Off Price Show Gets Fresh!
New Website for Magazine Plus Growing Interest from Boutiques & Other Fashionistas Make Off Price the Place to Be This August
During the cautious retail market of the last couple years, buyers have been under a lot of pressure to seek undiscovered alternatives to bring their margins back up and breathe new life into their stores.
For many boutiques and specialty concepts, the Off Price Specialist Show has been that undiscovered alternative. The Off Price Show is a rare exhibition of 1,200+ booths and 500 vendors of closeouts, ranging from popular lower-price-point goods to top designer apparel. Some boutique owners admitted to attending out of desperation in search of deals on (20%–70%) below-wholesale clothing on yesterday’s fashions but were pleasantly surprised by the quality of branded and non-branded apparel that was trending in the current market.
“Just look at the TJ Maxx ad campaign tag line, ’where fashionistas become maxxinistas’ and you know that the gap between fashion forward and off price has narrowed,” said Don Browne, Head of Marketing & Publishing for the show.
Now that the market is experiencing an economic thaw after a better Holiday season than in 2008, more traditional retailers and boutique buyers are signing up for the Off Price Show. They are finding terrific branded and non-branded values in below wholesale accessories & handbags, dresses, denims, tops, footwear and several other categories.
“There is a boutique coming from Canada that was reviewed [online] as ’keeping their store as fresh as any current fashion magazine,’” Browne reports. “It’s the same way we feel about the Off Price Show and our growing importance to retailers looking to serve a more value-driven consumer.”
“We are in the immediate-goods business,” said David Lapidos, a retired jobber who was recently named the show’s Executive Vice President. “So the real hard news of the industry is the DEALS our jobbers have in stock NOW. Reporting the deals in this medium is an invaluable service to vendors and retailers alike.”
The promotion of Lapidos is part of a new strategy on the part of show management to proactively leverage the Off Price’s extraordinary growth over the past three years in order to continue expanding into new markets. According to Stephen Krogulski, CEO for Off Price, “We want to maximize opportunities while the coals are hot, and David’s more pronounced role will be pivotal in helping us reach new audiences and forge more meaningful partnerships with the key players in the industry.”
Off Price is already the largest show of its kind in the apparel industry, but the show management wants to reach the thousands of more merchandisers who don’t source the show for below-wholesale clothing.
Our new magazine Off Price integrates with our marketing message because we feel there was a need to educate the thousands who don’t take advantage of the show and our vendors,” asserts Browne.
The Off Price Show takes place August 15–18, 2010, at the Sands Expo (part of the Venetian/Palazzo in Las Vegas). To add more excitement to your store, register online at www.offpriceshow.com or call 262.782.1600.
