RETAILOBSERVER.COM APRIL 2019
6
Moe Lastfogel
moe@retailobserver.com
Moe's Musings Views
Happy Retailing,
M
y last few months have been a whirlwind of travel. I'm
ready for a well-needed break which I'll be able to take in
April. While traveling to Germany for IMM and Living
Kitchen, KBIS, TICE, two buy fairs, LV World Market, the
International Housewares Show, ASTI and Arch Digest, I've seen
hundreds of thousands of very upbeat and excited people.
KBIS, the featured expo in this issue, was absolutely stunning.
The numbers still aren't in, but a good guesstimate is that KBIS
drew well over a hundred thousand visitors for Design and
Construction Week – a 30% increase over last year, and one of
the biggest of all time. Many manufactures stepped up their game
with larger booths and many new products, which we will highlight
over the next few months starting with this issue.
IMM and Living Kitchen were two big highlights of my travels.
Cologne, Germany is a great city for trade fairs, with gigantic
facilities. Filling 11 halls, some with two stories, these shows
definitely warranted a transatlantic trip. Living Kitchen showed
the newest trends in the kitchen, and IMM had more furniture
offerings than I've ever seen. I'm looking forward to returning in
2021, and this time I'll add a few more days since two just weren't
enough.
As for all the other shows and buy fairs I visited – I can only say
a big triple-WOW!!! The attendees were excited, the vendors
were joyous, and the general atmosphere was truly upbeat. A
large number of these shows achieved double-digit growth in
attendance and significantly more vendors than in prior years.
The outlook for this year is great, and we can't wait to show you
these fantastic events in our upcoming spring and summer issues.
I'M
IMPRESSED
We proudly support the following
trade associations and buying groups
throughout North America whose news
and information greatly contribute to the
quality of The Retail Observer and the
education of our readers.
www.unitedservicers.com
www.cedia.org
www.NKBA.org
www.asid.org www.aham.org
www.brandsource.com
www.cta.tech
www.nahb.org
www.dpha.net
www.feigroup.net
www.htsa.com
www.psaworld.org
www.nationwidegroup.org
www.cantrex.com
www.psoca.org
www.necoalliance.com
www.prosourceinfo.com
www.NARI.org
THE RETAIL
www.nrha.org
Follow us on:
Join us at:
Become a Fan: