CALHOUN, GA – Mannington Commercial recently announced the launch of the second year of its tx:style design challenge.
Designers with less than seven years of professional experience are invited to upload designs for a new commercial carpet collection to be manufactured by Mannington Commercial. Finalists in the competition will win $3,000 each; an all expenses paid trip to NeoCon® 2010; and will work with Mannington’s design team to develop their concepts into carpet. The grand prize winner will be chosen by open online voting by the design community, with the winner awarded $7,500 in total prize money and a full product collection.
In year one, 440 entries were submitted, and 6,000 designers cast nearly half a million votes to choose the winner.
“The entry site is simple to use, and puts the emphasis on the creative concepts. The whole world could immediately view, vote, and give feedback on our ideas,” says designer Meagan Webb, winner of last year’s challenge. “And in the time since my design was chosen, it's been a designer's dream, opening doors into the ability to be involved in product development—which is something many designers never have a chance to do.”
Any architect or designer with a Web connection can upload their designs, view and rank now, at http://manningtoncommercial.com/txstyle, Mannington’s online design community. In addition to the annual design challenge, the tx:style community hosts a worldwide mood board where designers share inspiration and monthly mini-contests, which this year have sent designers on all expense paid trips to Greenbuild and chosen new colors for Mannington’s line of environmentally smart wall base.
Shirin Askari, from season six of Project Runway, drew parallels between the show and tx:style. “The design challenge is your chance to have your design showcased on a national stage. You will compete head-to-head with other designers and architects for a chance to have your carpet design turned into a full product collection.”
“Tx:style is all about inspiration, connecting with designers in new ways and—ultimately—giving the design community what they want,” says Natalie Jones, Mannington’s vice president for commercial brand development and creative product. “We can’t wait to see the new ideas, fresh thinking and great designs that young designers will share this year.”
Find tx:style, along with Mannington’s Best of NeoCon Award winning Virtual Library, smart sustainable products and other choices that work for commercial products at http://manningtoncommercial.com.