Las Vegas Shift: New Players, Smaller Shows, More Venues

LAS VEGAS—Attendees at the recent round of apparel and sourcing trade shows here found a much-changed environment, with new shows, new venues and a new focus on business.

The most striking change was the now-vacant South Hall, which used to house Sourcing at MAGIC, S.L.A.T.E. at MAGIC and Streetwear. Also striking was the main hall of the Las Vegas Convention Center, which previously housed a fashion-show runway and oversize video screens projecting catwalk highlights and trend information for attendees of the MAGIC Marketplace.

On opening day, there were still long lines of buyers at registration and at Starbucks, but people quietly collected their badges and coffees and proceeded directly to the trade-show floor.

And that’s where the action was, as buyers from majors, including Macy’s and JCPenney, and specialty retail chains such as M.Fredric navigated among the MAGIC Marketplace’s many shows, including the longstanding MAGIC Man, WWDMAGIC and MAGIC Kids shows, sophomore shows Ecollection and S.L.A.T.E. at MAGIC, and new shows Premium at MAGIC, Premium at WWDMAGIC, and the nascent MAGIA.

This season, the Project Global Trade Show, owned by MAGIC parent company MAGIC International, scaled back its exhibitor lineup, prompting several longtime Project exhibitors to scramble to find other venues. Most ended up in MAGIC’s new Premium shows. Some opted for MAGIC’s sister show Pooltradeshow, also held at the Las Vegas Convention Center. Some companies moved to one of the satellite trade shows running concurrently, including MRket, ENKVegas, Guild and Capsule.

Indeed, there were more venues than ever for apparel and accessories buyers. Those included the Off-Price Specialist Show, Accessories The Show, Moda Las Vegas, CurveNV, Boutique Lingerie, When I Move You Move, Women’s Wear in Nevada (WWIN) and KIDShow.

For those looking to source production, there was the ASAP Global Sourcing Show, which returned to the Sands Expo and Convention Center, and Sourcing at MAGIC, which moved from the convention center’s South Hall to the Hilton Convention Center, adjacent to MAGIC.

The talk at MAGIC was the smaller pool of exhibitors and the new layout, which moved the Streetwear and S.L.A.T.E. shows from the now-vacant South Hall to the Central Hall, between the new Premium at MAGIC show and Pooltradeshow.

On Feb. 17, MAGIC’s opening day, buyers crowded the aisles of Premium, where premium-denim and T-shirt vendors were sandwiched between larger booths housing brands such as Levi’s, Schott NYC and Kangol.

“We were happy with the response we got [on opening day],” said Chris Horsfield, vice president of product development for Schott NYC, a nearly 100-year-old outerwear company that was one of the many that moved from Project to Premium at MAGIC. “We were busy nearly all day, and we don’t necessarily expect that.”

But Horsfield said traffic dropped off dramatically by the second day, when Project opened. Horsfield said he and Schott Chief Operating Officer Jason Schott and Don King, the company’s vice president of sales, fielded comments from retailers who were surprised by the smaller size of the show.

Many said they could walk the entire show in half a day, and some said they could see many of the same exhibitors at regional shows, Horsfield said.

Ben Sherman, the U.K.-founded brand now owned by Atlanta-based Oxford Industries, also moved from Project, but instead of trying out the new Premium section, the company opted to show at Pool. “We did not want to take a chance on the new, improved MAGIC until we walk it,” said company representative Dana Dynamite. “You don’t want to be a guinea pig.”

Similarly, Pool exhibitor Tyler Ramsey, president of Anaheim, Calif.–based label Idylle, said business was brisk the first day, with meetings with buyers from Metropark and Dillard’s. Ramsey said he thought traffic was even slightly higher than the August show’s.

There were more than 3,000 exhibitors at MAGIC, according to Chris DeMoulin, MAGIC International president and executive vice president of the Advanstar Fashion Group.

“There has been a lot of anxiety about the economy, but everyone is here to do business,” DeMoulin said. Still, he conceded there were fewer exhibitors this season than in previous years and that some companies opted to show in smaller booths this season.

Many attendees assumed the show was dramatically smaller because the South Hall was empty, but DeMoulin said that was not the case. Instead, he said, the show space was better merchandised to fit more exhibitors. The new format allows retailers to more easily “shop between categories,” he said.

And while some attendees questioned whether Project would eventually move to the South Hall, DeMoulin declined to comment on any specifics for the hall’s future use.

Exhibitors at many of MAGIC’s satellite shows reported strong traffic—particularly for those shows that opened before MAGIC and Project. New location, format for Project

In addition to a trimmed-down exhibitor list, Project bowed in a new location at the Mandalay Bay Convention Center (which housed the New York–based trade show when it first debuted in Las Vegas in 2005). The show opened on Feb. 18 at noon with an exhibitor list that included 7 For All Mankind, Chip & Pepper and Trina Turk.

Howe designer Jade Howe said the floundering economy has helped focus his and other brands, many of which are debuting their streamlined and business-minded collections at Project. “I was operating a fantasy-based business,” he said. “Now, with the economic situation, I had to evolve the collection in a more practical direction. That doesn’t mean boring; it means we’ve kept the sensibility that resonates with our customer, but we’re taking a more practical approach to what we offer and who we sell to.”

For Fall 2009, Howe cut its SKUs down to about 60 from more than 100. “Rather than making pieces that only sell to a few select stores, we’re making pieces that work in every market,” Howe said.

A new $36 T-shirt program that marries Howe’s graphics with a lower price point is meant to appeal to a wider range of retailers than the brand has targeted in the past. “That’s what the market is willing to pay; that’s what we’ll make,” he observed.

Even as Howe maneuvers his brand to weather the storm, the designer takes shots at those who helped create the mess. A new button-down shirt inspired by the classic pin-striped banker’s shirt features bondage-inspired straps and punk styling. “We’re keeping our humor,” Howe said.

Huy Dang, owner of The Standard Showroom in Los Angeles, brought a handful of men’s and women’s brands to Project. “To look at it, the show doesn’t seem smaller, but when you walk it, it becomes obvious that the show is much more edited. This is the best first day I’ve ever seen at the show. I think it is a good start,” Dang said.

The showroom owner expected buyers to be conservative in their buys, but some had ventured to more novelty pieces, such as printed tops in bright colors or pieces with embellishment.

“Project has been great. Our brands are definitely working the margins because we all have to stay alive. I have been pleasantly surprised, though, by how buyers are buying,” she said.

Full coverage of all the Las Vegas trade shows will appear in next week’s issue.