Here are just a few of the apparel fairs in August with many conflicting dates: World Market Center in LV, LA Fashion Market in LA, Designers & Agents Show in LA, Focus Show at the CMC in LA, Transit Show, in LA, NMB/Print Wear Show in LB, ASR Show in SD, MAGIC shows in LV, and Offprice shows in LV… These are just a few happening in California and Nevada. Internationally, it is about the same… just too many concurring fairs.
Will new exiting FASHION at these shows be enough to generate the necessary catalyst, for the ultimate consumer to come out and start buying?
Not all market places are as diverse as the USA, but it seems that these shows are becoming more retail consumer-specific and very expensive to be an exhibitor. The RAZZLE! DAZZLE! PARTYING! Seeing new places is all great, but (very expensive), and the servicing needed to attract potential customers to create sales is not easy… I do not believe this is taking place in these times, ( as it once did), to directly offset the costs of attending or being an exhibitor or finding a reliable vendor to deliver.
Many of those vendors showing products at the fair are not really sound financially to deliver the products, or do not accumulate the orders needed to go into actual production. Many of the larger shows now are having large sections for SOURCING, mainly for the people exhibiting, and not necessarily for the retailers that are the visitors to these shows.
True, it is very costly to cover the retail marketplace by having representatives in various territories, but now with better communications, and camera technology sending new styles to the retailer is being done daily, and the vendors are not waiting to show their products at a show.
We have many different ‘LIFE STYLE’ options in which to sell products; it is almost a good guessing game as to where one should set up their booth, or booths. Quick response, speed to market, fast turnover, are the key words in today’s world of apparel.
It seems these trade shows are shrinking, as it has become difficult for store owners to get away from their duties, since everyone in their own way is trying to run their business Lean and Mean. For those of us who are in the manufacturer’s side of the trade shows, we are looking to shorten lead times to make sales, and having the customer come back for ‘fill-ins’ if our goods sell. Therefore, when we go to shows, we have to cover not just for the market we are trying to sell into, but have immediate product, to cover the needed inventory of the retailer.
Since we cover many climatic conditions and seasons, it is difficult to prepare for these shows. The concepts, both new and old, are becoming hard to show to excite new customers, and the testing of new product lines are not getting the advantages of being tested in these economic times, as retailers only have monies for tried products that are true winners. How your show monies are to be spent, is now a very important question as to what is best for your business.
Should it be spent visiting the customer directly, put on sales representatives in a given territory, used to upgrade your website, sending via email blasts advertising, all this and many more direct sales methods are an option… are these costs going to cut into the TRADE SHOWS budgets?
Consumers purchase products that appeal to them, these products are purchased from some type of vendor, and the product needs to be manufactured by some form of production; therefore how to get your product into the marketplace requires many decisions, of how to get exposure.
This exposure can be very costly, so I am only asking is the TRADE SHOW still a viable cost in doing business?
Bharat Tex Special Report 2026 
