The Winter Markets: Up Close and Personal

The hotels were at or near capacity, restaurants were full of animated diners, and the police were out in force around AmericasMart Atlanta, directing crowds of people — never mind the long lines of cars.

Inside the mart, the scene was even better. Not only was there bustling, animation and (more) crowds — there was buying. And the buying was as deep as it was wide.

“A lot of people had a good December, and need to restock,” said Ilona Stigrad of Torre & Tagus. “It's encouraging, because people are going into 2006 with a very good attitude.”

“They're not just looking, they're buying,” said Demdaco's Katrina Stevenson. John Amiri of Zodax agreed, noting that his company was way ahead of last January, though he added, “It could be because of the line this market.”

“The buyers are very optimistic; they are happy … and they are having fun! That's what was missing before,” said Glenda Ray, CBK's v.p. of marketing. “We've been writing orders like crazy since Tuesday, and our sales are good. They're way up over January 2004!”

LA is all about branding. From the moment we stepped out of the airport, we saw that image is everything, and everything has an image. Even cab hubcaps carried ads for upcoming TV programs and movies.

And the LA Mart took that branding message to heart, with messages covering every elevator door, and greeters handing out goodies from show special promotional cards to Chardonnay in the halls.

In addition to “branding,” fashion was a key influence at the California Gift Show. The new Boutique focus area showcased a small selection of high-end apparel, jewelry and accessories, and brought some new vendors to the gift market, including EMK Clothing.

Fashion accents also had a strong presence throughout the show, making up at least half of the LA Contemporary and Handmade sections, as well as its own, large Fashion Accessories category. Besides the wealth of handbags and jewelry available, upscale message t-shirts, umbrellas, flip flops, workout wear, and even head wraps were presented with gifty sensibility and packaging.

Black and white was the dominate color palette in decorative accessories, and coming off the escalator on the fifth floor, Palacek made a bold opening statement in black and white, accented by deep, lipstick red.

Across the way from Palacek, The Mix showroom's window displays enticed buyers with a graphic black and white highlighted with cyan blue, representative of new exhibitor Cyan Design.

Mirrors and mirrored finishes are also continuing strong as a sophisticated element, especially when used with black.

Reed diffusors: We saw them everywhere. Diffusers, aromatic lamps, and other products in the no-flame aroma genre are really hot (scuse the pun!) items for dorms and offices, where flames are prohibited. And it was obviously true, based on the order-writing going on.