TRADE SHOWS
WWIN Does Well for Boutique Business
Reporting more than 500 first-time attendees, the Aug. 13–16 Womenswear in Nevada (WWIN) show at the Rio All-Suite Hotel & Casino connected retailers with exhibitors from misses and contemporary brands.
Long-showing brands at the twice-a-year event experienced busy days on the show floor.
“I am very satisfied at every show,” said IC Collection owner Connie Kye, who manufactures her clothing in Los Angeles and counts department stores such as Dillard’s and Von Maur among her clients. In addition to her loyal clientele, who were placing Spring ’19 orders, Kye said she opened some new retail accounts. “I have new customers because I put the display outside [in the corridor]. It helps a lot.”
Shopping for her women’s apparel boutique The Town Shoppe, Regina Roegner from Lexington, Mich., placed orders for Immediates, Fall, Winter and Spring, which will allow her to have peace of mind and be prepared in early 2019.
“Usually, I don’t come here in August, but this year I did. I wanted to check it out because I come every year in February. They have unique things and pricing is reasonable,” she said. “I am very satisfied. When I see it and if I feel it’s going to work for me, I’ll get it.”
Desiree Hanson, vice president of fashion events for Clarion UX, reported a busy show with attendance about even with one year ago. Exhibitors were sitting with buyers and writing orders well past the show’s close.
New to the event was the Fashion Show & Social, and organizers introduced their Buyer Concierge Club program to connect exhibitors and buyers. For her market, Hanson recognizes the power of e-commerce but knows that the consumers who shop with her exhibitors enjoy frequenting bricks-and-mortar locations.
“The WWIN audience, the boutique buyer, boutiques are hot right now. People like to shop and browse—discover new things,” she said. “Shopping local is in now, more in than it has been in the past.”
Los Angeles–based M Showroom’s Jennifer Backoff was taking orders for Fall, Holiday and Spring from buyers who traveled to the show from the Midwest and West Coast to see brands such as Olive Hill, Paparazzi, Luii, Fredd & Basha and Zaria. With wholesale price points ranging from $24 to $130, Backoff had pricing, style and color options to suit different consumers.
