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WMC's kids section draws vendor kudos
Staff -- Kids Today, 7/27/2005 12:00:00 AM
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AT THE MARKET — The Vegas Kids section in the World Market Center opened to bustling crowds and high energy, manufacturers reported. On Tuesday morning, traffic was a bit slower than on Monday's opening day, but business started to pick up again around noon, and most exhibitors were still thrilled with the initial action. "It was extremely busy," said Almog Lieber of case good manufacturer Berg Furniture. He said he came to the show with mixed feelings, but "I was very happy to see what I saw. I thought (the market) was quite fruitful." Lieber said many of the buyers he saw came from across the United States, not just from the West Coast, a response echoed by other vendors. "We had Florida, and we had Washington (state)," said Delia Glass, owner of bedding resource California Kids. Glass gave the show a literal thumbs-up, saying it was "like the old days." The WMC Vegas Kids section, in space 930, has two entrances, with signage above each. Inside, the space is divided into separate showrooms, with a few exhibitors sharing one showroom. Many of the manufacturers have exhibited in High Point's Showplace Kids area, which has gotten significantly smaller during the past few markets. "We're going to do in Vegas what we tried to do in High Point," said Joy Phillips, president of wall art manufacturer Creative Images, explaining that manufacturers wanted to give juvenile furniture buyers a centralized place to shop. KidKraft, which makes accessories and kid-size furniture, is showing in Las Vegas after pulling out of High Point a few markets ago. Chris Light, vice president of sales, said the dedicated kids area was a major reason the company decided to show in Vegas. "We like being in a group like this," he said. "We all work together." Light said his space was buzzing Monday, and about 80% of those coming in were buyers he hadn't seen before. Many of his fellow exhibitors said they also opened new accounts. "We've seen a lot of new people," said Ted Weber of Vermont Precision Woodworks. Unlike other exhibitors, officials there said the majority of those they saw Monday were from the West Coast. President Geoff Jackson said the case goods manufacturer hadn't seen many buyers from that region since pulling out of San Francisco a couple of years ago. As might be expected, there were a few glitches on opening day. One manufacturer noted that some buyers got confused after entering the Vegas Kids area. Although there is some signage indicating the separate exhibitors, many buyers initially thought it was all one manufacturer, and at least one person attempted to place a single order for product from different manufacturers. But all in all, retailers seemed pleased with the area. "I think it's good that it's all together," said Jane Chavez of The Gingerbread Cabin in Arizona. She was shopping for accessories for her store. Phillips of Creative Images said there are plans to expand the Vegas Kids area after Building 2 opens in 2007. Several companies that wanted to show at the inaugural market here couldn't get space in the main building, leading WMC to create a second Vegas Kids area in its temporary World Pavilions tents. |
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