Ailing industry rolls out red carpet

The World Market Center on Monday flung open the doors of its 17-story, $550 million building to greet a furniture industry that's facing a world of problems thanks to the troubled economy.

Still, the mood at the $1.1 billion, three-building campus in downtown Las Vegas was upbeat as thousands of furniture suppliers from around the world put their best foot forward for retailers who prowled the halls, scrutinizing the latest items.

Exhibitors tried to look past dour economic news that includes a $2 billion decrease in consumer spending on furniture and bedding since early 2007, according to U.S. Commerce Department statistics.

Instead, they focused on carving out their own business niches to avoid joining the likes of Norwalk Furniture, Collezione Europa, Shermag and Spring Air -- furniture and bedding companies that became the subject of trade industry headlines because of shutdowns, bankruptcies and production cutbacks.

"Every week, the sales are different," said Mordy Meisels of Brooklyn, N.Y., while showing off a line of Venetian-style mirrors in a temporary showroom in Building C.

Meisels said retailers are still ordering his products, which wholesale from about $200 to $1,000, but the economy has customers feeling more skittish, which makes retail sales more sporadic.

"This week he will spend; next week he won't," said Meisels of the typical retail customer.

The activity at World Market Center heralded the opening of the venue's summer market, one of two annual, weeklong events where furniture manufacturers and suppliers set up showrooms for retailers who travel to Las Vegas to check out new styles and write orders for the upcoming season. The event is closed to the general public.

The most striking difference between the current summer market and the most recent market event in January was Building C. The structure, a monolith with sharp angles and a modern look, towers above nearby Interstate 15 and is visible on the downtown skyline for miles.

It is the third of eight planned buildings in what is supposed to become an eight-building headquarters for furniture-industry businesses from around the world.

Although times have changed for the furniture industry in the 18 months since construction started on Building C. Recently, World Market Center officials said they are deferring plans to begin construction on their fourth building until at least the end of the year.

In the meantime their customers, about 1,500 exhibitors in the existing structures, will focus on keeping themselves afloat.

Stacy and Benjamin Kelley traveled from Kampala, Uganda, to Las Vegas for the summer market, their first since founding their business Mibao Furniture Co. about six months ago.

The couple lives in Uganda and hires workers there to produce wooden furniture, specifically a line of massive, solid wood tables. The tables wholesale for about $3,000 to $3,500.

They said they paid about $5,000 to rent 200 square feet of showroom space for a week with the hopes of cultivating an American audience for their furniture line.

"Some of our goals are to feel out the market, what people are looking for, how our tables fit into the market," said Stacy, 30.

She and Benjamin, 29, said they visited a competing furniture industry marketplace in High Point, N.C., but decided to rent space in Las Vegas because they preferred the venue.

They said the High Point market merchandising areas were on an open floor and exhibitors stood cheek-to-jowl, making it hard to build an effective display. In Las Vegas they share a showroom with just a few other vendors.

"So far everybody has been really, really good," Benjamin said of the World Market Center. "Whatever we ask for, they set it up."

Wayne Helfand, president of Art of Decor, a Scottsdale, Ariz., wholesaler of hand-blown glass lighting and vases, said he wrote up about six new orders within hours of the market opening.

Helfand said he was glad to be in Building C after spending the last several markets in temporary space the World Market Center hosted for exhibitors in convention areas at Sands Expo Center and MGM Grand.

Helfand was among exhibitors who said they didn't like the practice of spending each market in a different hotel location.

In a permanent setup, customers become familiar with an exhibitor's location and return for subsequent markets to check out new products, Helfand said.

"You might not remember a person's name, but you know where they are," he said.

Contact reporter Benjamin Spillman at bspillman@reviewjournal.com or 702-477-3861.