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Issue #00014 : February 12, 2026

Good day dear readers,

I’ve spent this week dealing with something every successful designer eventually faces: fighting to protect what you’ve built from people who are too inauthentic and insecure to create something original.

There’s a scene near the end of The Founder where one of the McDonald brothers confronts Ray Kroc in a bathroom. He says: You could have opened your own restaurant. You could have copied our system and done it yourself somewhere else. So why did you have to take it from us? Kroc’s answer is simple: “That name. That glorious name. McDonald’s. It’s wide open. Limitless. It could be anything, whatever you want it to be. It sounds like... America.”

He could see it everywhere. 

I face the same issue with my business. It’s a valuable mark that works in Italian, Spanish, Chinese, English, Arabic—it has an aura that transcends language. It’s why people keep trying to take pieces of it. The most valuable brand names communicate luxury without even trying, like Scalamandre, Rubelli, and Loro Piana.

Here’s the strange part about intellectual property: everything is inspired from what came before. That’s how creativity works—you stand on the shoulders of others. The line gets crossed when inspiration becomes appropriation, when someone uses your name to trick customers or damage what you’ve spent decades building.

We tried handling this the civilized way with conversations, negotiations, and cooperation. They forced us into court. Fine. Italian legal briefings are works of art, by the way—romantic, historical, even literary. Our lawyer called the opposing party “a scoundrel” in this week’s filing, which gave me a little laugh.

What’s clarifying about being forced into a fight is how it sharpens your purpose. I thought I was already driven. Then someone handed me a million-dollar legal bill and I realized what I’m here for: to protect a legacy that belongs to more than just us. As the saying goes: pressure turns coal into diamonds, and fighting for something you believe in has a beautiful way of focusing the mind.

So while I manage that, we’re doing what we do here: watching where the industry’s moving, spotting opportunities, and making sense of the noise. This week that means understanding why affluent Californians are flooding Vegas, what Google’s algorithm changes mean for your marketing, and why art is better than any diet.

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Art is good for you
The New York Times just published research that confirms something our industry should take seriously: engaging with art and creativity is a pillar of human health.

Daisy Fancourt, a professor at University College London who’s studied arts and health for 15 years, calls it “the forgotten fifth pillar of health,” alongside diet, sleep, exercise, and nature. Her research shows that experiencing art (painting, reading novels, attending museums, or even baking bread) slows cognitive decline, reduces heart disease risk, and increases well-being as we age. Reading books is linked with living longer.

This is something we in the industry have known long before scientific studies. A well-designed space with thoughtful art, proper lighting, and beautiful materials is therapeutic. For designers, this is validation. When clients question budgets for original art or quality craftsmanship, we can now point to hard science showing these investments pay dividends in health and longevity. A beautiful room is just the tonic.

Dallas expands design center
Dallas Market Center just announced its largest showroom expansion in over a decade. More than 100 brands are relocating into the Interior Home + Design Center in the first half of this year. C. Maddox & Co. leads the charge with a custom 40,000-square-foot flagship—nearly an acre or roughly three-quarters of the Dallas Cowboys football field. They represent heavyweights like Caracole, John Richard, and Vanguard. The 9th floor clears out for flexible trade show space. 

Design centers like this are valuable because their marketplace dynamics create virtuous cycles. More brands equals more products, which means better browsing. Better browsing brings more designers. More designers mean more purchasing power. More purchasing power attracts more vendors. And on and on it goes. It’s the marketplace network effect at work—the same principle that makes eBay or Etsy so powerful.

So, I’m bullish on design centers! I’m a big believer that they’re a key part of our industry and should serve as community town squares for the industry. Especially in the age of AI where human connection will be yearned for again. 

Speaking of exhibitions, KBIS/IBS is next week (Feb. 17–19, 2026) at Orlando’s Orange County Convention Center for Design & Construction Week. It’s North America’s largest kitchen, bath, and residential construction expo with 650+ brands. I haven’t been to this show but I’m thinking of swinging by next week to check it out.

Carpet’s toxic legacy
The Atlanta Journal-Constitution just published one of the most damning investigations I’ve ever read about our industry. For decades, Georgia’s carpet manufacturers—Shaw Industries and Mohawk Industries, the world’s largest carpet makers—have allegedly been dumping PFAS “forever chemicals” into the water supply. The pollution is so severe researchers call northwest Georgia “one of the nation’s PFAS hotspots.” 

Here’s what journalists have uncovered: In 1998, chemical giant 3M told carpet executives their stain-blocking chemicals were showing up in human blood and persisting in the environment. Shockingly, the carpet industry kept using them anyway. For another 21 years. Mills released chemicals into Dalton’s water system, which sprayed contaminated wastewater across 9,600 acres of forest. The chemicals seeped into rivers, drinking water, and people. Three out of four residents tested by Emory University had PFAS levels requiring medical screening. Dolly Baker, a local hairdresser, has levels “hundreds of times above the US average.” Marie and Faye Jackson, who live 15 miles downstream, both have dangerous levels.

This isn’t just Georgia’s problem. Shaw and Mohawk carpet is everywhere. If you’ve installed carpet in the last 30 years, there’s a decent chance it came from these mills. And if it was marketed as stain-resistant before 2019, it probably contains PFAS. Here’s what designers need to know: The industry claims it stopped using PFAS in 2019, but even Shaw admits the chemicals are so embedded in their supply chain they can’t fully eliminate them. “You can’t just say you stopped using them and you’re done,” said Shaw’s vice president of environmental affairs. This is a reckoning. We have a responsibility to know what we’re putting in people’s homes. Beauty cannot come at the cost of human health. [Ed: Keep reading for a Mr Thread Q&A with chemical fabric protection specialist Parker Wright].

I’ve spent the past few years developing non-toxic formulas for performance fabrics—one of the fastest-growing segments in our industry. Open up any trend report and you’ll see stain-resistant weaves everywhere. But when you look deeper at solution-dyed acrylics and other performance fabrics, the chemistry gets sketchy fast.

Lots more on this topic to come in future Mr. Thread editions.

Design’s answer to disaster
From a man-made disaster to a natural disaster. Last year’s Eaton Fire claimed 19 lives and destroyed over 9,000 buildings, but the design community’s response has been extraordinary. Architectural Digest spotlights seven grassroots initiatives rebuilding Los Angeles with intelligence and heart.

The Foothill Catalog Foundation offers pro bono construction documents pre-approved by LA County, fast-tracking 20 homes through approvals with a goal of 50 unique designs. Case Study: Adapt revives the legendary midcentury program with fire-resistant systems—noncombustible materials, ember-resistant venting, cool roofs. Angel City Lumber is converting 1,500 fire-damaged trees into 2.5 million board feet of lumber, priced below market exclusively for Altadena residents.

As Case Study: Adapt cofounder Leo Seigal told AD, “If you can put forward beautiful ideas that use fire-resilient systems, that will inspire a whole new generation of building.”

This is how the industry leads.

Google just dropped a major algorithm update that will fundamentally change how websites show up in search results, and it’s great news for anyone doing real work.

The February 2026 Discover Core Update prioritizes “in-depth, original, and timely content from websites with expertise in a given area.” So, Google is essentially saying: we’re done with SEO spam. We want deep, researched, human-written expertise.

This connects directly to what we’re building at Mr. Thread. We’re producing long-form, deeply researched content by people who’ve spent decades in the industry. That’s exactly what Google now rewards. Meanwhile, AI-generated slop and thin-soup content will get buried. Good.

If you’re building a website, blog, or brand presence, invest in real knowledge and original research. The algorithm is finally catching up to what humans have always valued.

Meanwhile, Business of Fashion just published a useful guide on preparing for AI agents to shop on consumers’ behalf. Here’s how you need to update your site today: publish clean product data, clear descriptions, and authoritative content matter more than ever. AI agents need structured information to make recommendations.

Social media mastery
According to Domus, social media is dying. Daily time spent fell from 151 minutes (2022) to 141 (2024), per GWI research. Personal content on Facebook dropped from 22% to 17% since 2023, and engagement has collapsed to just 0.15% on Facebook and X/Twitter. 

Meanwhile, Darren Henault is building a media empire with his iPhone. The NYC-based designer’s Instagram shows wit, education, and authentic personality—all delivered consistently. I know Darren well, and I know his secret: he’s exactly the same on camera as he is in person.

So many designers struggle with social media because they feel they need to perform. Darren just shows up as himself. He makes mistakes. In one video, he puts on some costume jewelry backwards. People he interviews sometimes ask him, “are you filming?” He shares his knowledge with the audience like they’re his friend, and it’s the exact opposite of the highly strategized Gen Z content full of super hooks and curiosity peaks.

Darren’s authenticity is what audiences actually crave. For designers with a unique eye who can be genuine on camera and post consistently, the opportunity is massive.

Mr. Thread watches the stock market, so you don’t have to.

RH hits 52-week high—but context matters
RH stock recently hit $212.05, marking a 52-week high and a 7.88 percent gain over the past week. The company also announced a new 60,000-square-foot design gallery in Detroit’s Birmingham district, which sent shares up another 4.1 percent.

If you’ve been watching this stock as closely as me, you’ll know that RH is still down approximately 47 percent over the past 12 months. The stock’s actual 52-week high was $416. So while recent momentum is encouraging, we’re watching a stock claw its way back from disaster.

That said, the company’s ability to maintain profitability and generate strong free cash flow while trading below its fair value suggests resilience. 

If Home Depot’s customers start spending again on postponed renovation projects as mortgage rates drop, RH’s customers won’t be far behind, mark my words.

Parker Wright is the owner of IntegraTect, a business founded by his father, a Vietnam veteran whose experience with toxic chemical exposure inspired him to create a safer, high‑performance fabric protection. When he’s not studying chemical compounds, you’ll find Parker walking his blonde Labrador, Blu Belle, near his home in Kansas City.

What surprised you about the recent Atlanta Journal-Constitution exposé on PFAS contamination?
Nothing surprised me, except it was interesting to actually see them call out the industry giants and put the names of these people in charge. Since I’ve been in the industry, we’ve been saying every living being on the planet will come back positive for [fluorochemicals] in their system in some way or another. But this has to be the absolute most concentrated, worst situation in the country.

Is it possible to do fabric protection without using these chemicals that kill people?
Absolutely. We’ve been doing it for over 15 years, and the technology has been there as well. I can’t understand why they chose to go that route. The one thing we maybe can’t simulate without the use of those compounds is oil repellency. And at the end of the day, you gotta decide: do you want to protect your interiors from oil, or do you want cancer? 

You describe the fabric protection arena as “one of the most deceptive.” What does that mean?
It’s one of the three industries—and the main one—that poisons every living being on the face of the earth. There’s not a whole lot of industries that can make that claim. It went on for so long. These big companies act like they’re the pioneers in the last few years of getting away from this technology. I watched my dad, who’s a veteran and an architect, and my mom, an interior designer, start this company without the use of fluorine at all over 15 years ago. These bigger companies with unlimited resources couldn’t? They’re ringing the bell nowadays, like they’re the ones coming to save us. Well, you’re also the one that poisoned us, and you’re super late to getting rid of these chemicals.

Tell me about your father’s background and why this became personal.
My dad was stationed in Panama during Vietnam. During that time, [the US government] did R&D research for Agent Orange in various places in the world. One of them was in Panama. That poisoning of people was done with the intention of protecting our men overseas, whereas this poisoning of people was done just to protect carpets. I don’t agree with either one of them, but at least Agent Orange was designed to essentially protect our men overseas. This is way worse than Agent Orange, because it affects everybody.

Other than PFAS, what else is out there that could cause problems later?
I design all my chemicals not around current regulations—because they’ve failed us so many times. I design around what I can predict in the future being an issue. There’s a lot of new stuff out there. I’m thinking of nanoparticles. That’s a whole new thing of concern. In 20 years from now, that’s going to be the big thing we screwed up on. They’re able to make these particles so small that they’re extremely absorbent through your skin. Once they’re into your body, your cells are actually able to consume these nanoparticles. You’re just asking for all kinds of future issues we probably never even heard of. It’s the exact same concept as asbestos, except this would be everywhere.

As you’re an expert in stain removal, I’ve got to ask: Do you ever spill something on your shirt and struggle to get it out?
I’m definitely a country boy, so I get a lot of stuff on my shirt. And honestly, I don’t care about the stains on my shirt, so I quite often leave them, because what I do for a living is remove stains, and the last thing I want to do when I get home is take care of more stains!

_{Editor’s note: This interview has been lightly condensed for clarity}

Viva Las Vegas
Filthy rich Californian homebuyers are escaping to Las Vegas, and the numbers tell a fascinating story. According to Realtor.com, over 23% of listing views in Las Vegas now originate from Los Angeles, with San Jose demand nearly tripling year over year. The math for these folks is simple: sell a $2 million home in California, buy a comparable house in Vegas for half the price, and pocket the savings—all while avoiding state income tax.

Nevada’s tax structure has always been appealing, but California’s proposed 5% wealth tax on billionaires is accelerating the exodus. (Mark Zuckerberg is buying a $150–200 million mansion in Miami). Even Gavin Newsom admits it could trigger a flight of high net worth taxpayers. For the design industry, this migration matters. Californian buyers with serious equity are purchasing luxury homes with pools, home offices, and master-planned amenities. Remember: where wealthy clients relocate, design opportunity follows. (If you don’t mind 105-degree heat and bumper-to-bumper traffic.)

Las Vegas could use the boost. Its economy is struggling with a 5.2% unemployment rate—one of the nation’s highest—due to an 8% tourism drop in 2025.

Vegas has not historically been the strongest market for residential interior design, but don’t sleep on Sin City if this migration continues.

Bob bets big on cheap furniture
Bob’s Discount Furniture just went public. The company is now worth $2.22 billion and made $330.7 million from the stock sale. Backed by investment company Bain Capital, they sold about 19.5 million shares at $17 each.

I’m not going to mince words: Bob’s sells garbage. Walk into any store and the smell of synthetic materials hits you like wrapping your face in a shower curtain. These are disposable furniture pieces designed to look acceptable for 18 months before falling apart. Investors are betting Bob’s can keep growing by selling stuff people throw away.

Look, affordable furniture has a place in the market. People need furniture, and not everyone can afford a George II neoclassical masterpiece. But Bob’s sells a full office desk for $250. How is it possible to make, ship, and deliver a desk for $250? The same way you can get a bucket of Kentucky Fried Chicken containing two whole chickens for only eight bucks: extreme scale.

Bob’s website won’t even tell you where products are made. That alone should be a red flag. Meanwhile, companies trying to transparently source materials and pay fair wages can’t compete on price.

Bob’s plans to expand from 200 showrooms to 500 by 2035. That’s 300 more stores selling furniture destined for landfills. Private equity loves it because the margins work. From a design perspective, it’s depressing. Economically, Bob’s is betting that a lot of people will need to buy dirt cheap furniture in the near future, which conjures thoughts of recession, foreclosures, and evictions.

Homeowners still not moving
American homeowners are staying in their houses for the longest time in at least 25 years, according to ATTOM data. The reason, of course, is the low mortgage rates many of them locked in during the pandemic. 

This matters for our industry because homeowners who don’t move also don’t renovate. Major design projects typically happen around life transitions—moving, marriage, divorce, retirement. When people stay put, they maintain rather than transform.

There may be a thaw on the way, though, as mortgage rates seem to be trending down. That’s what’s needed to loosen things up.

Trump tariffs hit home
The Tax Foundation (a nonpartisan nonprofit) just quantified what Trump’s tariffs will cost American households in 2026: $1,300. Each household will pay more in taxes because of the new tariffs—pushing tariff rates to 13.5%, the highest they’ve been in nearly 80 years.

For our industry, tariffs are a direct tax on imported goods, which means higher costs for furniture, fabrics, lighting, and nearly everything we spec. The tariffs affect approximately $2.2 trillion of US goods imports, or 67 percent of total imports.

China faces a 20 percent tariff. Mexico and Canada face 25 percent on non-USMCA goods. The EU faces 15 percent. India went from 50 percent down to 18 percent. Furniture specifically faces 25 percent tariffs, rising to 30 percent on upholstered furniture.

The economic impact is brutal. The Tax Foundation estimates the tariffs will reduce long-run US GDP by 0.5 percent and eliminate 436,000 full-time jobs before accounting for foreign retaliation. With retaliation, GDP falls 0.7 percent.

My advice: Source strategically and build tariff costs into your pricing now. These aren’t going away.

Luxury woes continue
Kering just reported first-half recurring operating income fell 39 percent to €969 million ($1.15 billion), slightly better than analysts expected. The French luxury conglomerate is hemorrhaging value as Gucci—its largest brand—continues to struggle.

CEO Luca de Meo, recently confirmed by shareholders, told analysts “we can question everything from scratch.” That’s the kind of language you use when the house is on fire. Since De Meo’s appointment, shares have rebounded nearly 25 percent on hopes he’ll replicate his turnaround success at French auto maker Renault. But the stock is still down 11 percent this year.

The 15 percent US tariff on EU goods is “totally manageable,” according to CFO Armelle Poulou. Kering will raise the price of Gucci, and other luxury goods, but for wealthy customers a 15 percent price increase is an inconvenience, not a dealbreaker.

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