Aug 27, 2012

Fall Signals Gift, Home and Gourmet at AmericasMart

Preparing for holiday retail buying means sourcing great product just in time for fourth-quarter sales at the Atlanta Fall Gift & Home Furnishings MarketSM and The Atlanta Gourmet Market® at AmericasMart. The Markets run Sept. 21-23, 2012. Temporary exhibits also are open Sept. 21-23.

Across the retail spectrum, there are opportunities to build excitement leading into the biggest selling season of the year. “The September marketgives the retail buyer an opportunity to fill in all those gaps that they have missed or just didn’t have filled,” says Lainey Baer, principal of AmericasMart exhibitor Delectable Samplings. “This is their last hurrah to get merchandise into stores to maximize fourth quarter sales.”

Baer, whose Delectable Samplings showroom is at Building 2WW, Floor 8, Showroom 882, formerly bought for Macy’s and for Hallmark and understands the retailer’s needs. Items such as infused olive oils, gift baskets and collegiate-labeled products are big as retailers make final holiday merchandising selections, she says.

In addition to Delectable Samplings, Sweet Shop, Indianola Pecan House, Salem Baking Company, Plentiful Pantry, Stonewall Kitchen and many other exhibitors are popular Gourmet destinations for buyers in September.

Temporary exhibitors in the Gourmet category are at Building 1, Floor 2. Strawberry Patch, Davis & Davis, Mississippi Cheese Straws and Lauri Jo’s are scheduled to exhibit alongside many other perennial favorite companies.

In the Gift world, collegiate-licensed products continue to soar in popularity with consumers. Buyers can shop multiple showrooms with a wide array of options, including many in the General Gift & Resort product center on Floor 7, Building 2 and Building 2 WestWing.

The September market experience extends beyond opportunities to restock before the holidays. AmericasMart provides buyers with educational sessions that fit perfectly with the season. A seminar by Helen Taffet, owner of Sensational Baskets, Inc., covers how to “Market Your Shop.” Taffet will teach merchants how to promote their stores within their target market and within their community. She will detail how to market using social media and by using in-store promotions and parties. The presentation begins at 10 a.m. on Friday, Sept. 21, Building 1, Floor 2.

Extending the gift basket theme, Taffet also will conduct “Gift Basket University: Think Outside the Basket!” at 1 p.m., Friday, Sept. 21, Building 1, Floor 2. Retailers will learn how to make gourmet gift baskets from items provided by AmericasMart exhibitors. “Baskets are huge business for the fourth quarter,” Baer says. “Retailers ask themselves: How will I get these 10 items in a gift basket to look great?”

Space is limited for this popular educational session. There is a $20 admission fee; contact Morgan Dyches, mdyches@americasmart.com.

One of the highlights of the year is the Best of Atlanta competition. Categories include Best Chocolate, Best Jam, Best Condiment and Best Beverage. Winners in 10 distinct categories will be announced at the Best of Atlanta Reveal Breakfast Saturday, Sept. 22, at 10 a.m. in Building 1, Floor 2.

Best of Atlanta winners are then feted at a Best of Atlanta Reception at the Building 2 WestWing, Floor 8 Demonstration Kitchen. Buyers can see the winning products while enjoying tasty bites. The reception begins at 2:30 p.m. on Saturday, Sept. 22.

To help retailers better understand and succeed in the real world of the Gourmet business, Mary Moore, founder and CEO of The Cook’s Warehouse, shares insights in gourmet retailing. Moore aims to give retailers an edge in this competitive market segment. The session begins at 9 a.m. on Friday, Sept. 21, Building 2 WestWing, Floor 8.

On the home side, accessories and accent pieces are especially important for the season. Christy Dillard and Heidi Pierce of Dillard Pierce Designs discuss Interior Design to Product Design on Friday, Sept. 21 at 2 p.m., Building 1, Floor 14 Seminar Room. Dillard and Pierce share how their interior design experience pushed them to create product designs formed for each specific project.

Always a leading resource for the design trade, AmericasMart presents two new showrooms opening in time for September markets to complement the diverse array of home exhibitors. Kenian Imports, a leader in bamboo/rattan furniture, opens in Building 1, Floor 14, Showroom E-1. Artisan House, with unique quality metal wall art and sculptures also opens on Floor 14, Showroom E-11.

Also at AmericasMart, beginning on Thursday, September 20 and running through Saturday, September 22, is VOWSM | NEW WORLD OF BRIDAL. It is AmericasMart’s first-ever exclusively bridal market. VOW | NEW WORLD OF BRIDAL will showcase industry experts, all the top designers and gowns, gowns, gowns. For one of the market events, special guest David Tutera, host of the hit WE television show “My Fair Wedding,” shares his passion for designing spectacular events on Thursday, September 20, at 8 a.m., Building 3, Floor 2, Center Stage.

About AmericasMart
AmericasMart Atlanta is the nation’s only global wholesale marketplace housing the world’s single-largest collection of home, gift, area rug and apparel merchandise. The largest of AmericasMart’s 14 annual Markets and shows, The Atlanta International Gift & Home Furnishings Market and The Atlanta International Area Rug Market in January and July are the ignition switch for global retailing with buyers from every U.S. state and more than 90 countries discovering product in more than 1,400 showrooms and more than 2,500 temporary exhibiting companies. Located in downtown Atlanta, the AmericasMart complex contains more than seven million square feet of space. It’s a huge global stage on which manufacturers, designers and sales representatives unveil new lines, launch new designs and introduce new categories – all for the benefit of buyers seeking all that is fresh and first in the home, rug, gift and apparel arenas. For more information, please visit www.AmericasMart.com.