United Trade Show Opens Retail, Heads East
A mere five months after Ryan Walker made a splash by debuting United Trade Show in Las Vegas, the 26-year-old entrepreneur took a small step into retail. On June 4, he opened a 350-square-foot shop in his trade show’s headquarters in Los Angeles’ Hollywood district.
The store, called United Los Angeles, will offer Japanese streetwear brands that Walker says are not available in America such as Mackdaddy, Product and Easy Job. Price points will be $65 for T-shirts to $500 for some custom-made denim pants.
Not everyone will be able to shop at the store, Walker said. A membership card will be required to gain entry to the boutique. Cards can be requested by e-mailing the store’s Web site (www.unitedlosangeles.com).
Walker said that he planned to open two other 350-square-foot stores in Las Vegas and New York in the next six months.
A couple of reasons for the expansion are maintaining a presence in the cities where he does business and serving the customer, according to Walker. “The biggest complaint I get about trade shows is how they pop into other towns, do business and then leave,” Walker said.
While United runs a biannual show in Las Vegas, it will debut a New York show this summer. It is scheduled for July 23–24 at the Skylight Gallery in Manhattan’s SoHo section. More than 75 designers, including Glendale, Calif.–based Farmer Denim, will exhibit at the show. United’s New York show will run concurrently with fashion trade shows Project Global Trade Show and Blue, set for the Jacob K. Javits Convention Center and Pier 92, respectively. Project New York is scheduled for July 22–23. Blue, owned by ENK International, is scheduled for July 23–25.
In other notes, Walker’s sister, Pooltradeshow founder Ronda Walker, made an appearance at the June 4 United party, where 400 people celebrated at the Tokio restaurant, located below the trade-show company’s headquarters. She sold Pool in August 2005 to Advanstar Communications Inc. for $3 million and also signed a “noncompete” agreement to seal the deal. The 38-year-old Pool founder embraced both the letter and the spirit of the “non-compete” clause. Her new project is growing organic avocados in Fallbrook, Calif., where she owns a three-acre farm.—Andrew Asch
