Handmade Category Expands at Las Vegas Market

Mirroring the industry’s overall interest in handmade products, Las Vegas Market has announced an increase in handmade gift and home décor resources, craft-focused programming and artisan industry partnerships for the Summer 2017 Las Vegas Market, July 30 through August 3.

“Las Vegas has experienced substantial and steady increases in handcrafted exhibitors, with a record 320 artisan resources confirmed for the Summer Market. At the same time, we have noted a double-digit gain in buyers identifying handmade as a category of product interest, so there is a commensurate level of increased buying activity,” said Dorothy Belshaw, President of Gift Leasing and Chief Marketing Officer, International Market Centers. “As the leading furniture, home decor and gift destination in the western United States, Las Vegas Market is uniquely positioned as the premiere portal to western distribution for global craft resources.”

A record 320 handmade gift and home décor resources — from across the United States and around the world and representing all media and product categories — will be featured at the Summer 2017 Las Vegas Market in both permanent showrooms and in temporary exhibits in The Pavilions at Las Vegas Market.

A concentration of 75 artisans will be presented in the HANDMADE category in Pavilion 1, including first time Las Vegas Market exhibitors Abrazo Style; Amano Trading; Applepear Handcrafted Jewelry; Aroara Industries; Broken Top Candle Company; EllaJude; Grandmother’s Buttons; Korbata; LUA Company; Lumily; and World Treasure Trading. The Market also welcomes back former exhibitors Blue Hill by Hand, KOZAKH and Lumia Designs.

Artisan collectives also will be featured in other campus locations. An Artisanal LA (ALA) pop-up showcase, in Pavilion 1, will highlight more than 35 Los Angeles-based makers and crafters. The American Made Collective (a showroom on C11) will feature 19 American artisan exhibitors in a 3,636-square-foot showroom. Participants include Carole’s Candles; Cynthia Webb Designs; Designer Stone Inc.; Dock 6 Pottery; Erin Smith Art; Heart the Moment; Jacob’s Musical Chimes; Juniper Tree Supplies; Michal Golan Jewelry; Michael Michaud Designs; Prairie Dance; Printed Canvas; Samantha Grace Designs; Sabbath-Day Woods; Sea Stones; Spooner Creek & Macone Clay; Sue Rosengard Jewelry Design; TreeStump WoodCrafts; and WATCHCRAFT.

Beyond these groupings, there are hundreds of other handmade and artisan resources presented across the Las Vegas Market campus, from American-made furniture and hand-tufted rugs from around the world in Buildings A and B to handmade vintage jewelry and accessories in Pavilion 2. A full listing of domestic and international handcrafted resources is available through the online Exhibitor Directory at www.lasvegasmarket.com/handmade.

In an expansion of its partnership with CRAFT (Craft Retailers & Artists for Tomorrow), Las Vegas Market will present two artisan-focused seminars this Summer. “America Gets Crafty!” will address how American Craft Week can help boost in-store traffic and generate sales of American-made products. Speakers include: Diane Sulg of CRAFT; Alexis Moyer from Mendocino Celebrates American Craft Week; Rani Richardson, owner of Random Acts of Art in Naples, FL; Greg Worden, owner of Vermont Artisan Designs in Brattleboro, VT; and artisan Mavis Stevens of Miss Mavis’ Fun House in Buford, GA. The session is scheduled for Sunday, January 30, 3 p.m. to 4 p.m.

“Meet the Makers,” scheduled for Sunday, July 31, will feature a panel of distinguished makers and curators of artisanal products who will explore the path from concept to creation, while staying true to an original vision. Participants, including Diane Sulg of CRAFT and Shawna Dawson of Artisanal LA, will discuss the maker movement, and how artisans are now able to enter the marketplace on a larger scale, the challenges and successes of being a creative, trends in artisanal products, and today’s buying trends.

A new partnership has been forged between Aid to Artisans (ATA), a leading global business mentoring organization for artisan enterprises, and Las Vegas Market. Representatives from ATA will attend the Summer 2017 Market to begin planning a special presentation of Central American artisans, debuting at the Winter 2018 Market.

Las Vegas Market also has an ongoing partnership with the Sustainable Furnishings Council (SFC) to create One Good World, a guide to sustainable furniture and home décor products that connects legitimate suppliers and retailers in this new era of sustainability and accountability. The effort includes a sustainable products locator program, showcasing relevant at-Market resources, expanded educational offerings addressing issues and opportunities connected with sustainability.

Las Vegas Market is the nation’s fastest growing gift and home décor market and the leading furniture marketplace in the western U.S., presenting more than 4,000 gift, home décor and furniture resources in an unrivaled market destination. Las Vegas Market features thousands of gift, furniture and home décor lines, allowing for cross-category commerce among these industries. The Summer 2017 Las Vegas Market runs July 30–August 3, 2017. For more information, visit www.lasvegasmarket.com.