Dallas gift market round-up

June Market: New Product Categories, Growing Temporaries & Inspiration

– Total Home & Gift Market sets the tone for the summer show season –


By Dallas Market Center
DALLAS – June 30, 2011 – Dallas Market Center, the world’s most complete wholesale marketplace, today announced that its recent Total Home & Gift Market, held June 22-28, attracted more buyers, included new temporary resources, and offered greater inspiration to buyers from around the world. Market highlights included: attendees from 50 states and 41 countries; the largest FINDS Dallas Temp Show since June 2008; and an increase in overall attendance, including a double-digit increase in international buyers.

“The relatively strong regional economy attracted more buyers and many new vendors to market,” said Bill Winsor, president and CEO, Dallas Market Center. “Exhibitors reported larger orders and a sense of optimism about the second half of the year, specifically in the gift industry where stores were stocking up for fourth quarter selling.”

During Market, IV Pole Pals and its founder, Deric Salser, were named The Next Big Thing winner on Saturday, June 25. IV Pole Pals are cheerful decorations that attach onto IV poles adding something special for patients needing their spirits lifted. The “pals” come in many shapes, sizes and themes and snap on and off any standard IV pole. Salser was inspired by his 8-year-old daughter, Alexandra, who was diagnosed with an incurable disease called LCHAD. To take the fear out of needing an IV, Salser’s wife crafted homemade decorations and attached them to Alexandra's IV pole. The decorations were the inspiration for the product line that now consists of more than 40 different “pals”. IV Pole Pals now has a permanent home at Dallas Market Center in Diverse Marketing, World Trade Center #421. For more information on IV Pole Pals visit www.ivpolepals.com. (Search the blog for a photo and write up.)

Also, Dallas Design Supply officially opened its doors to buyers during June Market, holding a ribbon cutting ceremony on Thursday, June 23. The store is a 20,000-square-foot resource for seasonal décor, floral containers and supplies, candles, ribbon, party supplies and permanent botanicals. The Dallas Design Supply customer base includes retailers, design professionals (florists, event planners, designers, and visual merchandisers) and qualified consumers such as charity organizers and educators. Items in Dallas Design Supply are available for immediate purchase, which sets it apart from other showrooms on campus. For more information visit www.dallasdesignsupply.com.

Another highlight of the Total Home & Gift Market was the Santa Fe International Folk Art Market Collection. Artists from around the world traveled to Dallas to show their products before heading to the world’s largest folk art market in Santa Fe, N.M. Each artist makes a difference for their families and communities through the sale of their one-of-a-kind handmade products. Sales of the artists’ goods during Market exceeded expectations and their presence created an unmatchable ambience in The Grand Pavilion of the Trade Mart.

June Market also marked the debut of the new product category Handmade & Vintage FINDS which featured independent creators and designers presenting home, gift and jewelry/fashion accessories from regional and national designers using many techniques and supplies to make their products. On Thursday, June 23, Dallas Market Center, along with Residential Lighting magazine, announced the winners of the second annual Showroom of the Year Awards. The event, hosted in the lighting expansion area of the Trade Mart, recognized the best lighting retailers in North America in six different categories. Approximately 200 guests gathered to enjoy hors d'oeuvres, cocktails and celebrate the winners.
There were dozens of educational seminars held throughout June Market led by industry insiders including: Rawlins Gilliland, retail expert; J Schwanke, AIFD, PFCI, AAF and floral design expert; Mary Liz Curtin, author of A Shopkeeper Manual and owner of Leon & Lulu; Leatrice Eiseman, color specialist; and Roy Prevost, motivational expert.

Make plans now to attend the next Dallas Total Home & Gift Market being held September 10-12, 2011. Attendees may contact the Dallas Market Center’s in-house travel agency, Market Travel®, for substantial travel and hotel discounts by calling 1-800-DAL-MKTS. To keep up-to-date on market information visit Dallas Market Center on Facebook and Twitter.

About Dallas Market Center
Founded in 1957, Dallas Market Center is the world’s most complete wholesale marketplace. Within its
marketplace of more than five million square feet, retailers from around the globe source products
ranging from home furnishings, gifts, decorative accessories and lighting to textiles, fashion accessories
and men's, western, women's and children's apparel. With more than 50 markets each year attended by
more than 200,000 retail buyers from all 50 states and 78 countries, Dallas Market Center offers
hundreds of events and seminars geared toward helping retailers expand business and increase profits.
As a result, more than $8 billion in estimated wholesale transactions are conducted annually within the Dallas Market Center complex. The Dallas Market Center website is available at www.dallasmarketcenter.com.