Decorex 2025: A Celebration of Design Excellence
Each autumn, Decorex International transforms London into a hub of creativity and craftsmanship, uniting the design industry’s finest talents under one roof. As one of the most established and anticipated events on the UK design calendar, Decorex has, for over four decades, provided a platform for both emerging and established brands to present their latest collections, innovations, and ideas. From bespoke furniture and lighting to exquisite textiles and decorative finishes, it remains a place where tradition meets modernity, and where inspiration flows at every turn.
This year’s edition continued that legacy, showcasing an impressive curation of exhibitors that demonstrated the breadth and depth of contemporary design. Across the stands, craftsmanship took centre stage, with a renewed focus on sustainability, artistry, and material innovation.
In the following highlights, I’ve selected a few of my favourite brands and installations from this year’s fair, each representing the spirit of design excellence that makes Decorex such a defining moment in the creative calendar.
Haberdashery
Having featured Haberdashery several times over the years, I’ve come to expect breathtaking craftsmanship and a unique ability to transform light into emotion, and this year’s showcase at Decorex was no exception. The studio’s latest creations, Spring Meadow and Summer Meadow, continue their ongoing exploration of nature’s cycles, capturing the transient beauty of wildflower meadows through light, glass, and metal.
In Spring Meadow, hand-blown glass droplets glint and shimmer like early morning rain settling on new buds, suspended from slender metallic stems that seem to unfurl with quiet optimism. The piece evokes the delicate energy of rebirth, a gentle study in fragility and hope. By contrast, Summer Meadow bursts with vitality: hand-worked glass discs form luminous petals, each individually lit to create soft halos of light that ripple through looping metal stems. The result is a composition full of movement, warmth, and abundance: a celebration of life at its peak.
True to Haberdashery’s philosophy, both works can be reconfigured or adapted to new spaces, ensuring longevity and continuity through time. Suspended on near-invisible cables, each piece appears to float effortlessly, a reminder of the brand’s technical precision and poetic sensibility. As explorations of autumn and winter follow, this growing series continues to capture the ever-changing conversation between light, nature, and emotion that defines Haberdashery’s work.
Officine Gullo
Officine Gullo presented one of their boldest statements yet; a stand that perfectly encapsulated their singular blend of traditional craftsmanship and contemporary lifestyle. I’ve followed the brand across several shows, and each time they surprise me with how they honour their artisan roots while confidently embracing modern cooking requirements and design sensibilities.
What struck me most was how Officine Gullo remains unapologetically authentic. Rooted in Florence, their identity is anchored in noble materials like brass, copper, and thick-gauge steel, shaped by Florentine metalworking traditions and now infused with cutting-edge cooking and refrigeration technology. At Decorex, they translated this heritage into a kitchen installation that didn’t feel like a museum piece; it felt like the ultimate “room for living today”. Bold metal panels sat alongside professional-grade appliances, creating an effect that was both regal and relevant.
In essence, Officine Gullo’s presence at the show wasn’t just about showpiece glamour; it was a demonstration of how luxury kitchens can bridge the past and present. They honoured silhouette, finish, and materiality while ensuring the space met the functional demands of a modern home chef. It’s this meaningful fusion —tradition meeting contemporary lifestyle —that makes their work so compelling, and why their stand remains one of my standout highlights of the year.
Bert Frank
The stand from Bert Frank was, in every sense, a design moment, not simply a backdrop for lighting, but a fully immersive space in which the brand’s signature lights truly came to life. Having admired their exhibition presence for years, I was once again drawn in by how the stand itself becomes as integral as the luminaries it showcases. The collaboration with Brian Woulfe (Designed By Woulfe) elevated this concept to its fullest: subtle transitions of colour, tactile finishes and the interplay of texture all serving to amplify the character of the pieces on show.
What captured me most was the thoughtful way the space echoed the lighting designs within, each pendant, wall or table light seemed to respond to the backdrop of rich materiality and layered hues. There was a purposeful palette at play, allowing the brass, satin nickel and matte finishes of the fixtures to stand out, while remaining in harmony with their environment. It was easy to see why the stand earned its award: the design wasn’t merely decorative, it felt purposeful, considered and entirely contemporary. In the lighting world, few brands succeed so effortlessly in marrying refined craftsmanship with modern relevance, and this stand was a perfect example of that blend.
Longbarn Carpets & Crafts
For the first time at this year’s show, I discovered Longbarn Carpets & Crafts, and I was genuinely impressed by the direction the brand has taken. Rather than simply presenting their products in familiar form, they elevated their stand into a sculptural work of art that invited you to pause, look and reflect on craftsmanship in a new way.
Longbarn’s ethos of “understated luxury”, defined by the use of natural materials such as pure mohair, combed and felted wool, mercerised cotton and eucalyptus, is clear from every fibre. But what truly struck me was how they translated that ethos into spatial form: their stand wasn’t just a backdrop for carpets; it was the canvas, weaving structure, texture, and light in a way that made the carpets feel like part of a larger sculptural environment. It brought to life the idea that carpets can be more than floor coverings; they can be art.
By showcasing the skill and expertise of their artisan production facility in the Netherlands (where rugs are crafted from start to finish by highly skilled makers), Longbarn demonstrated their commitment to authenticity and design integrity. This installation suggested not just a product, but a story of materiality, texture, and space; something rarely achieved with such clarity. For me, their stand was a standout because it communicated the brand’s identity boldly, yet with refinement.
J. Adams & Co
Few brands capture atmosphere and identity as seamlessly as J. Adams & Co., and their stand at this year’s show is yet another reminder of why they continue to stand out. Every detail, from the lighting arrangements to the material palette, felt meticulously considered, creating a space that not only showcased their products but also demonstrated how effortlessly they inhabit real interiors. Their collections always exude a quiet confidence: sculptural yet refined, contemporary yet timeless.
What I admire most about J. Adams & Co. is how consistently they tell their story through every creative touchpoint. The finishes, the photography, the styling, and even the architectural design of their stand all speak the same design language: one of craftsmanship, precision, and elegance. The result is a truly immersive brand experience that goes beyond product display. It’s an invitation to step into the world they’ve so carefully built; a world where lighting becomes an art form, and atmosphere is everything.
Birdie Fortescue
Birdie Fortescue has an exceptional talent for redefining traditional British style, blending the charm of classic country interiors with refined contemporary sensibilities. Her stand at this year’s Decorex captured that balance perfectly; timeless, elegant, and full of character, yet distinctly modern in its composition and palette. Every piece felt curated rather than displayed, creating a sense of warmth and sophistication that invited you to step inside and stay awhile.
What I particularly admire about Birdie’s approach is her artful curation. Her eye for colour, texture, and composition is remarkable, from softly layered textiles and patterned rugs to perfectly placed artworks that anchor each vignette. There’s a sense of effortlessness in her work, yet a deep understanding of design history and modern living underpins it. The result is an aesthetic that resonates with a broad audience: classic enough for traditionalists, but fresh and relevant for today’s designers. Birdie’s world is one of quiet beauty; lived-in, layered, and deeply inspiring.
FRATO
From the moment I first encountered FRATO, it was clear that this brand operates at a different level of luxury living: not just high-end, but beautifully refined, thoughtful and deeply luxe. At this year’s show, their presentation underscored that impression; a collection of pieces that feel less like furniture and more like exquisitely tailored statements.
FRATO brings together a jeweller’s eye for detail and the soul of traditional craftsmanship. Founded in 2010 in Porto, Portugal, it began as a luxury jewellery house. It evolved into a luxury interiors brand, yet the precision and richness of finish you’d expect in fine jewellery are still evident in every joint, seam and surface. What resonated especially was their sophisticated material palette: rich woods, brushed metals, marble accents, and sumptuous fabrics, all brought together in compositions that feel both globally inspired and utterly bespoke.
What makes FRATO particularly compelling is their ability to balance heritage with a contemporary sensibility. Their designs feel rooted in tradition; silhouettes and forms that reference enduring craftsmanship, yet are unmistakably of the moment: tailored, sleek and impeccably finished. It’s luxury living with purpose, not simply opulence for opulence’s sake. In a world where “luxury” can sometimes feel overstated, FRATO reminded me that true luxury lies in the details, the finishes, and the enduring quality, which is precisely what you want when creating interiors that stand the test of time.
Each year, Decorex reaffirms why it remains such a vital part of the UK’s design landscape; a place where craftsmanship, creativity, and innovation come together in harmony. This year’s edition was no exception, offering an inspiring glimpse into the direction of contemporary design. From the poetic light installations of Haberdashery and the refined craftsmanship of Officine Gullo, to the immersive presentation by Bert Frank, and the sculptural artistry of Longbarn Carpets & Crafts, every stand told its own story. J. Adams & Co. continued to define atmospheric design through cohesion and identity, while Birdie Fortescue reminded us of the enduring beauty found in the balance between heritage and modernity. Finally, FRATO encapsulated the very essence of luxury living through its meticulous craftsmanship and timeless style.
As always, what makes Decorex so special is not only the calibre of its exhibitors but the spirit that connects them; a shared dedication to design excellence and the pursuit of beauty in all its forms. Leaving the show, I felt inspired by the diversity of voices and visions shaping the future of interiors today.
More Stories
Experience Christmas at The Royal Exchange, London: real spruce displays, glowing baubles and an iconic Fortnum & Mason tree create a spectacular festive setting until 4 January 2026. A must-see for London Christmas lovers.