#Daylight BOLD EXPANSION AT SHOPPE OBJECT’S WINTER SHOW DRAWS RECORD ATTENDANCE. WHOM YOU KNOW ATTENDS FOR THE FIRST TIME
Shoppe Object, a Premier Home & Gift Show, took place February 5-7, 2023 on Manhattan’s Lower East Side with a larger footprint, a bigger brand count, a sold out floor, and record-breaking attendance. 30% more exhibition space helped to facilitate 150 new brands (for a total of 600+ cross-channel participants). With attendees traveling from across the country and the world, representing 6 continents, 38 countries, and all 50 states, Shoppe Object managed significant growth while maintaining the carefully curated, design-forward ethos and engaging presentation that first defined it. We would like to see this in a more central Manhattan location going forward as it is extremely difficult to locate, and we would like to see a dedicated press room as is de rigueur in all Manhattan trade shows. This was the third trade show we attended within 3 days; we also attended CURVE, previously published on here. Whom You Know was delighted to attend for the first time we believe; we were happy especially to see brands Made In Ireland in attendance. We are obviously Irish and Peachy resided in Cork. Brand owners only of the most impressive brands to us will be contacted and if we missed you, email Peachy. We are glad trade shows are finally coming back to Manhattan after covid, though time has proven they cannot compete with the internet.
“We had two clear objectives for this market,” shared Shoppe Object’s founder and show director, Jesse James. “To fill the new pavilion without sacrificing an ounce of quality, and to attract new buyers at a rate that outpaced the expansion.” Visitors arrived in record numbers to the three-day market, with a 35% increase over Shoppe Object’s August edition — a 60% jump from the previous year — for their largest ever audience. The crowd included a sizable post-pandemic uptick in new buyers, 55% who were visiting Shoppe Object for the first time. Ruth Shapiro, Director of Sales and Business Development for the Museum of Modern Art, felt the change in energy. “Lots of excitement and enthusiasm this market!” she remarked. “The show has expanded to include many more exhibitors. Clearly Shoppe Object is where the best and most interesting vendors and products are to be found.”
A veritable who’s who of retailers were among those who came to the event, including national chains like Anthropologie, Barnes & Noble, Blick Art Materials, CAMP, Crate & Barrel, Design Within Reach, Eataly, Free People, Gap Inc., Hallmark, J. Crew, Madewell, Pottery Barn, Serena & Lily, Standard Hotels, Starbucks, Target, Terrain, Urban Outfitters, West Elm and Williams-Sonoma. Department stores included Beams and Tomorrowland from Japan, Selfridges and Liberty of London, Merci Paris, and a wide range of familiar domestic names like Bergdorf Goodman, Bloomingdales, Macy’s, Neiman Marcus, Nordstrom and Saks Fifth Avenue. Museum stores came from all over the country, including The Art Institute and MCA Chicago, The Getty Museum, SFMOMA, The Noguchi Foundation and The Metropolitan Museum of Art, to name a few, and a fast growing list of catalog and online retailers present included Bespoke Post, Burke Decor, FabFitFun, Food52, Garnet Hill, Jayson Home, One Kings Lane, Maisonette, Schoolhouse, Sundance, UncommonGoods, Verishop, and Wayfair. Premier independent retailers — arguably the lifeblood of the event — included Aero Studios, Clic Gallery, Coming Soon, The Conservatory, John Derian Company, Love Adorned, McNally Jackson Books, The Merchant, Oxford Exchange, The Paris Market, Plain Goods, and The Primary Essentials.
Dotti Spillman, longtime Sales Director for Shoppe Object exhibitor, Blomus, was delighted by the turnout. “It was amazing. We were busy from start to finish, and we were very impressed with the amount of traffic.” Melissa Constandse, principal of local participating brand Open Sea Design Co. of Brooklyn, New York, appreciated the retention of a more personal atmosphere despite all the expansion. “Even though Shoppe Object has really grown, it still feels so much more intimate and curated than any other show.”
With the expanded footprint — which included a new entrance through a 20,000 square foot annex adjoining the existing Pier 36 location — the growing number of exhibitors, and the show’s quality curation, many buyers remarked that they are recalibrating their New York market calendars to spend multiple days at Shoppe Object. “We have been seeing this trend since the return to our physical shows, but this event marked a striking turning point,” shared Renata Bokalo, Shoppe Object’s Director of Sales. “Our new pavilion provided an increase that was vital to our organic growth — now our audience is realizing that spending any less than two full days at Shoppe Object is a missed opportunity.”
The exhibitor line-up this season reflected the show’s master plan to adjust its post-covid category distribution, with strategic expansion of Home brands as a particular focus, and a thoughtful rebalancing of Gift and Accessories. Home brands now represent 45% of the roster, with Accessories making up 30%, and the final 25% comprised of Gift. Cross-category buyers responded positively to the mix. Sue Walsh of Artefact in both Boston and Belmont, Massachusetts, remarked. “Our overall impression was WOW! We purchased from 18 vendors — over half were new for us — now that’s a good show. We arrived at 9am and we were still in the first aisle two hours later.” Veteran lifestyle retailer Kathy Hahn of Adesso in Highland Park, Illinois, said, “The range of product was terrific. Lots of new sources, and the exhibitors seemed happy.” And Cat Birch, Head of Merchandising for the new online retailer Afternoon Light, which carries products in most of the show’s categories, felt she had “No need to go to any other New York trade shows besides Shoppe Object. I was able to catch up with over 25 of our existing brands, and picked up 18 new ones.”
As recently announced, the Shoppe Object brand will expand to High Point Market starting in October of 2023. The next New York edition of Shoppe Object will return to the Riverside and Cityside Pavilions at Pier 36 on Manhattan’s Lower East Side, August 13-15, 2023.
About Shoppe Object: Part of the International Market Centers (IMC) family, Shoppe Object is New York’s semiannual home and gift show. With a curated roster of visionary brands and makers presented in an elevated setting, the show is the ultimate resource for premier merchants and influential editors. Born of a vanguard spirit to celebrate and service the progressive retail and design community, Shoppe Object is a gathering of fellowship, an expression of ideas, and a physical manifestation of a shared dedication to, and reverence for, the beautiful, the inspired, and the well-made. www.shoppeobject.com
