Brentano Honored for Innovative Hospitality Textile

Chicago, IL, June 09, 2010 --(PR.com)-- For the third year in a row, Brentano traveled to Las Vegas to exhibit a diverse and exciting range of hospitality textiles. Also for the third consecutive year, Brentano returned home to Chicago with an IIDA/HD Product Award for Hard Candy, a unique and innovative new upholstery. In its 14th year, the Product Design Competition, which is cosponsored by International Design Association (IIDA) as well as Hospitality Design Magazine, is renown for recognizing designers and manufacturers for excellence in product design, with an emphasis on innovation, function, and aesthetic advancements in the hospitality industry.

While Brentano’s previous winners (draperies Intersection and Rendezvous, and upholstery De-Vine) have all been marked by innovation, this year’s winner Hard Candy is truly a first-of-its-kind for the interior design industry. Created by coating a linen and rayon ground with a thin layer of vibrant polyurethane, Hard Candy combines the natural texture of linen with the sleek hand of polyurethane. It’s 12 colors range from classic neutrals to sweet, cheerful colors, all of which work well in hospitality applications. Additionally, Hard Candy can be used as wall panels and also passes over 100,000 double rubs.

Hard Candy was featured at this year’s booth, seen in a deep chocolate upholstering a tabletop as well as samples shown in lively colors like lemon lime, blue mint, bubblegum, and tangerine. This use of sophisticated neutrals with pops of color was the theme behind Brentano’s 2010 HD Expo booth, which created a polished yet fun way of showing texture and color.

Brentano Design Director Iris Wang said she was particularly pleased to be recognized by the contest this year, as Hard Candy is not only a “truly unique product,” but also very much a hospitality product, combining beauty with functionality as it is easy to clean and durable.

Wang was also impressed with the amount of visitors to the booth and says she was busy speaking with people actively working on projects, heads of design, and owners of companies, all of which bodes well for hopes of a recovering A&D industry.

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