About us · 25 years · since 2001
A Port Stephens family, doing this the way we'd do it for our own home.
Nelson Bay Carpet Court is owned and run by Todd and Maayan Hollingworth — locals, parents, neighbours. We've been finishing homes across Port Stephens since 2001. Forever homes, beach houses, weekenders, rentals. Same care every time, whether it's your first house or your fifth.
HOW IT STARTED
Todd was on the tools for years before he was behind the counter.
Long before there was a showroom, Todd was a carpet and floor layer — kneeling on subfloors, finishing skirtings, listening to homeowners explain what they wanted from a room. He laid for over a decade across Port Stephens and the Hunter, working for installers and big retailers. Two things became obvious. First, most of the advice customers got in showrooms was wrong — well-meaning, but wrong. Sales staff who'd never laid a floor recommended products that wouldn't survive the install they were quoting. Customers paid for it later, not the salesperson. Second, the local market needed someone who'd been on the tools and would still be standing behind the install ten years later. Not a layer-for-hire — a business with a name, a showroom, a phone number that gets answered. In 2001, Nelson Bay Carpet Court opened on Shearwater Drive. We've been here ever since.
WHAT SETS US APART
We give the advice we'd give our own family.
There are three things we do differently. They're not marketing claims — they're how the business actually runs, every day, regardless of who's watching.
Every floor and blind has trade-offs. Carpets shade. Laminate isn't waterproof. Engineered timber colour-changes in the sun. SmartDrape isn't the cheapest option. We'll tell you the limitations of whatever you're looking at — before you spend a cent — because finding out after install is what costs customers money and trust. Honest answer, every time, even when it loses us the sale.
Most stores will lay a thicker board over an uneven, damp or damaged subfloor and hope you don't notice. That's the industry shortcut, and it shows up two or three years later as bubbling, cupping, gaps, or click-lock failures. We don't do it. If your subfloor needs work, we'll tell you, quote it, and do it properly. That's the only way to guarantee the install.
This is the line we hang our reputation on. Other layers come and go — they're in town one year and gone the next. We've been on Shearwater Drive since 2001. When you pay us for the whole job, the whole job is on us. One purchase, one number, one team responsible.
THE OTHER HALF OF OUR LIVES
We live here, too.
Maayan grew up in Port Stephens. Todd's been here twenty-five years. Between us we've been to school here, raised kids here, played sport here, eaten at every café in town. You'll see us at Coles, at the beach, at the kids' soccer, at the weekend markets. That matters because when you buy from us, you're not buying from a chain that closes its doors when the franchise pulls out. You're buying from neighbours. Our kids have grown up around the showroom. Our team — Kianne, Sean and Aiden — are all locals too. This is a Port Stephens business in every meaningful sense.
SO WHEN YOU WALK INTO OUR STORE
Here's what to expect.
- You'll be offered a cuppa.
- You can wander the showroom at your own pace. No one will hover. No one will hard-sell you. If you have a question, ask. If you just want to look, look.
- We'll happily lend you samples to take home. Hold them up in your light. Sleep on the decision. We'd rather you got the right product than the most expensive one.
- If you want a free in-home measure, we'll book one. We'll come to you, properly measure the space, talk through the options on site, leave you a written quote. No pressure, no follow-up calls badgering you. When you're ready, you'll let us know.
THE TEAM
We're not the only ones who work here.
Day to day, you'll meet Kianne (warm, knows the product range inside out, handles most of the showroom and our social media), Sean (installs across Port Stephens, knows every street and every house style), and Aiden (a blind installer on the team). You can follow what we're working on over on Instagram — finished rooms, behind-the-scenes, and what we're loving this week.
Follow us on Instagram — @nelsonbay_carpetcourtA little inspiration
What the right window furnishings can do
From our premium partner Norman's design library — the Dromana house tour. Supplier footage for inspiration, not one of our local installs.
Come and say hello.
Pop into the Shearwater Drive showroom, or book a free in-home measure.
Book a free measure