On-site workshops for attendees on the ins and outs of doing business with specific countries will be featured at this year’s Global Home Textiles trade show at the Sands in Las Vegas.
As always, the show is geared to importers, wholesalers, retailers and others who wish to source directly from overseas producers.
Some 350 foreign manufacturers will present textiles for every room in the home. Merchandise will include bed linens and top-of-bed, pillows, bath fashions and towels, table linens and kitchen textiles, window treatments, area rugs, decorative accessories, items for children and infants, and decorative fabrics and trims.
Among the exhibitors this year are Kuldeep International, Star Silk Exports Pvt. Ltd. and Swati Exports from India; Floor Carpet Industries Pvt. Ltd. from Nepal; Hung Quang Co. Ltd. from Vietnam; Texstyles Deco Inc. from Canada; and Shengkun Silk Manufacturing Co. from China.
Foreign trade groups will also have exhibits. They include the China Chamber of Commerce for Import/Export of Textiles, Pakistan’s Trade Development Authority and numerous others.
Six country-specific sessions, each an hour long, will run on Tuesday, May 6. The countries include Italy, Pakistan, India, Egypt, China and Indonesia. A fee, yet to be determined, will be charged.
At the kickoff breakfast on Wednesday, May 7, a speaker will address the state of the U.S. home products market in 2008. That will be followed by sessions on ways to select the “right” overseas suppliers, and issues of product safety and quality control.
The next day, Thursday, May 8, seminars will expand on the basics of sourcing and importing, and how to use free-trade agreements to increase revenue.
In addition to the on-site events, complimentary preshow “Webinars,” each lasting an hour and a half, will be available exclusively to exhibitors, “to best help them prepare for the U.S. market and trade show participation,” according to a statement from George Little Management, the show’s manager.
“Understanding Channels of Distribution” will be held in late February and early March. A Webinar on “Successfully Doing Business With U.S. Companies” will be held in mid-March. Finally, a Webinar on “Overcoming Cross-Cultural Challenges” will be held in late April. In addition, a postshow Webinar on best utilizing sales leads is planned for the end of May.
Attendees will have the opportunity to visit other shows at the Sands during the same time period. These include Global Home Decor and the Gourmet Housewares Show. Also, a shuttle bus will transport visitors to the Las Vegas Convention Center for the Reed Exhibition’s National Hardware Show.
With international sourcing in textiles and other industries rapidly transforming global trade, shows like this are bound to gain in importance. To keep abreast of this development, George Little Management has been expanding its international network, especially in various Asian countries, but also in Italy, the Philippines and South Africa, according to a GLM spokeswoman.