RETAILOBSERVER.COM APRIL 2024
6
Moe Lastfogel
moe@retailobserver.com
Moe's Musings Views
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I
n February we celebrated KBIS's 60th Anniversary. Wow, what an event. Combined again
with IBS for the 10th Design & Construction Week, the show was over the top. Over 117,000
attendees and 260 new vendors made it difficult to see everything, but I got my steps in for
sure. The booths were amazing, as everyone tried to outdo themselves from the previous
year and I was impressed with some of the new products that were launched. You will see
these new products featured over the next few months in our Industry News section. As I
write this, I am still recovering from the event, and you can read the full recap of the event on
page 8 of this issue.
March was the time for Buying Group Shows, and the events were awesome! Nationwide
kicked off first in Las Vegas, followed by BrandSource also in Las Vegas.
During NMG's show, the tempo was upbeat, and buying was at a frenzied pace. Many
manufacturers introduced new products. In general, every vendor and dealer I spoke with
was very excited to see what the rest of the year has to offer. During the PrimeTime Expo, the
Palooza was held, a 90-minute buying frenzy where dealers can secure some of the best
deals of the year at hard-to-beat pricing. During the event, Palooza also presented hours of
valuable education and training, and insightful panels and industry updates that provided
opportunities for independent retailer members to work on their businesses.
As usual, the BrandSource event was also extremely busy. Outdoor Source has grown
tremendously as well as their home integration and electronics division. The Summit agenda
was a gangbuster cluster of product trainings, region meetings, and education sessions,
including dedicated tracks for the group's AVB Marketing, ServiceSource, Furniture
Technology Source, and HRSource arms. Other highlights included Town Halls for servicing
members and home furnishings dealers; a first-time service manager certification program
at Summit; and the much-anticipated show-special Stampede and new product EXPO.
Events coming this month are High Point Market, Eurocucina/Salone del Mobile, Coverings,
and the HD Expo. We will have recaps of these events over the next few months. As always,
you can visit our events page at www.retailobserver.com/2024-year-at-a-glance.html to see
what is coming up.
tribgroup.com
KBIS 60TH
ANNIVERSARY
& BUYING SHOWS
BRING OPTIMISM FOR
A BRIGHT FUTURE
