps his finger on the pulse of the broader design economy, interviewing the leaders who shape it every week. No better education than hearing from people who’ve actually done it.

Stacey nailed something I’ve been thinking about a lot: how digital printing lowered barriers to entry, flooding the markets with cheap fabric and wallpaper companies. Most don’t recognize the massive logistical operations needed to properly service designers and their intense demands. So while the market is flooded with tons of options, many are hard to source, and these new companies are unreliable and unable to meet the demands of designers and architects. It seems anyone can launch a collection now.

From the outside, the market looks abundant. From the inside, it’s chaos. Designers need certainty: Lead times that hold, color that matches, someone who answers the phone when things go sideways. Most digitally-born brands don’t grasp the operational brutality required to support high-end interiors. Sampling, archiving, reorders, dye lots, installation coordination—you can’t succeed by throwing pretty patterns on Shopify.

Stacy’s line was spot on: just because you can introduce endless variations, doesn’t mean you should. This is my world and I know that limitation has always been a feature, not a bug. Editing is a form of respect for the designer, for the client, and for the work itself.

Studio Four clearly understands this. You can feel their conviction, their restraint, and their reverence for the ecosystem designers actually operate in. That kind of discipline doesn’t come from trend-chasing. It comes from being in the arena long enough to know what really matters when the stakes are high.

I predict that the next phase of this industry won’t reward who can produce the most patterns. It will reward who can stand behind them.

Studio Four gets it—they ooze passion for this side of our industry.

Beauty vs. AI
Last week I wrote about beauty and the coming renaissance. Ben Thompson at Stratechery just articulated exactly what I was getting at: how AI will trigger a return to human craft. (His blog should be required reading.) He writes:

“I have great optimism that one potential upside of AI is a renewed appreciation of and investment in beauty. 

One of the great tragedies of the industrial era—particularly today—is that beauty in our built environment is nowhere to be found. How is it that we built intricate cathedrals hundreds of years ago, and forgettable cookie-cutter crap today? That is, in fact, another labor story: before the industrial revolution labor was abundant and cheap, which meant it was defensible to devote thousands of person-years into intricate buildings; once labor was made more productive, and thus more valuable, it simply wasn’t financially viable to divert so much talent for so much time. Perhaps it follows, then, that the devaluing of labor …actually frees humans up to once again create beauty? Yes, robots could do it too, but I think humans will value the work of other humans more. Indeed, I think this is coming sooner than you might think: I expect the widespread availability of high quality AI art to actually make human art more desirable and valuable, precisely because of its provenance.”

Thompson ends his essay by noting that Sora, OpenAI’s buzzy, prompt-to-video app has slid down to 59 in the app store.

Fast Company rounded up the nine biggest building openings ahead. The Lucas Museum of Narrative Art in LA tops my list, with the Hudson Valley Shakespeare theatre a close second.

I can’t wait to see this new Dries Van Noten academy palazzo when it opens. Alberto Torsello is handling the architecture. There’s no better architecture firm in the world—this one’s worth watching.

I was pleased to see Hermès employing actual artists to redesign their website. While the execution feels a little safe, this signals the return of analog art as AI fatigue sets in.

A company named Ori just solved the umbrella’s 175-year design flaw with origami. It’s pocket-sized with no ribs, no fabric, and it won’t turn inside-out in the wind. Forget rain—I’m thinking furniture applications.

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