January 5, 2026

In this issue:   The January 5, 2026 issue of MMQB positions the new year as a forced reset for the contract furniture and workplace design industry, shaped by economic volatility, cultural friction, and a rapidly changing customer base. The lead essay examines the pending absorption of Steelcase by HNI Corporation as a defining test of scale, dealer realignment, and innovation, set against ongoing tariff instability, rising bankruptcy risk, and cautious capital spending. At the same time, the issue identifies artificial intelligence companies—led by Nvidia, OpenAI, and Anthropic—as the most important growth customers for 2026, driving office leasing and influencing how workplaces are being designed for dense collaboration, durability, and real use. Coverage also explores workplace culture tensions, early signs of office market stabilization in cities like San Francisco and Manhattan, and supporting data on tariffs, bankruptcies, container pricing, industry stocks, and the Aeron Used Chair Index, reinforcing the conclusion that 2026 will reward companies that understand who their real customers are now and design, price, and operate accordingly.