Tonlé booth
TRADE SHOWS
CALA Draws in Buyers and Brands With Las Vegas Debut in a Comfortable Atmosphere
At the Hard Rock Hotel & Casino, CALA Las Vegas made its debut with a show that ran Aug. 12–13. With emerging brands and showrooms that afforded a more boutique-style experience, CALA provided a welcoming experience that generated an environment that made shopping easy.
Showcasing Beverly Hills–based, made-in-Italy brand Queen of Noise by Ambra Zavatta, representatives at the Apart booth felt the new show offered an intimate, business-focused setting. They saw buyers place orders for the collection, which is priced from $99 to $210 wholesale.
“I’ve worked with CALA since they started. Gerry [Murtagh] knows how to do it right, and he makes everything comfortable,” Sheila Hill, a representative for the brand, said. “We’re the pioneers.”
Shopping for her Fredericksburg, Texas, shop, Haberdashery,Jill Elliott intended to stop only to see Tonlé, theSan Francisco brand that is ethically made in Cambodia, yet she was pleasantly surprised by the offerings at the show.
“What was going to be a 20-minute stop turned into two hours, and there are good lines here that people should be aware of,” she said. “I anticipated writing one line and leaving, but I wrote three lines from one exhibitor, I wrote Ronen Chen and another line from India, and I haven’t finished.”
While shopping, Elliott felt that pieces wholesaling between $45 and $75 could fit her needs for pieces that she could sell at approximately $200 retail.
“In Texas, fabrication is important. People will still wear cotton and linen throughout winter and layer it with a cool sweater,” she said. “I don’t do trendy, but I like things that will be in your closet for a long time. I am always looking at interesting shapes, textures, prints, and I want things that you can mix and match and layer that will evolve throughout the seasons.”
