NEW YORK-The New York International Gift Fair’s three-year reorganization will culminate at the August show with the rebranding of the show as NY Now, with the tagline “The Market for Home & Lifestyle.”
The new name, along with a revamped layout for the show’s four market collections, is intended to “solidify our position as the leading home and lifestyle market in New York City,” said Christian Falkenberg, director of the show and vice president of GLM, the show’s owner and manager. Speaking at a press conference at the Jacob K. Javits Convention Center on Jan. 28, Falkenberg said the rebranding and new layout bring to a close GLM’s three-year strategic reorganization for the Gift Fair, begun in 2010 as Focus Forward 2013.
The four market collections at NY Now will be Home, Handmade, Lifestyle and New. With the refurbishing of the Javits Center complete, Home will be located on Level 3 of the Javits Center and will encompass home furnishings, textiles, tabletop, gourmet housewares and Accent on Design. Lifestyle will be on Level 1, featuring gift and stationery, Baby & Child, personal-care and wellness products, and personal accessories.
Handmade will be on Levels 2 and 4, with Level 2 (Javits North) being the site of Handmade Designer Maker and Level 4 serving as the location for Handmade Global Design. Pier 94 of the Passenger Ship Terminal will be the site of the New collection, which will include New York’s Newest and Artisan Resource.
Among the key changes be the inclusion of the gourmet housewares in the home area. Falkenberg said the name Gourmet Housewares Show will no longer be used, but the section will now be part of both shows each year, rather than only the summer show. In addition, Pier 92 at the Passenger Ship Terminal will not be used for this summer’s show, but Falkenberg said GLM will look to use it at future shows.
GLM will support the rebranding with a new, clean-designed logo and with advertising that, as Falkenberg described it, will be “clean and supported by imagery targeted to the markets we serve.” The company will send emails to all Gift Fair exhibitors to communicate the changes, and is working on other digital products to support the effort, Falkenberg said.
Along with underscoring the show’s position, Falkenberg said other benefits from the rebranding and new layout will be “more efficient buying for retailers, style- and design-led presentations and adjacencies of complementary resources.”
NY Now will run Saturday, Aug. 17 through Wednesday, Aug. 21.