Trans-Ocean reports strong Atlanta sales in in-out mats and rugs, while LR Home scored with its newest natural
fibers lineup.
ATLANTA – The January 2024 edition of Atlanta Market boasted 6,000+ exhibiting brands, among them rug and home accents companies LR Home, Trans-Ocean by Liora Manne and Loloi.
With expanded opportunities for product discovery, a full slate of education and social events, and a new and improved @Market App, the show, which ran Jan. 16-22, 2024, proved a good testing ground for innovation and fresh fashion in area rug and accessory introductions.
“The Winter 2024 Atlanta Market delivered unmatched buying opportunities and one-of-a-kind industry events to buyers from all 50 states and 50 countries,” said Bob Maricich, ANDMORE CEO. “The energy and optimism in Atlanta were palpable, and buyers and sellers reported overwhelmingly positive results.”
At LR Home, new additions to the reversible Belize indoor-outdoor collection were hits because of their performance and style.
“Atlanta Market met expectations,” said Vinamra Laddha, COO of LR Home. “While the weather and travel delays hampered some, the buyers that attended were vetted, interested, and excited about filling their retail needs with LR Home products.”
Retailers headed to LR Home’s showroom for a first look at the company’s GeoBlend collection, which advances the brand’s Naturals portfolio with upscale designer looks. “The new GeoBlend collection was very well received as were our newly expanded pillow and pouf assortments,” Laddha explained, noting that the reversible indoor-outdoor Belize collection was expanded this market to meet buyers’ requests.
LR Home coordinates its Shelton pouf ottomans with Willow rug from the new Geoblend collection (top rug) and a
Naturals collection solid design.
At the temporaries in Building 2, “Traffic seemed down probably due to weather,” said Dean Smith, vice president sales, Trans-Ocean Imports.
“But we did have a number of buyers through and met our expectations for the market. Indeed, retailers head to Trans-Ocean for a preview of the newest looks in perennially best-selling collections and categories. “Buyers were interested in our novelty mats and indoor/outdoor rugs and pillows,” Smith told RugNews.com.
Atlanta Market's gift and home buyers headed to Trans-Ocean to shop its popular novelty mats and performance rugs.
Shown, Sea Biscuit
Designer Liora Manne’s exclusive collections for Trans-Ocean resonated with Atlanta market-goers and among the top sellers were Sea Biscuit from the Frontporch collection, Esencia scatter rugs, and the Carmel Reef Border area rug, Smith said.
Trans-Ocean's indoor-outdoor rugs continue to be a top seller with Atlanta shoppers. Shown, Carmel Coral Border
Dynamic Discovery Promotes Buying
LR Home's new hand-woven wool Helix lineup was a hit for its hand-crafted textured pattern.
Innovation and sourcing across Atlanta Market’s 2,400+ permanent showrooms and temporary exhibitors gave sellers unparalleled opportunities to connect and reconnect with key industry contacts. Steady order writing and renewed relationships signaled confident buying across the market’s gift, home décor and apparel categories.
Buying Groups and Industry Partners Drive Key Market Attendance
The Esencia collection of in-out scatters from Trans-Ocean were a hit with gift buyers at Trans-Ocean’s exhibit stand
in The Gardens at Atlanta Market.
Some 15 major buying groups and associations converged at Atlanta Market, bringing key accounts, member-based meetings and industry partner programming to the buying event.
Key accounts made their mark at Atlanta Market with notable retailers, including Anthropologie, Bloomindales, Costco, Havertys, Macy’s, Nordstrom/Nordstrom Rack, Overstock, Pottery Barn, QVC/HSN and Williams Sonoma, in attendance.
“Atlanta Market is great for us, because we get the opportunity to have more extended meetings with our vendors,” said Alice Anderson, Haverty’s accessory buyer. “This Market represents all of our categories, so it’s perfect for finding more display-oriented items.”
According to show operator, AndMore, many of Atlanta Market’s 1,200+ temporary exhibitors cited significant gains this January, record-breaking sales and contacts with key buyers. But beyond buying, retailers and designers were welcomed with programming that complemented cross-category sourcing at Market. Nearly 20 curated events over five days attracted crowds to immersive demonstration kitchens, business-focused seminars and networking events.
@Market App Makes Market Seamless
Trans-Ocean's playful dog themed mats are a constant draw with gift and home shoppers.
ANDMORE’s @Market App returned to the January Atlanta Market – on both Android and iOS devices – with enhanced capabilities including wayfinder navigation, a brand directory and links to resources on the market website. Just six months after its initial launch, the @Market App has transformed how market is done by providing more opportunities for discovery and sourcing through the easy adoption of app resources including Scan & Go QR code for badge pickup, photos and notes to document market finds and a market planner to favorite and organize showroom and booth visits.
“A picture is worth a thousand words, so the photo feature was such a helpful tool,” said retailer Elie Chiasson, Backyard Supplies Atlantic (Moncton, BC). “From being able to write notes and mark vendors we’ve visited to taking pictures of and saving business cards, we wouldn’t change a thing.”
Casey Deleone of Exquisite Events Décor and Lighting (Saundserstown, RI) added, “Our team was most excited about the ‘My Market Plan’ and photo/note taking features in the app. It truly made our Market experience a breeze.”
New this winter, the @Market app offers an enhanced Market Recap feature, providing on-the-go access to onsite notes and photos, as well as a post-market email summary of at-market activity. This new in-app capability allows connections made at AmericasMart to extend far beyond Market week.
The next Atlanta Market, summer 2024, runs July 16-22, at AmericasMart Atlanta. For information, visit AtlantaMarket.com.