Some 50,000 people expected for Summer 2013 Market
Rich, gray velvet covers the oval confidante in the foyer. To the left, the eye catches the piece de resistance: three Jensen mirrors with frames that look like interlocking golden watchbands spread across about four feet of wall space.
Beyond them, a painted scene shows a view of the Eiffel Tower just visible in the distance if you’re standing at the window inside Gabrielle Chanel’s Paris apartment.
Found at the Christopher Guy showroom at the World Market Center in Las Vegas, this is what the famed first lady of couture’s apartment could look like if she commissioned the luxury furniture brand to design her home.
Called Mademoiselle, the collection is a highlight of Christopher Guy’s 2013 Summer Market offering this week at the World Market Center.
“It’s Chris’ favorite house of design. In couture, when we speak of timeless things, Chanel is usually right at the top of the list,” said Jon Spurlock, showroom designer and product curator for the Christopher Guy brand. “We are always in search of the perfect black cocktail dress. And they have it.”
The Summer Market runs through Friday at the World Market Center.
More than 3,500 new home decor and gift buyers have registered, representing all 50 states. The market attracted buyers from 73 countries, and about 50,000 people are expected to attend.
Las Vegas Market is a home furnishings and gift exposition presenting more than 1,100 gift and home furnishings resources.
The 8,000-square-foot Christopher Guy Las Vegas showroom was remodeled in preparation for the summer event.
“For us, we’re doing very well. We see new patrons every day,” Spurlock said.
The Las Vegas show is important for the brand, he said, because they see many of their West Coast and international buyers at the twice-yearly event.
“We see people from South America, Latin America, Brazil, all kinds of people,” Spurlock said.
On Monday morning, throngs of buyers descended on the World Market Center to see what was new. Standing just outside Building C, International Market Centers CEO Robert Maricich was taking it all in.
“We’ve done our part. I can’t think of anything we could have done to drive more buyer attendance,” he said. “Room rates are low this time of the year in the city, and that’s a real attraction to last-minute attendance. Now it’s kind of a wait and see what happens the next couple of days. All indications are really, really positive.”
Eighteen months ago, International Market Centers started repurposing the Las Vegas campus, including increasing the number of gift and home offerings for a more complete market experience.
“We’ve introduced seven new categories of gift and have almost 900 new lines. We really are making progress on the gift and home decor front. It feels really good,” Maricich said.
One of the new brands, Luna Bella, attracted a steady crowd Monday morning.
Owner Teresa Costa described her handmade pieces as “a twist on traditional or ’30s modernistic furniture.”
In business since 1996, Costa said the time was right to enter Las Vegas with the expansion of Building C.
While here, she’s targeting the West Coast audience, which hasn’t been a strong demographic for her.
On the buyer side, Teressa King and Jayme Wetzel flew in from Plainview, Texas, this week.
King, the owner of a store called Furniture Expressions, said she buys 100 percent of her product at the Las Vegas Market.
“These markets are extremely important,” she said.
Contact reporter Laura Carroll at lcarroll@reviewjournal.com or 702-380-4588. Follow @lscvegas on Twitter.