ATLANTA — From red carpet gowns to red, white and navy nautical looks, buyers were enticed by AmericasMart’s early spring offerings.
They sought higher-end merchandise with innovative fabrics and attention to detail, as well as that special something that sets them apart.
Attendance was strong at the women’s and children’s apparel and accessories mart, which ran Aug. 24-28 at AmericasMart here.
Mark Badgley and James Mischka were honored as guest designers at a fashion show. Their new bridge sportswear collection, which will launch in New York during fashion week, will be carried in AmericasMart in January. This show was limited to holiday and spring eveningwear.
Lawton Hall Sr., vice president of apparel at AmericasMart, attributed the robust market to buyer outreach, showroom expansions and growing categories such as social occasion and young contemporary.
August has become a big show, with FirstLOOK, a bridal, prom, pageant and social occasion event that draws national buyers. Hall said 175 showrooms, 20 percent more than last year, offered social occasion and related products.
Exhibitor Jean Paul Hamm, chief executive officer of Alyce Designs, a social occasion and bridal line, said he saw 500 accounts, with sales rising 40 percent compared with 2005.
The show draws national industry organizations and publications that hold meetings, parties, fashion shows and seminars here. More than 67 member stores from the National Prom Association shopped AmericasMart, said Thomas Tolbert, vice president of NPA, and owner of Legends, a social occasion store in Roswell, Ga. Members discussed issues, from delivery problems to competition from discounters and the Internet.
Sportswear exhibitors were also pleased, reporting gains from lines that broke spring merchandise that is so key to the region. Brad Johnson, principal of Ambrosia & Co., a bridge sportswear sales firm, said sales were up 30 percent compared with last year and were helped by more lines showing spring, attracting Florida accounts looking for early deliveries.
On the 10th floor social occasion area, Heather Siegel, owner of The Ultimate in Peabody, Mass., watched showroom fashion shows with a large pencil in hand. She sells in excess of 5,000 prom dresses a year, along with social occasion, sportswear and swimwear.
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“I buy ballgowns, showstoppers, sexy dresses, demure looks for shy 15-year-olds and everything in between,” said Siegel, who has been in business for 37 years. Siegel said her challenge is to change with the times and to keep up with savvy customers who expect attentive personal service.
She bought iridescent taffeta gowns with gathered, pick-up skirts in vegetable colors, as well as traditional best-selling sherbert shades. She liked bold color combinations with beading by Jasz and also bought Faviana’s celebrity styles.
“Wealthy customers aren’t necessarily the biggest prom spenders,” she said. “They may look for bargains, while the working class families go all out.”
Marshall Simon, owner of Gwynn’s of Mt. Pleasant, in Mt. Pleasant, S.C., bought holiday special occasion dressing and resort and early spring sportswear for his 20,000-square-foot specialty store.
For a wealthy customer base in the bedroom community near Charleston, Gwynn’s has added bridge and gold-range prices, offering Badgley Mischka, Catherine Malandrino and Escada Sport recently, resulting in sales that are up 20 percent over last year.
Simon bought Nicole Miller’s stretch and glazed metal dresses, pairing them with nontraditional vintage-inspired evening jewelry from Boheme and Verdier. In sportswear, he purchased nautical trends such as cropped cigarette shorts, striped shirts and cashmere hoodies, boyfriend T-shirts and leggings, from Vince and others. Simon also bought travel jersey from Yansi Fugel and high-end belts by Suzie Roher.
Meshelle Olieve-Eicher shopped for high-end product to update Tulip, her 5,000-square-foot Knoxville, Tenn., specialty store. She spent about $100,000 at market on designer and bridge sportswear and accessories.
“My friends and I are tired of having to go to San Francisco or other big cities to find the lines we want,” she said.
Olieve-Eicher bought heavily in Tahari, along with dresses by David Meister and Kay Unger, and navy and white nautical sportswear by Alvin Valley.
“I want sophisticated, slightly trendy looks that go from office to social to evening,” she said. “I like interesting fabrics, like metallics, leathers and suedes with details, especially ruching, tucking, trims.”
She purchased jackets two-to-one from Emil Rutenberg, and applauded the market’s innovative fabrics and attention to detail, but said she would like to see more designer lines.
Trendy, wear-now clothes and accessories were the goal of Kristen Rammacca, owner of Imperial Salon & Spa, a 10,000-square-foot store in Melbourne, Fla.
“We’re adding clothing, gifts and accessories for women who come in for the spa experience and can have a one-stop shop,” she said.
In apparel, she bought Blue Cult, 1921, Level 99 and other premium denim lines that offer her exclusives, easy-care stretch separates by Bordeaux and embellished T-shirts and tunics by Skye and Nally & Milly. For accessories, which are more than half of the boutique’s sales, Rammacca purchased Suzi Roher belts and vintage jewelry, in small quantities, or one-of-a-kind pieces to stand out from competition.