Inside Las Vegas

If you think Las Vegas became the world’s trade-show capital because it offers convention-goers myriad entertainment options after working the show floor, think again. After all, how many other cities of fewer than 20 square miles have enough hotel rooms to handle well over 100,000 visitors, as the MAGIC Marketplace draws, plus the logistics to handle a mega-show in addition to normal tourist traffic?

And, if mentioning Las Vegas in the same breath as Rodeo Drive or Fifth Avenue sounds absurd, “Sin City” is changing opinions, for Las Vegas has become a major market for high-end retailers.

The California Apparel News spoke with Erika Pope of the Las Vegas Convention & Visitors Authority about the trade-show capital that twice yearly plays host to tens of thousands of fashionistas. .

CAN: How does the city prepare for the 100,000-plus people that MAGIC and the multiple satellite shows bring in?EP: We have 250,000 to 300,000 visitors from out of town here every single day of the year, so it’s not out of the ordinary.

CAN: That’s a lot of mouths to feed.EP: I don’t have a figure, but there’s a large quantity of seafood flown in daily from all corners of the world. You can get just about anything that this planet serves up at the restaurants of Las Vegas. And we now have two global five star–rated restaurants, which is an extremely prestigious honor in the culinary world.

CAN: Then what does the Marketplace bring to the city?EP: MAGIC is a great thing for Las Vegas, because not only do we get the high-profile designers and celebrities with clothing lines, but they also have parties at our nightclubs, and of course Las Vegas is a tremendous retail area now. Shopping is a huge draw for our visitors. In fact, we know that visitors spend more on shopping than on sightseeing and shows combined, so it’s a great synergy to have MAGIC in Las Vegas.

CAN: When did Las Vegas begin to take advantage of its retail potential?EP: In the early ’90s, with the advent of the Forum Shops. Las Vegas has always had shopping venues, but the caliber and entertainment appeal of shopping came of age with the Forum Shops. It also happened to coincide with the first celebrity-chefrestaurant, Wolfgang Puck’s Spago, that also opened up in the Forum. The Forum Shops have had several phases open over the years, and we’ve gone on to have the Fashion Show Mall, which recently underwent renovation and expansion: It now has Bloomingdale’s, Nordstrom, and Saks Fifth Avenue, not to mention all the designer boutiques. And then there are properties like the Bellagio, with Via Bellagio, and Wynn actually has an in-house Ferrari/Maserati dealership.

CAN: Did Las Vegas reach a critical mass in number of visitors so that it made sense to have high-end retailers? Or did the high rollers start coming after Vegas’ family-friendly years?EP: In the late ’90s, Vegas experienced a run of higher-end development. Not just hotels and casinos, but the amenities that people for whom money is no object look for when traveling: spas, shopping, and sophisticated entertainment.

CAN: Do you know how well the Las Vegas shops of high-end retailers like Gucci and Chanel do compared to their other stores around the country?EP: Anecdotally, I have a former colleague who worked in the Forum Shops at the Guess store, and for years the Forum Shops were the highest-grossing per-square-foot retail outlets in the country, and she knew that the Guess store was the highest-grossing Guess store by far in the country.

CAN: How much annually do visitors spend in Las Vegas?EP: In 2005, the average visitor spent $136 on shopping, a 40 percent increase over two years prior.

CAN: Why did Las Vegas become the world capital for trade shows? Because of the entertainment for show attendees to amuse themselves after working?EP: The reason actually goes back to the early days of Las Vegas. 1955 is the year the Las Vegas Convention & Visitors Authority was enacted in the state legislature, because even back then there was a growing number of hotel rooms that sat empty during midweek. The idea was to target convention business to keep them full all week long. Today we have 133,000 rooms and counting, and a 90 percent occupancy rate. Convention visitors comprise 15 percent of our total visitor volume, and we’re seeking to grow that.

CAN: How much revenue do conventions bring to the city?EP: In 2005, the non-gaming economic impact of conventions was $7.6 billion.

CAN: Is MAGIC International the largest trade show held in Las Vegas?EP: It’s one of our largest, but not the largest. The International Consumer Electronics Show is projecting 140,000 people for this January. We attribute a non-gaming economic impact to our large conventions, and we know that the estimated 105,000 attendees of the Fall 2006 MAGIC show generated approximately $135 million in non-gaming economic impact.

CAN: And what about gaming? Are the fashionistas gamblers?EP: We do have evidence, based on the kind of entertainment and hospitality activities associated with the MAGIC show, that it’s a very lively entertainment and nightlife scene.

CAN: How many taxis are active during MAGIC?EP: About 2,300.

CAN: What about security?EP: Like all trade shows, MAGIC show management contracts for its own special security arrangements. We do have security force at our facility operational 24/7.

CAN: Is Las Vegas considered a high terrorist target?EP: We have received no word that we’re any higher than any other place. But one thing you can say is that Las Vegas is perhaps one of the most secure cities on the globe when you think about all of the money transactions going on on the casino floors, and there are security cameras everywhere.

CAN: So only “Ocean’s Eleven” can break in?EP: And that was a work of fiction.

Getting Around

For self-reliant, impatient types who can’t stand waiting in taxi or shuttle lines, Las Vegas’ monorail is a godsend. The only privately owned public transportation system in the country, the Las Vegas Monorail covers a four-mile route along The Strip and services 20,000 passengers each day. Though it currently services a select number of hotels on The Strip, it is a quick and cheap way (tickets are $5) for convention-goers to get to the Las Vegas Convention Center.

The news gets better: By 2011, the monorail will extend to the airport, says Ingrid Reisman, vice president of corporate communications for the Las Vegas Monorail.

The monorail’s technology is quite cutting edge: It is electric, produces no emissions, and can reach speeds of 50 mph. “It performs as well if not better than any other rail system in the country,” says Reisman. “And, considering that the system was custom-built for Las Vegas and therefore never tested or operated anywhere else in the world, the fact that the system has operated nearly flawlessly for two years is testament to its technical and operational sophistication.”

The Las Vegas Monorail offers several special promotions for conventioneers, such as bulk ticket sales. Visit lvmonorail.com for more information.

Getting There

If you’ve seen the movie “Honeymoon in Vegas,” you know that parachuting in in Elvis garb is a quick and efficient way to enter the city. Of course, in a state that tolerates nearly everything else, it’s not legal.

Instead, most people fly into McCarran International Airport, “a pretty user-friendly airport,” says McCarran spokesman Chris Jones.

When leaving Vegas, budget 90 minutes before your departure time to navigate the airport’s security checkpoints. And when arriving in Vegas, expect long taxi lines to get to your hotel. “Renting a car may be easier,” suggests Jones.

Over the summer, carry-on restrictions for liquids became very strict. They’ve since been relaxed, and the formula to remember is 3-1-1: For liquids such as hand lotion, toothpaste, or shampoo, the substance must be stored in a container that is three ounces or less. This in turn must be stored in a one-quart zip-lock bag, and only one is allowed per passenger.

As for potable liquids such as water bottles, nothing can be taken through the security checkpoint, though potables can be purchased inside the airport and brought onboard the plane.

To keep up on the latest rules for air travel, visit the Transportation Security Administration (tsa.gov), and for the airport itself, visit mccarran.com.