California Apparel News

New venues, new dates, new categories and new partnerships. Trade-show producers are stepping up the amenities and fine-tuning their exhibitor bases to draw more attendees. After three years of economic downturn, trade-show organizers are gearing up for a return to business.

California Apparel News editors Alison A. Nieder and Deborah Belgum caught up with several trade-show executives to find out what they’re doing to bring in more exhibitors and attendees.

What recent changes have you made to add new exhibitors to your show, and what kinds of new attendees would you like to attract? Andrew PollardPresidentProject This season, Project Las Vegas will expand on a number of initiatives that have elevated the show experience over the past two seasons.#8232;The Town Square concept was implemented last show, where wider aisles allowed for a variety of educational, technological, charitable and entertainment initiatives to be activated.

We will be expanding this to cover a larger amount of space and introducing even more compelling experiences to the area.#8232;We are introducing a Men’s Collections area, which will showcase a growing trend toward more-tailored dressing. This is important, as many retailers are looking for a contemporary alternative to traditional menswear, and with international attention being focused on the U.S. market, we expect this area to be very popular with both new brands and retailers.

We are also introducing a neighborhood focused on the need for more-accessible denim and lifestyle products. The consumer today is not only looking for a great jean at $200+ but also for more price-sensitive alternatives at under $150. This area is called Denim Culture and will include denim, knitwear, outerwear, shoes and accessories.

We had a very good reaction from retailers to the elevated women’s brands at Project, and this season we are expanding the women’s area to include a more complete accessories assortment as well as an area where we will be showcasing brands in a number of live fashion-show presentations. The live fashion-show initiative will also include a consumer-facing, digital component in order to broaden reach exponentially.

Finally, our most directional neighborhood, Workroom, is returning with a number of new brands showcasing innovation and newness. We had a very positive reaction from retailers last season, as this was a place of inspiration and exposure to new and noteworthy brands. This area will once again be anchored by the extremely successful, buzz-generating Project 10, which will return for its third season with a new group of exciting emerging brands.Stephanie EverettGroup Show Director—Textile ShowsMesse Frankfurt Inc.Co-locations, industry experts, a worldwide sales network and key industry relationships are helping Messe Frankfurt North America grow its textile trade-show portfolio.

First, co-locations: By strategically combining some of our events in the same location/venue at the same time, we are able to offer a larger, more attractive destination for both our exhibitors and attendees. In the recovering economy, exhibitors and attendees are still having to carefully select shows while watching budgets, so, in turn, we are offering a more accessible, sizable event both in New York (Texworld USA, Home Textiles Sourcing Expo and the International Apparel Sourcing Show) and Atlanta (Techtextil North America and Texprocess Americas).

Second, in order to truly involve ourselves in the markets and build our events, we need experts from the industry. For several of our events, we have now contracted industry consultants with decades of experience to supplement our existing teams. These experts help to develop the show for both attendees and exhibitors to ensure the current needs of the marketplace are being met.

Third, Messe Frankfurt prides itself on its worldwide sales network. The Messe Frankfurt Group has a global network of 28 subsidiaries, five branch offices and 52 international sales partners, giving it a presence for its customers in more than 150 countries. Events “made by Messe Frankfurt” take place at more than 30 locations around the globe. This global presence allows us access to the multiple textile marketplaces around the world that are growing and looking to do business with the American market.

Fourth and finally: relationships. Key relationships with industry organizations are essential for growth and credibility. With current partners/supporters such as SPESA, Lenzing, Stylesight and CCPIT, just to name a few, we are able to reach further into specific networks within the textile industry to build upon our existing shows.

Elyse KrollChairmanENK InternationalAs the pre-eminent show producer in the United States, ENK always attracts the most coveted contemporary collections available in the market. Our brand-finder team travels the world looking for new designers and recently attended Fashion Week Seoul, Korea. There we discovered innovative designers and are looking forward to introducing them to the U.S. market. ENK also just produced the inaugural ENKChina exhibition in Beijing with historic success. ENK continues to embrace the global village and bring designers and retailers together across international borders.

While criss-crossing the globe looking for new designers, we are constantly looking to broaden our retail base. ENK has one of the best retail-relations teams in the industry, and our team goes the extra mile to win the loyalty and interest of stores from all over the United States and abroad. We listen closely to our designers to hear their needs and work diligently to bring their retail accounts to the shows. We have embraced all forms of new media, including Facebook and Twitter, and use these formats regularly to attract the attention of retailers. Ed MandelbaumCo-FounderDesigners and AgentsD&A is about being select. We’ve created an environment where like-minded designers know that. It’s not just anybody there. It stands for something. Having established that, people want to be with us, to be in that kind of environment. We certainly have a friendly place. We treat people nicely. It’s a beautiful floor. Wetake care of people with good food and drink. It’s a friendly, good environment for people to do business. The stores like it, the designers want to be there. This is what we’ve always done. That’s who we are.

Last year, we brought our show to Paris. We’ve attracted more international exhibitors. We’ve done that before, but [the Paris show] brings more attention. People find out who we are and what we’re about. We’ve attracted the best stores in the world. We certainly get the best stores in New York and L.A., but a higher percentage of the stores that come [to Paris] are the best stores in the world that carry the best designers in the world. It’s really exciting for us to have stores that carry Dries Van Noten, Stella McCartney, Prada and Gucci. Those are the stores that visit us in Europe.

The beautiful thing about D&A is we’re not about the masses. We’re not about every designer and every retailer. We’re about bringing the better contemporary, young designer brands together with the more-forward stores. They find each other here without all the noise of a million and one stores that really don’t belong.The reason people come to us is to write orders, and we have an environment that is conducive to that.

This has been our concept from day one. We go with the ups and downs of the market and the ups and downs of whatever city we’re in. And it’s working. We finished a very positive show in March [in Los Angeles]. It had good energy. It feels healthy to us right now.Jean-Luc TeinturierPresident CURVExpoSome major changes are planned for the upcoming CurveNY New York (July 31–Aug. 2) and CurveNV Las Vegas (Aug. 22–24) shows.

There is a significant increase in our offering of the best domestic and international swimwear brands. In alignment with the overall Curve strategy of presenting the most selective swimwear trade shows on both coasts in the two major markets, the top players in the industry have joined Curve to obtain the ultimate reach of the swimwear market in New York and Las Vegas.

This extended offering is indeed a natural and obvious move for both markets. First, the swimwear industry needed a “home” in New York during the busy New York market week, when all of the major buyers shop. In Las Vegas, the high-end, designer brands desired a classy venue and show partner with a clear focus on the industry. CurvExpo has now filled both of these outstanding voids.

Adding this important swimwear section to the already-strong lingerie section is also a natural evolution. As 50 percent of lingerie retailers carry swimwear, the move from lingerie to swimwear proves successful, whereas swimwear to lingerie does not. Swimwear is a very sophisticated product that offers fit (just like lingerie) and fashion and, overall, requires elevated customer service. This August, we plan to further attract this new audience of retailers that offer this important crossover, as well as continue to uphold our attendance of the top specialty boutiques, department stores, online retailers, and mail-order and catalog segments.Audrey Okulick Marketing and PR California Market Center We are dedicated to creating unique identities for each of our shows and providing several distinctive platforms as options for manufacturers looking to showcase their product in the L.A. marketplace. Our target audience for L.A. Fashion Market continues to be boutiques and department stores with a focus on the 13 most western states. Our targeted growth categories for attendees are Asia and Latin America.

Select Tradeshow, our newest show, attracts upscale contemporary retailers with its handpicked selection of some of the most trend-oriented contemporary brands in the marketplace. We are currently working on some special projects with bloggers and other partners to help establish the show as a must-see resource for some of the best contemporary trends and brands in the marketplace.

Focus Apparel & Accessories Show, designed to attract emerging brands at an affordable price, will host a new “cash and carry” section for June. This is a natural addition, designed to bring in retailers looking for Immediates from some of the country’s most talented up-and-coming brands.

Transit LA Shoe Show is curated to present contemporary, young contemporary and trend-driven brands to L.A.’s individualistic, style-conscious boutique customers. Our loyal brands attract these customers year after year, so we work on maintaining lasting relationships with our most in-demand exhibitors.

To recruit new attendees to L.A. Fashion Market, our in-house retail team makes in-store visits and works on telemarketing programs to complement our marketing campaigns, which include direct mail, weekly eblasts, trade ads and other promotions prior to each show. We work closely with exhibitors to identify and do outreach to key buyers they wish to see at each respective show. Our social-media vehicles have been instrumental in creating awareness of our resources and individual shows, attracting new retailers who are responding to the information we promote on the various sites on a daily basis. Free retailer seminars, runway shows and sponsored buyer perks—including free blow-dry and manicure bars, complimentary breakfasts, beverages, luncheons, and cocktail hours—are additional amenities that help contribute to a dynamic show experience for both buyers and exhibitors.

Attendance was up 25 percent at the Los Angeles International Textile Show in March, and we look forward to continuing this momentum by increasing the number of resources available at the Fall/Winter ’11/12 edition Oct. 10–12. We received tremendously positive feedback by attendees on our European Showcase, the Lenzing Innovation Pavilion and our updated seminar series last show. We plan to expand upon these areas, selecting exhibitors and seminars that will appeal to the increasing contemporary manufacturers and designer audience at our show.Philippe PasquetChief Executive OfficerPremiegrave;re VisionPremiegrave;re Vision Preview New YorkPremiegrave;re Vision has invested more than ever in the last two years to enhance and reinforce our worldwide network. We have created our subsidiary in New York, called PV Inc. The mission of PV Inc. is promotion, [to increase] visitors and to be in the field to visit customers. We are preparing an enhancement of our team in China. We have 1,000 visitors [from China at] each edition in Paris. In Greater China, we have doubled the small show since 2000. China is a strategic market, and we are reinforcing [our] position there. We do [the same] for Turkey. We have a joint venture in Brazil to organize and promote our shows. We have [produced] Premiegrave;re Brasil for more than one year.

For Paris, the main show, including the six shows called Premiegrave;re Vision Pluriel, next September, we’ll have approximately 700 exhibitors. They are in a good mood, and they want to be aggressive with the market. Some 75 percent of our exhibitors are international exhibitors, which means the offering is wide. We consider that any exhibitor coming from Italy or Korea or India or Latin America is an added value to the overall offering. We have a selection procedure and a selection committee and a long application procedure. Nevertheless, we have created a development unit to visit the best weavers all over the world and invite them to apply to Premiegrave;re Vision. If they are lucky and the product is good, the selection committee will select them.

In Paris, we have reduced our show from four to three days because it was a request [from attendees]. Because of the budget, [attendees] spend less time in Paris but they are more efficient with their vendors. They spend a lot of time looking for new [fabrics], so the fashion forums and the displays are the place to be.

Premiegrave;re Vision Preview New York is a small, targeted show, dedicated to one market: North America. We are very [actively preparing] the next edition Fall/Winter 2012/2013 [in July]. We have to improve our offering, which has suffered in the past two years because of the crisis. In July, [we will have a focus on] men’s high-end fabrics, wools and worsted fabrics. That is an example of what we do. We have to enhance the offering. We have to serve the visitors [and] give them creative products.

In February, we launched a market survey with key accounts for Premiegrave;re Vision Preview New York. This survey will help us in reformatting some points of the show.

We [learned] that the market is back. Buyers want to buy creative product and fabric because they have suffered very much. Because of the crisis, they had to buy lower[-priced goods], which didn’t help them in making a difference in their product. We have learned the show is the best place to look at new suppliers, new vendors and new product and to be immersed in fashion. Premiegrave;re Vision Preview New York is considered the place to receive what I call “the fashion shower” at the beginning of the season. The third point was to check that the dates and the location [of the show] are good. [The survey said attendees like that the show is] early in the season, it’s a preview and it’s downtown at the Metropolitan Pavilion.

Ken HarutaOrganizer West Coast Trend ShowI need to be careful to make sure that I have the right balance of retailers in proportion to how many exhibitors we have participating. We have had an increase in retailer attendance for the last six shows.

One year ago, we increased the amount of vendors by one-third and added another floor [to the Embassy Suites LAX North]. We did have record attendance, but the show seemed slower. The perception was there was less traffic because now we had three floors for the retailers to walk instead of two floors.

The key to the success of our show is to get more retailers to attend. The way I have worked on getting more retailers has been to offer incentives, such as a subsidized $80 hotel rate. With the economy tanking and everyone from reps to retailers trying to watch their expenses, we were able to get more retailers to stay at the hotel, which meant more traffic for our show.

This season, I asked every rep who participated in our show to give me a list of five retailers they would like me to invite to the next show. I will now personally call each store to invite them to our show and get them to check out our website.

I just gave each sales rep in the show a list of prospects. There are more than 170 stores for them to call for appointments and invite to the next show. Between myself and all of the reps, we will get the word out about the show.

We are now sold out again for our next show. If we have another increase in attendance, I will consider opening another floor. It really creates a demand and buzz when you tell vendors that our show is sold out again.Bill WinsorPresident and Chief Executive OfficerDallas Market CenterThis part of the country has weathered the economic challenges extremely well. In fact, while other venues scale back, we have been able to add new resources to keep pace with the influx of new buyers who have started coming to the Dallas Market Center. Our new buyer attendance has doubled, while loyal buyers continue to visit and to buy.

In March, we launched Salon, a multi-line showroom of gold-range lines in a boutique showroom. We included a mix of lines from Los Angeles, New York City and Canada, including Katherine Kidd, Lundstrom Collection, Tangerine Jill, Zuza Bart and others. With the success of Salon, we plan to open an additional multi-line showroom featuring contemporary lines later this year, which is a great opportunity for West Coast manufacturers. We continue to provide an assortment of contemporary lines at all price points, and our goal for 2011 is to create an environment where even more companies and sales reps will want to do business.

Young Contemporary is also hot. We’ve expanded it by more than 30 percent compared with 2009 and will be introducing dozens of new exhibitors each show. And the shoe category is a big growth opportunity for us, so we’ve launched a new shoe show, Strut–Dallas Shoes, which will be held five times a year and showcase a range of lines. All in all, our exhibitors know that we offer a great experience at a lower cost than most other marketplaces.

For retailers, Dallas remains a really good place to do business. So our marketing team has been in overdrive, calling on stores, partnering with reps, and attracting more new buyers from Texas, Louisiana, Kansas, Missouri, Colorado and beyond. We are really optimistic about the next six months of business in this part of the country. Britton JonesPresident and Chief ExecutiveBusiness Journals Inc., organizer of AccessoriesTheShow, Moda Las Vegas and MRketThe jurying process we maintain for AccessoriesTheShow, Moda Las Vegas and MRket has set us apart from all the other Las Vegas trade shows and is the catalyst in bringing new exhibitors and retailers to our shows.

Our shows are highly focused and position the right resources front and center to very influential retailers. Our shows have built a tight community of better exhibitors, and we have also created a loyal following with high-end retailers.

The buyers from around the world who shop the Business Journals’ Fashion Group–produced editions of AccessoriesTheShow, Moda Las Vegas and MRket know their time is going to be productive because the resources they need to see are all under one roof. This is especially important during a time-crunched market week.Emma GreathouseDirector Fashion Industry Gallery in DallasFIG is the hip, boutique wholesale fashion venue showcasing the industry’s best in women’s contemporary sportswear and accessories—and all within a high-design, hospitality-rich environment located in the Arts District of downtown Dallas.

FIG remains focused on our goal to become a singular destination for women’s high-end fashion, attracting the best-of-breed buyers and designers to our venue. We remain committed to exceeding the industry standard for providing the level of service and environment that the fashion industry merits. Given the challenging nature of our recent economic climate, FIG is committed to remaining as nimble and accommodating as necessary, in an effort to exceed the needs of our tenants, exhibitors and buyers.

Our former director, Shelli Mers, recently decided to move back to the Northwest to be closer to her family. As a result, FIG restructured its staff internally as a means to allow us to seamlessly continue to maintain the quality and execution of our trade shows. Former Brook Partners (FIG’s parent company) Vice President and Chief Financial Officer Matt Roth was named FIG’s chief executive, while I was promoted from sales manager to director. John Sughrue, FIG’s prior chief executive and founder, was named chairman.

We feel that maintaining the consistency and experience of our staff is critical for FIG to be able to continue to offer the superior level of quality service and operating expertise that our tenants and customers have come to expect, and we remain committed to further improving and enhancing the FIG experience for all of our customers, clients and guests.

We recognize that our attendees prefer not only the convenience of FIG’s location but also the unique and urbane environment that FIG offers. It’s that location and high-design atmosphere coupled with a service level that is second to none in the industry that will provide the framework for our focus and direction in both the near and long-term future.Additionally, we remain committed to identifying and pursuing new and bold opportunities to continue to grow the FIG brand.Chris DeMoulinPresidentMAGIC InternationalExecutive Vice President Advanstar’s Fashion GroupIt always comes down to new, new, new. If you look at our show in the last year, we made a big move into footwear with FN Platform, which is expanding rapidly. We’re seeing considerable growth in new brands from Europe. We launched Ride Unltd at S.L.A.T.E. last year. And we just partnered with [French fashion trade show] Precirc;t A Porter Paris to bring the Heart of Precirc;t to WWDMAGIC [in August for better to bridge retailers looking for French brands].

We’ve been working a lot more with retail associations, such as the USRA in the footwear industry and the Board Retailers Association in the action-sports market.

You’ll see a lot more European brands at Project, MAGIC and FN Platform to bring new brands to the United States and to be able to see the best breadth of retailers We’re working a lot with the U.S. Department of Commerce and the foreign export associations to help people understand why the MAGIC show in Las Vegas is the ideal platform.

Those two things feed on each other. You get great new brands and great new products and launch new areas of the show that get the buyer community interested. You work with the buyer community to understand what their needs are and what they’re looking for and communicate that to [the exhibitors]. We really support that 365 days a year with a dedicated retail-relations team that’s in constant communication with all the buyers both domestic and international, [learning] what they’re looking for and letting them know what the hotel rates are, giving them online programs to help them with their trip planning.

We do matchmaking and we do on-site seminars to help them navigate what they’re trying to accomplish.

We’ve added staff that is Spanish- and Japanese-speaking because we get a lot of stores coming in from Central and South America and Japan. After Canada and Mexico, there are more stores coming to MAGIC from Japan than any other country. So we’ve added some native speakers to our retail-relations department to really reach out to a broader range of retailers.

Our staff is spending a lot more time in Europe at the shows and with some of the textile industry export organizations over there to really get the story out about the breadth of availability here for both new retailers and new potential exhibitors. It’s being able to tell the story of the growth and the breadth of opportunity at MAGIC, especially in the last year, when we’ve been growing exponentially. [And it’s about giving] the buyers the opportunity to do so much so efficiently over three days. David LapidosExecutive Vice PresidentOffPrice ShowWe moved to a new property last year. We’re very happy. Exhibitors are happy, the buyers are happy.

But you can’t rest on your laurels. Markets change. We have ascertained that the market is going toward footwear and accessories at a quick pace, whereas apparel is steady.

We’ve made a strong effort to bring in footwear vendors. We will double the footwear vendors at our August show from the February show. The New York show is sold out, just as the first one sold out. So we’re be-bopping and scatting. We’ll also have a major presence at the California Market Center in October when they have the Majors Market.

We’re hoping to attract the independents and the small department stores who [don’t understand] closeouts. We’re constantly educating people as to what off price and closeouts are. A lot of people don’t understand how a closeout can come to market. Closeouts come to market when a manufacturer has major cancellations too deep into the season to sell at regular price. Closeouts happen when goods come in late from China. Closeouts come when there’s an economic pressure on the owner of the merchandise to sell it. A lot of independents who have never dealt with [closeouts] learn what we do and realize they can fight back against the Walmarts and the Targets and anyone else that can buy in such giant quantities and do private label. They don’t need to mark down their own merchandise [to compete]. That’s part of the education process. We have 500 vendors. Everyone is on an education mission. That’s what we’re pushing. That is what will keep our entity [viable]: knowledge.

Every customer is an individual. I have vendors that pre-pack two dozen cases, four dozen, three dozen. If some customer comes in and says, “I need 50 cases,” fine. If someone says, “I need four dozen of this and two dozen of that,” vendors are very happy to sell it. They are getting new customers. Everybody needs new customers. If 70 percent of your business is big customers, does that mean you throw that other 30 percent away? No, you sell it and then you have a good mix and you’re not subject to a problem at either end. It’s just good business. They need and they want every type of customer. It makes things round. Things that are round roll. If they’re not round, they just sit. Roland TimneyShow Manager Specialty Trade Shows Inc.,Organizer of Women’s Wear in NevadaWe at the WWIN show are very fortunate. Every show is completely sold out, including WWIN for August 2011. This coming show was sold out in less than 30 days with less than 5 percent attrition from the February 2011 show.

We attribute much of the continual demand for space at WWIN to our existing exhibitors. They are always recommending WWIN to other companies, noting their own success and wanting only for WWIN to get better.

We continually strive to make WWIN easy, comfortable and rewarding for the buyer while, at the same time, working to ensure a successful show for our exhibitors. We at WWIN realize the importance of superb customer service to both the buyer and exhibitor and will implement any changes we deem helpful to ensure the success of both buyers and exhibitors.

It is because of our customer service and the quality as well as the diversification of the product exhibited at WWIN that we attract buyers from every segment of retail. We will continue to work hard attracting new buyers and improving WWIN wherever we can.