ORLANDO, Fla. — Surf Showthe leading watersports and beach lifestyle exhibition produced by Emerald, will be held from January 4 to 6, 2023, at County Convention Center’Orange, and the show is expected to see growth of more than 20% in terms of participants and’exponents relative to l’previous year.
“The beach sector continues to grow, with many retailers having two of their best years ever,” said Roy Turner, senior vice president and show director at Emeraldsaid. “Now that supply chains are stabilizing, retailers are looking to have face-to-face conversations with their premium brands and are also looking to diversify their buying options, protecting themselves from any future supply chain disruptions.”
L’Emerald Surf Expo in January will grow to approximately 190,000 net square feet, compared to the January 2022 show. The January 2023 show already has 800 exhibiting brands registered, including 100 new exhibitors, including Apex Skimboards, BirkenstockMISFIT and Just black denim among others. Early indications are that the September 2023 event follows the same pattern.
“Over the past few show cycles, we’ve focused on delivering the right mix of products to meet the needs of our retailers across our nine categories,” Turner said. “We work hard to understand what buyers are looking for to ensure the brands at the show are meeting their needs and vice versa. Our full-time buyer relations team is dedicated to working directly with buyers, helping them stay on top of their needs and challenges and building connections. Additionally, we continue to offer more sophisticated ways to connect, with our matchmaking platform for appointment booking before and during the show, and we provide lead retrieval apps to each exhibitor to build their databases and facilitate follow-up after the show.”
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“Surf Expo is the largest and longest-running watersports, beach and resort recreation trade show in the world,” Turner said. “Attendees can identify new trends, new brands and meet manufacturers face-to-face. Exhibitors can launch new products, have candid conversations with their customers and reach audiences in all 50 states and’a strong audience from the Caribbean,’Central America and’South America. Our new matchmaking tools make it easier for attendees and exhibitors to connect before, during and after the’event. “
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Surf Expo saw a strong recovery from the pandemic, with the September 2022 show seeing an 18% increase in floor space compared to the September 2021 show, over 645 exhibitors and over 150 new brands. Retailer attendance increased by 16% compared to the’previous year. Notable new brands at the September 2022 show include Bartolo Beachwear, Carber Skateboards, FoamLife, Salty Home and Trippy Outdoor.
“While we are always looking to add events that create energy on our floor, such as live fashion shows, skate ramps, speakers, happy hours and live music, we strive to provide a cohesive fashion marketplace that buyers and sellers can count on,” Turner said. “Our customer service is our number one priority and the majority of buyers and sellers know our staff by name. Our team is focused on connecting buyers and sellers before, during and after the event.”
Contact Roy Turner at (404) 510-6849 or [email protected]