The Decoration & Design Building sits at 979 Third Avenue, between East 58th and East 59th Streets in Manhattan. Everyone in the industry calls it the D&D. It has served the trade since 1965, runs 18 floors and roughly 570,000 square feet, and houses more than 100 showrooms representing over 3,000 manufacturers. Fabric houses, furniture workshops, lighting studios, carpet makers, and kitchen and bath specialists all sell under one roof, and they sell to interior designers and architects rather than to the public.
Here is the part most people get wrong: to-the-trade does not mean you are barred at the door. You can walk into the lobby. Most showrooms will let you look. The restriction is on buying, not browsing. Nothing in the building carries a retail price tag, and the sales staff write orders for trade accounts, not for walk-ins. A homeowner gets product out of the D&D one of three ways: through a designer, through the building’s own consumer buying program, or through a letter of introduction from a designer they already work with.
This guide covers how the model works, which showrooms do what, and how to plan a visit that produces results instead of frustration. It is part of our ongoing Design Scene coverage, and it pairs with our guide to interior design on the Upper East Side, where the D&D anchors the neighborhood’s trade economy.
Key takeaways
- The D&D Building at 979 Third Avenue holds more than 100 showrooms on 18 floors, about 570,000 square feet in total.
- It is a to-the-trade building. Showrooms quote net prices to designers and architects with trade accounts and do not sell retail.
- Homeowners can browse most showrooms but cannot buy directly. Purchases route through a designer or the building’s Shop the Building program.
- Shop the Building lets consumers without a designer buy a limited number of items at trade pricing plus an administrative fee.
- Hours run weekdays, typically 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. Most showrooms close on weekends.
- The Assouline bookstore on the lobby floor is fully open to the public, no credentials required.
How the trade model actually works for a homeowner
The showrooms in the D&D are wholesale operations. They quote net prices, meaning the discounted figure a design professional pays. The designer then charges the client that net price plus a markup, or passes the net price through and bills a flat fee or hourly rate instead. Showrooms also lend memo samples, the large fabric and wallpaper cuttings designers take out on loan, and they tag orders with sidemarks so a single project’s purchases stay organized across a dozen vendors. None of those services are offered to the general public.
So what can you do on your own? You can ride the elevators and look. Designer Lara Michelle, who shops the building for her own clients, notes that the public can browse informally but will get limited help: no pricing, no detailed specs, and only occasionally a tear sheet or sample. Write down pattern names, colorway numbers, and suite numbers as you go. That list becomes useful the moment a professional enters the picture.
There are three legitimate routes to an actual purchase. First, hire a designer. Any established firm on our list of Manhattan interior designers holds accounts across the building and can order anything in it. Second, use the building’s own Shop the Building program, which exists precisely for consumers who are not working with a designer. The D&D’s Director of Design consults on your project, and you can buy a limited number of items at the trade price plus what the building describes as a modest administrative fee. Inquiries go to Dallas Bonds at dbonds@ddbuilding.com. Third, if you already work with a designer, they can write a letter on company letterhead authorizing you to visit specific showrooms unaccompanied, naming the date, the showrooms, and the services those showrooms should provide. Not every showroom honors unaccompanied visits, so the building advises checking ahead.
The showrooms, grouped by what they do best
Textiles and wallcoverings are the building’s deepest bench. Kravet, in business since 1918, fills Suite 1202 with fabric, trim, and carpet lines. Schumacher (Suite 832, founded 1889) and Scalamandré (Suite 1002, founded 1929) are the two American heritage houses. Pierre Frey (Suite 1611) and Clarence House (Suite 205) cover the French tradition; Lee Jofa shares Suite 234 with Brunschwig & Fils for the English and Continental archives. Romo (Suite 808), Dedar (Suite 1009), and Osborne & Little (Suite 520) round out the European houses, and Loro Piana Interiors (Suite 820) sells the same cashmere and merino the fashion house is known for, cut for upholstery. For walls, Phillip Jeffries (Suite 1115) leads in natural textured wallcoverings, Arte (Suite 911) in statement papers, and Gracie (Suite 1411) in hand-painted scenic panels.
Furniture and lighting concentrate on a few anchor tenants. HOLLY HUNT spreads across Suites 503 and 605 with furniture, lighting, textiles, and leather. A. Rudin (Suite 1201) builds upholstery in California; Dakota Jackson (Suite 501) has made custom furniture since 1970; Rose Tarlow Melrose House (Suite 1616) carries the Los Angeles designer’s furniture and fabrics. Fortuny (Suite 1632) remains the only place in the building to buy the Venetian house’s fabrics and silk lighting. Outdoor specialists cluster here too: Dedon (Suite 720), Gloster (Suite 1601), and Kettal (Suite 333) all keep full showrooms.
Rugs and carpet hold an entire tier of the directory. Stark (Suite 1102) has supplied designers since 1938 and is the name most civilians recognize. Patterson Flynn (Suite 632) dates to 1943, Scott Group Studio (Suite 411) weaves custom work in Michigan, and Marc Phillips (Suite 211) and Carini Lang (Suite 1001) cover modern, antique, and hand-knotted territory.
Kitchen and bath are smaller but serious. Christopher Peacock, the cabinetry maker whose kitchens became a shorthand for the genre, keeps a showroom on the fifth floor of the building’s annex. THG Paris (Suite 1206) shows French bath fittings, Grande Central Showroom on the second floor handles plumbing and fixtures, and Nella Vetrina (Suite 805) imports Italian vanities and tile. Infrastructure brands fill the gaps: Benjamin Moore (Suite 421), Lutron lighting controls (Suite 319), and Forbes & Lomax switch plates (Suite 1207).
| Showroom | Suite | Specialty |
|---|---|---|
| HOLLY HUNT | 503 / 605 | Furniture, lighting, textiles, leather |
| Kravet | 1202 | Fabrics, trim, carpet, furniture (since 1918) |
| Scalamandré | 1002 | Fabrics and wallcoverings (since 1929) |
| Schumacher | 832 | Fabrics and wallcoverings (since 1889) |
| Pierre Frey | 1611 | French fabrics and furnishings |
| Lee Jofa & Brunschwig & Fils | 234 | English and Continental fabric archives |
| Phillip Jeffries | 1115 | Natural and textured wallcoverings |
| Stark | 1102 | Carpet and rugs (since 1938) |
| Fortuny | 1632 | Venetian fabrics and silk lighting |
| Loro Piana Interiors | 820 | Cashmere, wool, and linen for interiors |
| Christopher Peacock | Annex, 5th floor | Kitchen and bath cabinetry |
| THG Paris | 1206 | Luxury bath fixtures |
How to visit
The building keeps weekday business hours. Individual showrooms set their own, but 9 a.m. to 5 p.m., Monday through Friday, is the standard; HOLLY HUNT and Romo both post exactly those hours and close on weekends. Some smaller showrooms see visitors by appointment only, so call before making a trip for one specific vendor. There is no admission fee and no credential check at the door for browsing, though showroom staff will ask who you are working with once you request anything beyond a look.
If you come with your designer, let them run the room. They know which lines fit the budget and which mills are quoting twelve-week lead times. If you come alone, treat the visit as research: photograph tags where staff permit it, record pattern names and suite numbers, and bring the list to your designer or to the Shop the Building consultation afterward.
The building also runs seasonal markets, with the next Fall Market scheduled for October 8, 2026. These are billed to the trade: panel talks, product launches, and open showroom floors aimed at working professionals. A consumer is better served by booking through the buying program than by trying to crash a market day. The one corner of the building with no rules at all is Assouline on the lobby floor, a bookstore stocked with art, architecture, and design titles, open to anyone who walks in.
Frequently asked questions
Can I buy at the D&D Building without a designer?
Yes, within limits. The Shop the Building program lets consumers who are not working with a designer purchase a restricted number of items at trade pricing plus an administrative fee, with consulting from the building’s Director of Design. Email dbonds@ddbuilding.com to start. For a whole-home project, hiring a designer remains the more practical route.
Is the D&D Building open on weekends?
Generally no. The showrooms keep trade hours, Monday through Friday, roughly 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. A handful will book weekend appointments, but assume the building is dark on Saturday and Sunday unless a specific showroom confirms otherwise.
How is the D&D Building different from a furniture store?
Almost nothing in the building is sold off the floor. Orders are custom: fabric cut to your yardage, furniture built to your spec, rugs woven to your dimensions, with lead times that run weeks to months. A retail store sells inventory you can take home this afternoon. If that is what you need, see our guide to furniture stores in NYC instead.
