Defying conservative industry expectations, strong retailer attendance at the August New York International Gift Fair (NYIGF) – the largest since 2009 – resulted in robust booth traffic and sales activity, according to the show organizer.
The show utilized a total of 545,000 net square feet of exhibit space across its three New York venues – Jacob K. Javits Convention Center and Passenger Ship Terminal’s Piers 92 and 94. The total NYIGF attendance of 33,000 represented retailers from all 50 states and 85 countries, with the largest numbers of international visitors hailing from Canada, Japan, Mexico, Brazil, Columbia, Australia and the United Kingdom.
“Expectations for the summer market not only have been met, but also have been exceeded,” said Christian Falkenberg, NYIGF director and GLM vice president. “Exhibitors are reporting solid and consistent order writing through the entire show.”
Highlights of this summer’s market included the second annual return of the Gourmet Housewares Show at NYIGF. The sold-out division featured 175 companies presenting a refined concentration of both housewares and tabletop suppliers seeking access to the thousands of gift, home and lifestyle buyers attending NYIGF. According to Jesse Tawil of Lifetime Brands, “This was our NYIGF debut and it exceeded our expectations by far. We discovered some great new customers from stores not typical for us, including museum stores and design shops. In addition to this new type of customer, we had a great response from our core kitchen customer.”
Many exhibitors, wary of soft sales during the summer show season, said they were pleased with success at NYIGF and optimistic about what this signals for fourth-quarter retail.
Another NYIGF highlight was the launch of the new Emerging Designer Maker Platform in NYIGF’s Handmade Designer Maker division. This “incubator” showcase introduced four new American artisans, presenting a range of multimedia products, including home décor accessories, kitchen tools and personal accessories, to the New York market.
GLM also launched its new Artisan Resource, a trade show for connecting U.S.-based volume importers with overseas artisanal producers and production resources. The event, which was held concurrently with NYIGF at Passenger Ship Terminal’s Pier 92, featured some 40 exhibitors and attracted more than 4,300 attendees during its three-day run.
