Class Moves to Hollywood, Launches Holiday Show
Class, the boutique menswear and denim-focused trade show, has called the Santa Monica Civic Auditorium in Santa Monica, Calif., home since its inception in February 2008. Now, Jason Bates, owner of the Derelicte Showroom in Los Angeles and producer of Class, has announced a change in venue for the upcoming Feb. 10–11 show.
Siren Studios, a photography studio and event space at 6063 W. Sunset Blvd. in Los Angeles’ Hollywood neighborhood, will be the show’s new home. The space, which allows the show to add an additional 30 to 40 brands to its exhibitor roster, will also be the home for a new Holiday edition of the Class trade show, set to debut May 12–13.
“This will be a true Holiday show,” Bates said. “There isn’t a show like this in L.A. or even in Las Vegas.” Normally, sales reps take their Holiday collections on the road, he said. “This way, brands can see maybe 30 accounts in two days and save themselves the time and money they’d otherwise spend on the road. There’s definitely a need for a Holiday show.”
Class, which in 2009 licensed its name to the now-defunct Action Sports Retailer Trade Expo to create Class@ASR, a trade show catering to fashion-forward and crossover brands operating in the action-sports market, expects to attract some of those brands to its future shows, Bates said. But the move to the new, larger venue was precipitated by renovations that are scheduled to begin at the Santa Monica Civic Auditorium. Booth rates for the upcoming Class show remain the same, but Bates is offering special pricing to brands that also commit to the Holiday show.—Erin Barajas
