THE LARGEST-EVER LAS VEGAS MARKET™—highlighted by increases in new registrations and overall attendance, as well as by expansion of leading showroom resources—exceeded buyers’ and suppliers’ expectations in August. The summer market celebrated its 10th year with five launches: casual/outdoor on C12 and C13; gourmet housewares on C11; better home decor on C5; and the Pavilions at Las Vegas Market, featuring Discoveries, a new temporary-exhibit venue with 90,000 net square feet of exhibit space.

Robert Maricich, CEO of IMC, says, “We set the bar high for our 10th anniversary this August, and we exceeded our customers’ expectations, as well as our own. We launched five new destinations simultaneously; introduced new to- market showroom resources; and debuted major showroom expansions by leading vendors like Christopher Guy, Global Views, Phillips Collection, Michael Aram, Ivystone/CMA, and many more. We have made exponential progress toward our goal of becoming the only whole-home and gift market in North America, and we anticipate continued and remarkable growth as we continue to build upon our strong foundation.”

Overall attendance was up 5%, and the gift sector continued its double-digit growth with a 17% increase. Since Las Vegas Market’s gift/home-decor strategic plan was launched in 2012, gift and homedecor attendance has grown 180%. Buyers indicating an interest in housewares/gourmet goods, in support of the C11 launch, were up 61%. Casual buyers were up 50%, supporting the new outdoor floors on C12 and 13.

The largest growth states for buyer attendance included California, Arizona, Utah, Nevada, and Texas. Even more important than attendance numbers is feedback from tenants and exhibitors experiencing good traffic, exposure to new customers, and strong order writing.

Steve Baut, stocking dealership manager with POLYWOOD® All Weather Furnishings, says, “This has been the biggest win for us; we have had an unbelievably successful market. Since this was our first Las Vegas Market, we didn’t know what to expect, and this market has surpassed any expectations we could have imagined. We’ve been able to touch base with dealers we’ve wanted to see, and we’re extremely excited to see what happens in January. This has been the best market for reaching new dealers. About 80% of the dealers we’ve seen are new to our brand.”

Las Vegas Market is the leading furniture, home-decor, and gift marketplace in the Western United States, presenting 2,700 resources and thousands of gift, furniture, and home-decor lines in an unrivaled market destination and allowing cross-category commerce. Winter Las Vegas Market runs January 24 through 28, 2016. For more information, visit www.lasvegasmarket.com.