Vegas fully leases all available space
Will feature 600 exhibitors
Clint Engel -- Furniture Today, January 4, 2006
LAS VEGAS -- Nearly 600 exhibitors will show in the World Market Center’s temporary space in the Mandalay Bay Convention Center during the Jan. 30-Feb. 3 market here.
The WMC is taking just under 600,000 square feet at Mandalay Bay, which replaces a larger space of 730,000 square feet in the Las Vegas Convention Center that was used for the inaugural summer market.Because less space is available, the exhibitor count will be down about 100 companies from the July show for a total of 1,081, said Dana Pretner, director of marketing and public relations. The WMC said all its available space, including Mandalay Bay, is fully leased for January.The WMC’s main 1.3 million-square-foot building will have 230 permanent showrooms occupied by about 340 companies, roughly the same as last July. The World Pavilions temporary space, in tents on the WMC campus, will be the same size (about 350,000 square feet) but will have fewer exhibitors — 161 vs. about 180 in July — as certain tenants have expanded into larger spaces, said Babs Blair, WMC director of leasing.Among the new exhibitors in World Pavilions is bedding giant Sealy, which also has announced it will take a permanent showroom in the WMC’s Building B, which is under construction and is expected to open in January 2007.Blair said the WMC is excited about the number of temporary exhibitors returning “and by the overwhelming demand for increased booth space from last July. This kind of demand has allowed us to be very selective about the type of company who will be showing in January.”Many of the temporary exhibitors will become permanent tenants in future WMC buildings, she said.
Among exhibitors at Mandalay Bay will be Alan White, Leather Italia, Riverside Furniture, Stanton International, Master Design, Therapedic, Palatial Furniture, Englander Sleep Products, Legacy Leather, Spring Air, Mirador, Cresent and Howard Miller.International Lifestyle USA, the international show within WMC produced by Messe Frankfurt, occupied 100,000 square feet in the Las Vegas Convention Center during the July show. For the winter market it’s taking a much smaller space — about 20,000-square feet — in Mandalay Bay and will be part of the main exhibit instead of in a separate hall. That should help its traffic, Blair said.As part of an effort to continually improve service and amenities, the WMC has refined the floor segmentation at Mandalay Bay “so that the categories are grouped in easy-to-shop product neighborhoods throughout the halls, creating a more efficient buyer experience for attendees,” said Briana Mackey, WMC show director.In addition to the WMC venues this market, an Off-Price Specialist Show — Home & Gift, co-sponsored by the WMC and Tarsus Group will be held in about 40,000 square feet at the Las Vegas Convention Center. It will have an estimated 50 to 70 exhibitors, and shuttle service will be available to and from WMC and Mandalay Bay.Also, the Las Vegas Furniture Show, held at the Sands Exposition Center in July, has moved to the Rio for the winter market. Stephan Phelps, manager of the Las Vegas Furniture Show, expects about 75 exhibitors in at 175,000 square feet in the Rio and in tent pavilions. The size of the show has been cut back significantly from earlier projections because of the lack of space available and higher-than-expected costs for the temporary tents, Phelps said.The Mandalay Bay and Off-Price exhibits open Jan. 31, a day later than the main WMC, World Pavilions and Las Vegas Furniture Show. All run through Feb. 3.WMC shuttles will run each day of market, starting at 7 a.m. and running until one hour after the nightly close. Compared with July, shuttle service will be increased during peak hours and there will be more transportation between WMC venues. Shuttles will stop at the front door of WMC for convenience. The service between venues is in addition to shuttles to and from 16 Las Vegas hotels. Phelps said the Rio show also will offer shuttle service to the hotels and WMC venues.Both Mandalay Bay and the Rio are inviting dealers to “start your day” there with free breakfasts.
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Vegas fully leases all available space
Jan 15, 2006
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