The ASD Las Vegas trade show reported a significant increase in attendance over 2009. Held at the Sands Expo Center and Las Vegas Convention Center, February 28 – March 3, the show featured over 2,400 exhibitors displaying hundreds of thousands of products across 100 categories, including Gift, Jewelry, Style & Beauty and Value & Variety. Covering over 610,000 net square feet of exhibit space, the nation’s longest running merchandise trade show attracted every type of buyer, including independent retailers, department stores, national chains and internet retailers amongst the over 45,000 attendees. The total number of buyers in attendance increased 15 percent over the previous year.
Representing over 85 countries across six continents, buyers came prepared to write orders in nearly every type of product category including fashion accessories, home décor, gift and many others. Buyer attendance from Latin American countries, including Mexico, Argentina and Costa Rica, increased by over 33 percent.
Exhibitors, buyers and speakers alike, offered accounts of a bustling atmosphere with ample order writing. For many, the turnout was a sign of positive growth within the retail industry. “This was probably our best show ever,” said Judy Gillman, president of Stockwell Greetings, a greeting cards wholesaler that primarily sells to the value channel. James Coon of Creative Group Eyewear, a fashion eyewear exhibitor, reported, “I wrote so many orders, I lost my voice,” at the Style & Beauty show, which featured approximately 200,000 square feet of fashion accessories and health & beauty products, and showed an increase of three percent over last year.
In the lower level of the Sands Expo Center, the Gift Show saw aisles packed with buyers. Rick Conway, owner of Squire Boone Village, a 25-year-old gift and souvenir company and longtime ASD exhibitor, expressed, “We had a great show…I expect sales to be up considerably over last March.”
The next ASD Las Vegas show will be held August 8 – 11, 2010, at the Las Vegas Convention Center. For more information visit www.asdonline.com.