Since its founding in 1973, the Kips Bay Decorator Show House has always been an uptown affair, an Upper East Side fixture akin to the Colony Club or J.G. Melon’s. When the house relocated to the Upper West Side in 2022, the move ruffled a few feathers—Nazira Handal, the director of special events and corporate partnerships at Kips Bay, says that some longtime attendees wouldn’t even make the arduous trek across Central Park.
Consider, then, the splash that was made last year, when the 50th edition of the showhouse took place in Greenwich Village. The move was a matter of necessity—the Upper East Side townhouse Kips Bay had previously secured ended up falling through, resulting in the showhouse’s postponement from spring to fall as organizers searched for a suitable replacement. They found one, but with a twist: It was downtown.
Instead of seeing its loyal attendees balk at yet more change, Handal says the opposite happened. Attendance increased. In addition to visitors who had been coming for years, new attendees bought tickets in droves. “We saw an increase in younger visitors and families with kids,” says Handal. “It was more reflective of who you see living in that neighborhood.”
Handal says it’s hard to point to any one reason why attendance was higher than in previous years, because several major differences distinguished the 2025 event. The location was one, but it was also the house’s 50th anniversary (two years were skipped during the pandemic) and the event took place in the fall for the first time. Whatever the reason, the success of last year’s showhouse convinced Handal and the rest of the Kips Bay team that future iterations could take place anywhere in Manhattan and visitors would follow. “I think New York feels smaller post-Covid,” says Handal.
It also helps that the Kips Bay brand has expanded over the past decade, adding variations in Dallas and Palm Beach to its roster. “It’s shown us that there is a loyal following wherever we pop up,” says Handal. Kearny, New Jersey–based designer Beth Diana Smith, who has previously participated in Kips Bay, echoes Handal’s sentiment. “As long as the house is fabulous, I’ll travel to see it,” she says.
The now fall-slated showhouse, which has to date raised more than $33 million for the Kips Bay Boys and Girls Club, will return to Greenwich Village later this year, less out of an allegiance to the neighborhood (locations across the city were considered) than because the organization found a great venue: an 8,700-square-foot, 1839 Georgian brick townhouse that has been home to quite the disparate range of celebrities over the years—both composer John Philip Sousa and influencer Kylie Jenner among them. In contrast to its historic facade, the interiors are much more modern than those of previous locations. The staircase, for example, which is often a showstopper moment for participating designers, is cantilevered and lined with a glass railing. There are also exposed brick walls and minimalist floor-to-ceiling windows.
Despite the architectural differences, New York designer Jamie Drake, who also serves on the board for the Kips Bay President’s Dinner, thinks that the brief for designers remains the same. “Hosting the house downtown doesn’t infer a whole new design code; it is our always amazing roster of talent that dictates that and sets the trends,” he says.
Looking ahead, Handal says that the quest for the right venue, not a particular neighborhood, will continue to drive the Kips Bay New York location. It’s an approach that Drake thinks is indicative of the way New York society itself has evolved. “Since the inaugural house in 1973, the world has changed, and that includes where sophisticated and wealthy people live. SoHo? Tribeca? The West Village? These were unheard-of areas for the rich to reside [50 years ago].” While the event may rove around the city, Drake says that he feels confident Kips Bay will remain a platform where interior designers can explore the evolution of style. “That sense of discovery is what Kips Bay opens the doors on.”
