Las Vegas gift show report

press release

World Market Center Las Vegas’ Inaugural GIFT + HOME™ Show Exceeds Expectations with Record Number of Gift Buyers in Attendance

56 percent Increase in Gift Buyers Compared with Previous Year; Explosive Growth in First Time to Market Attendees

(LAS VEGAS)—September 09, 2010—Continuing to build momentum in becoming the West’s premier destination for the gift industry, World Market Center Las Vegas’ inaugural GIFT + HOME™ show, which ran in tandem with the Summer 2010 Las Vegas Market, was an overwhelming success, attracting 35 percent more gift buyers than the Winter 2010 Market and increasing buyer attendance by 56 percent compared with the previous year.

The GIFT + HOME show, the first-ever gift-focused event inside of Las Vegas Market, provided market attendees with access to a growing number of leading gift and home décor manufacturers. The show featured more than 350 temporary and permanent showrooms encompassing more than one million square feet of dedicated space. According to post-market figures, 59 percent of attending gift buyers were first time attendees to Las Vegas Market, marking an 85 percent increase in first-time gift buyers and a 49 percent increase in first-time accessory buyer attendance.

“The success of our inaugural GIFT + HOME show brings us another step closer to realizing our goal of becoming a ‘total home’ market where a diverse mix of categories are represented,” said President and Chief Executive Officer, World Market Center Las Vegas, Robert Maricich. “The GIFT + HOME and specialty store sector continues to expand at Las Vegas Market, now representing more than 20 percent of our total business. Our mission is to build upon this success and continue to grow the GIFT + HOME show by attracting new exhibitors, providing fresh and forward-thinking programming for attendees and offering our buyers an experience they will not find anywhere else.”

Meanwhile, other highlights of the August GIFT + HOME show included the addition of more than 60 new-to-market exhibitors, including leading manufacturers Russ Berrie, Demdaco, Yankee Candle, Natural Life, Peking Handicraft, Melrose International, Couronne, Mercana,
as well as many others representing a wide range of categories such as seasonal, floral, decorative accessories and general gift. Additionally, holding the GIFT + HOME show in conjunction with the Summer 2010 Las Vegas Market, provided added value to retailers, exhibitors and buyers, allowing for vast crossover potential among the existing industry sectors.

First time exhibitor Ferne Bork of Yankee Candle said, “We are really impressed. The facility is easy to shop and the people have all been incredible and helpful. We enjoyed seeing many customers and many soon-to-be customers we met for the first time.”

Richard Wood, director of sales for leading gift manufacturer Russ Berrie, commented on their participation in the first time Gift+Home show. “The market has surpassed our expectations and we love this venue. We see this market continuing to grow and we will be moving to a larger showroom. Our customers have been talking about Las Vegas; we have seen our customers here as well as opened new accounts. This is definitely the place to be. We’ve seen more traffic here than expected and we are seeing a significant number of international buyers as well.”

Another new to market exhibitor, Lisa Robin of Couronne Company, said, “We wrote almost all new accounts and there are very good quality buyers at World Market Center.”

Buyers were equally enthusiastic with their first Las Vegas Market experience and came from across the country. As expected, GIFT + HOME had a strong west coast pull with 63 percent of buyers hailing from the west, 16 percent from southwest and 10 percent were from the midwest. From the east coast, 7 percent visited from the southeast and 4 percent attended from the northeast.

“We are pleasantly surprised with our first visit to Las Vegas Market and bought more product than we expected.  We found some new gift items and ordered from existing vendors.  We need a viable gift show for the west coast and hope Las Vegas Market continues to grow,” said Dave Dorsey, owner Dorsey’s Hallmark in Oakhurst, Calif. and member of Palmer Marketing.

Patti Bagnato, owner of Fiori's in Los Gatos, CA said “We shopped until we dropped and found many new lines and well-displayed showrooms.  World Market Center is becoming a buying destination for Gift.  The services offered by this well-run market made our shopping experience very enjoyable and buyer-friendly.”

The next GIFT + HOME at Las Vegas Market will be held January 24-28, 2011. Attendees can book discounted rooms online.