High Point Market: Insider Tips for Interior Design Excellence
As the largest home furnishings trade show in the world, it’s important to know how to make your way around High Point Market (HPMKT). Held biannually in High Point, North Carolina the fall show is October 14 - 18, 2023 and the Spring 2024 show will be April 13 - 17, 2024. Registration is still open for the fall show but if you can’t make it we definitely recommend planning for 2024.
The size of HPMKT can be daunting to newcomers so we have curated a list of tips on how to make your way through and ensure it was money well spent.
Download and use the app which is available on either Google Play Store or Apple App Store.
Follow the market on social media.
Comfy shoes - this is not the place to wear the new favs in your closet unless you’ve been breaking them in for the last month!
Go early and see your most important vendors first - by day 4 everyone’s exhausted and simply don’t have the energy to share as much as they did at the start.
Bring business cards with your EIN included to make it easier on vendors - a quick handwritten add on to your existing is all it takes!
Take your phone charger - carry it with you as your phone will likely need a recharge from all the picture taking.
Make appointments - only with those lines/products you need a rep to walk you through.
Network - attend the social events, educational seminars and receptions if time allows to make the most of networking opportunities.
Relax and enjoy the live entertainment - you’ll need to decompress from all the design sensory overload!
Avoid burnout - pace yourself by taking with you or grabbing water every chance you get.
Don’t overload the day - you get physically and mentally (or should we say visually?) drained
Eat - FREE food is available - just look for the larger vendors such as Universal (Commerce Concourse)who offer free food - grab it, you’ll walk off the calories and save money!
Use the FREE Go Anywhere shuttle - just tell the driver where you’re headed and he/she will get you to the closest point.
The shuttle runs from 7:30am - 8:30pm on the main show days and 7:30am - 6:00pm on the final day, Wednesday, October 18.
Check out the Park & Ride options as well if you need to park (for FREE) and get a shuttle.
Follow up - you’ll be in a bit of a daze when you get home from all there was to see but be sure to prioritize following up with any vendors you want to establish relationships with.
19th&CO works with interior design and architecture firms of all sizes as an extension of their teams, and helps with just about everything but the designing! Our cohesive group of seasoned operators will help with business development strategies, recruiting, establishing team culture, human resources, financial projections and business operations.
