A look back at COVER Connect New York 2025 

A week after the event, COVER looks back at the New York show

The fifth edition of COVER Connect New York—the leading trade show for handmade rugs and high-end carpets, organised by COVER—concluded on Monday afternoon after its three-day run from 13–15 September 2025. The b2b show attracted more than 400 accredited professional visitors from across the USA and beyond; attendee numbers were up more than 13% on last year’s figures.

These figures and the buoyant mood experienced at the Metropolitan Pavilion and The Altman Building during the show form a solid retaliation against the mild pre-show air of uncertainty amid the current unsettled political and trade situations unfurling in the USA, Nepal and other rug producing countries. Rug buyers serving the high-end luxury market in North America still want access to the finest woven products on the market today and these were available in droves at COVER Connect New York. 

The nine new brands for the 2025 edition appreciated the especially dedicated audience seeking a focused buying experience. Couristan is celebrating its one-hundredth anniversary with an increased focus on hand-knotted qualities; Olker was pleased to encounter the strong turn out on the East Coast following their COVER Connect debut on the West Coast at COVER Connect Las Vegas in January. Outdoor rugs were represented more strongly with specialists Via Star Rugs and Outalux exhibiting in The Altman Building’s lower level. Also new for 2025, modern hooked rugs were presented by The New England Collection. 

A few notable rug introductions from returning exhibitors included Paulig’s multi-yarn two-tone flatweaves and complex soumak weaves from Knot & Co. Commanding artist collaborations came courtesy of Wool & Silk with Paddy Cohn and Knots Rugs with Sarah Bopp and Beñat Olaberria; Zollanvari celebrated the launch of its Pacific Northwest collection by Carmen Andonian and welcomed a renowned Japanese TV personality to the show to film proceedings. Tamarian’s wonderfully witty Rug Store design formed a backdrop to various happenings over the course of the show such as the cutting and distribution of a perforated LSD-inspired rug delivered alongside its newest pieces from Nepal. 

We would like to extend our sincere thanks to the CCNY party sponsor, tise (The International Surface Event) and Label STEP for offering a hands-on weaving experience and for keeping everyone caffeinated in the Label STEP Coffee Lounge throughout the show. We’ll be sharing exhibitor interviews from the show over the coming weeks, so, stay tuned to find out what else was on show at COVER Connect New York 2025. 

 The dates for CCNY 2026 are 26–28 September 2026 and COVER Connect Las Vegas at tise happens 27–29 January 2026.