Points

Talking
Points
New in Town
Contemporary kids’ show Playground
skips into Las Vegas during February’s
edition of Magic Marketplace.
Room decor and so much more!
January 8-12
Booth 1012
AmericasMart
Bldg.#3
415-350-7212
www.thelittleacorn.com
8 E A R N S H AW S . C O M • N O V E M B E R / D E C E M B E R 2 0 1 4
BUYERS EAGER TO see something
new on the trade show circuit in Las
Vegas may soon have their wish granted—
Advanstar Global, whose show roster
already includes Project, WWDMagic,
FN Platform and ENK Children’s
Club, will debut Playground during the
February edition of Magic Marketplace.
“Contemporary kids brands have been
asking us for some time to develop a juried event for them,” explains Christopher
Griffin, president of WWDMagic. “The
timing is right and we look forward to
building a show that meets the needs of
this community.”
Located off the grand lobby at the Las
Vegas Convention Center and stretching over 8,000 square feet, Playground
will take place Feb. 17-19, 2015. With
a carefully curated collection of kids’
clothes, Kelly Helfman, sales director
for WWDMagic, is confident the show
will become a hotbed for emerging talent. “The No. 1 thing a retailer looks for is
newness, and we want to showcase some
fresh faces,” says Helfman. “There are a
lot of brands that are huge in social media
but may not be out there with the stores
or haven’t made the leap to trade shows
yet—and I’m excited to see a lot of them
are applying to show at Playground.”
To enhance that edgy image, the show
floor will feature white walls, white carpet
and black-and-white signage. “Even if we
post a photo of a brand we’re promoting
to Instagram, we will change the photo to
black and white to fit our vision,” Helfman
says. And rather than selling traditional
10’ by 10’ booths, Playground is offering brands the opportunity to purchase
square footage and create custom sized
booths. Splendid, Ella Moss, Appaman
and Sweet Peanut are just a handful of
brands already on board, and Helfman
reports a huge response from retailers in
the Midwest and on the West Coast, anticipating attendance from buyers spanning major boutiques to specialty chains.
“This show is really going to benefit from
the crossover traffic from the rest of the
Magic Marketplace shows,” she adds.
This isn’t Magic’s first foray into childrenswear: Most retailers will remember
Magic Kids—which debuted with a bang
in 1997, but in recent years merged with
Magic’s junior offering—not to mention
the well-established ENK Children’s Club
in New York City. “Obviously we’re not
in competition with ourselves,” quips
Helfman, when asked why Advanstar
doesn’t just create a West Coast version of
Children’s Club, or re-launch Magic Kids.
“We’re ready for a fresh start in Vegas and
something new. This show is contemporary, and we want to make it clear that it’s
for the better brands.” She notes one big
reason why Magic Kids petered out was
that it was overshadowed by the juniors’
show, and it was mostly for big-box
brands. “It was also a different day and
age before the market crashed and that
business was really booming,” she offers.
That’s why Playground is a juried
show—and plans to stay that way. “Brands
submit an application online and our
team will decide if it’s a fit,” Helfman
explains. “We need to stay selective and
true to what the show is about. We’re
never going to become one of those shows
that just lets it all in.” —Lyndsay McGregor