There were some big changes happening at the January Las Vegas Market. The new Expo Center located next to the parking structure was in full-swing construction mode, and walking to the parking elevators was a whole new adventure. Once you entered the buildings it was vibrant and busy from Sunday to Tuesday. Check-ins were steady in the SSA showroom, with the bulk of the traffic coming in from Sunday afternoon to Tuesday afternoon. “We scanned 470 buyer groups and hundreds of manufacturers and suppliers over the course of the Market”, said SSA Executive Director Tambra Jones. “The final tally was was lower than the January 2019 Market, and more in line with the January 2018 attendance”.
The SSA Sponsored educational event was entitled “Online-to-Offline - Figuring Out An Important Puzzle”. Gabe Dungan gave a very informative presentation. If you missed it, click here find out more about it and to watch the video.
Speaker Gabe Dungan (2nd from right) with SSA Board Members Jim Gutierrez, Mark Miller, Angela Owen, Tambra Jones and Brian Davis.
Some of the SSA Exhibitors weighed in with there experiences at the 2020 show:
Bill Bush - I Love My Pillow
”Overall, we were pleased with the traffic and customer discussions. Traffic was up by 10%”
Curtis Spain - Bedding Technologies
”Attendance was very good for this winter market. We experienced very good dealer traffic on Sunday, Monday, Tuesday resulting in excellent new contact”
Lynn Kelley - Sleep In Motion
”Winter market was good and we had a lot of potential customers”
Suzanne Diamond - The Futon Shop
”The show was great we had a lot of traffic”
Curtis Spain - Bedding Technologies
Suzanne Diamond - The Futon Shop
Patrick Auer - PineTales
“Great exposure for us as a new brand. The Showroom felt almost like a small convention of it’s own”
Peter Laurens - Arcusbeds
”The recent market show was very good for us; we received a number of serious visitors including several from major US retailers”
Mark Schwartz - Blue Ridge Home Fashions
”January market was very successful—great traffic and some very productive meetings”
Ryan Chilvers - CannaBeds"
”Thank you Tambra. Cannabeds had a fantastic show, we will be growing our business in a big way as a result. We look forward to seeing you in July”
Peter Laurens - Arcusbeds
Ryan Chilvers - Cannabeds
Brent Polunsky - W. Silver Products
”W. Silver Products had a great response to our new line of adjustable beds that we introduced. The attendance was terrific with not only current accounts, but I was impressed with how many new accounts stopped by the space to see the new product. It was one of the best markets we have ever had”
Al Flora - Assured Comfort/Sleep Safe Beds
”As a first time exhibitor, we weren’t sure of what to expect. Everyone in the Specialty Sleep Association was very helpful and gave us lots of input. We enjoyed meeting new people, increasing our brand exposure and look forward to the July market”
Juan Gonzalez - Best Rest
”We had a great experience with the traffic this show. For us the most important thing is quality over quantity”
Al Flora - Assured Comfort
Juan Gonzalez and the Best Rest Team
J.W. Craig - Sleep and Beyond
”My comment & Experience at the January 2020 Winter Market is:
1) The SSA show room had a great and fantastic feeling letting the Buyers feel they were welcome.
2) Attitude for the New Year "The Roaring 2020's Double Double and a New Decade.
3) Keep in mind, 80% of success is showing up an 20% follow up. Patience and Persistence work!”
Butch Craig with Co-Founders Sardor and Sarvar Abdullaev - Sleep and Beyond
Arason Enterprises
Sadly - a few of the exhibitors in the showroom felt that they did not see the people they hoped to see, for a wide array of reasons. Some expressed that they need to update their product offerings because they were not opening up new customers. Some realized that they needed to do more pre-show marketing, some felt their traffic was off, but they were not sure why. Here are a couple of comments we received.
Jane Arason - Arason Enterprises
”We had a slow January Market. It felt more like a summer market”
Brice Hata - TMI Products
“The Market was tremendously slow compared to past Winter Markets. There was also noticeable lack of TOP 100 retailers present for this show. Not having Malouf present on our floor could have added to a drop in traffic as well. Although we are leaving our space after this show, we may return in the future. We have enjoyed the successes and relationships built from past shows and wish nothing but success in all your endeavors. Thanks so much Tambra!”
The SmartWerks team Sean Doan and Pat Kunish pose with Gordy Nelson who is retiring from the company. We will miss Gordy being in the showroom more than we can say.
Best Wishes Gordy!
On behalf of everyone in the SSA Showroom, we want to wish Gordy Nelson of SmartWerks a happy retirement. Gordy has been exhibiting with the SSA since July 2005, at the very first Las Vegas Market. Gordy is beloved among exhibitors, and he will be sorely missed.
The SSA will continue to offer a well-trafficked showroom for it’s exhibitors.