The Las Vegas Market has a few changes in store for its upcoming summer edition, such as starting on a Sunday (July 27) and running through Thursday (July 31). Key highlights include sustained growth in the permanent and temporary furniture, gift, and home décor exhibitors as well as new and expanded categories.
“Las Vegas Market is continuing to enhance and refine the market experience for both buyers and suppliers as we enter the second year of a three-phase strategic plan to establish ourselves as the leading cross-category market serving the furniture, home décor, and gift industries,” says Scott Eckman, chief marketing & strategy officer of International Market Centers (IMC). “For July, we expect to continue the gains we’ve made over the past 18 months by expanding the depth and breadth of furniture, gift, and home décor offerings and by continuing our sharp upward trajectory in attendance.”
New companies and expanded showrooms will be noticeable in virtually every category, with record numbers of new gift and home décor vendors. In addition to existing resources, there will be new categories such as specialty tabletop, lifestyle merchandise, fashion accessories, and artisanal crafts. Between the expansions and additions to both the permanent and temporary presentations, there will be more than 100 new resources this summer.
Among the new exhibitors at the upcoming market are: Colonial Tin Works; Couleur Nature; Honey & Me; Kalaty Rug Corp; Lunares; SABRE; Thompson’s Candles; and Vest & Associates. These newcomers join existing tenants who are expanding or relocating this summer: Giftcraft; Roman, Inc.; and Waterford Wedgwood Royal Doulton (WWRD).
Las Vegas Market is considered to be the only major furniture market in the Western U.S. as well as the largest bedding market in the country. Recent additions in the furniture category include: Ace Bayou; Amisco; Barcalounger; CDI; Chairtech; Copeland Furniture; Cristo Rey; Décor-Rest; England, a La-Z-Boy Company; Huntington; LH Imports; Natuzzi; Oios Metals; Palatial; Tvilum; Vaughan; and Violino.
The Temporary exhibits will be bolstered by the addition of two categories: FIRST, which spotlights first time to market products, providing buyers with the opportunity to find fresh, creative, and unique resources across all categories; and COUTURE, which offers a unique presentation of artist/designer/maker products, specially created to offer one-of-a-kind selections for immediate delivery.
At the same time, temporary categories – FASHION, GIFT, GLOBAL, and MADE -are being combined to create a more seamless shopping experience. The GLOBAL segment has been combined with MADE to focus on domestic and international handcrafted, artisanal, and designer-created products such as ceramics, pottery, home décor, letterpress, apparel, jewelry, and fairly traded products as well as a juried collection of merchandise. The FASHION assortment of lifestyle-oriented merchandise will be combined with the GIFT collection to offer a variety of unique specialty items including garden, plush, toy, seasonal, decorative gifts, spa, souvenir, inspirational, resort specialty, jewelry, accessories, and apparel.
Beyond product resources, the Las Vegas Market will also host a dynamic series of complimentary educational sessions that address topics such as in-store marketing, display and merchandising, social media, and mobile marketing. Among the special programs on tap are: an exclusive preview of the hottest trends in home furnishings hosted by a star-studded designer panel; the annual Gift for Life fundraising party; First Look, a fast track presentation to new home furnishings and gift products being introduced at market; and Design Camp, a two-day “designer boot camp” hosted by celebrity interior designers and entrepreneurs Lori Dennis and Kelli Ellis.
Attendees will also enjoy an array of market amenities and hospitality events throughout the market, including free breakfasts, complimentary happy hours, and more. Additional amenities include fully equipped Internet lounges, complimentary shuttle to/from host hotels, free parking in an on-site parking garage, and convenient cafés and food kiosks. Early bird hotel reservations, with very low rates for both nearby downtown hotels and Las Vegas Strip properties, can be made online at www.LasVegasMarket.com/hotels, or through Connections Housing at (855) 255-4462 or (702) 476-6976.
July marks the first Summer Las Vegas Market to feature a Sunday to Thursday date pattern. The date shift was successfully introduced in January at the winter Las Vegas Market to better serves retailers’ need for a weekend shopping day and also accommodates Friday travel plans.
