Surtex is a major date on the exhibition calendar for most design studios. This year the show celebrated it’s 25th Anniversary and the overall look was much smarter and professional; with colour coded carpet in lime and orange, providing clear definition between licensing art and outright sales. Exhibitor numbers were up 23% on last year and out of 277 exhibitors, 46 were UK companies.
I have recently been invited to and joined the Surtex Advisory Council and with other council members, Suzanne Cruise & Viv Eisner, was able to meet the organizers during the show for updates and discussions. We were all able to make some valid and interesting suggestions.
Unfortunately, the weather was not up for discussion and we had to contend with torrential rain on the day the show opened – it didn’t stop for 4 days and certainly didn’t help visitors to Surtex. The first day, Sunday, was somewhat quiet, but by Monday the show had picked up & there was a definite buzz about the place.
The usual suspects, American Greetings & Hallmark, made an appearance but there were some noticeable absences, including one major player with 5 companies under their umbrella – only two representatives attending the show.
It seems that the US market is still recovering from the recession with caution being the operative word.
