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The following article is mainly aimed at artists new to the art licensing industry and those that are interested in viewing products at the AmericasMart in Atlanta where the Atlanta Gift Shows are held.
Artists and art agents are always searching for manufacturers that license art. One way is to attend trade shows where manufacturers sell their products to stores (internet, retail, gift, etc.), organizations, and more. It is an excellent way to find manufacturers that license art even though not all manufacturers exhibiting at these shows do. Often manufacturer art directors attend the larger shows especially those shows that have permanent showrooms. Thus, those are the shows that most artists and art-licensing agents attend so they can connect with the art directors.
AmericasMart
The largest gift trade show in the United States is located at the AmericasMart in Atlanta, Georgia. It has two gift and home furnishing shows each year in January and July. The dates for the next shows are July 10 - 16, 2018 and January 8 - 15, 2019. The Mart consists of three buildings with 15, 18, or 23 stories that are accessed by elevators, escalators, stairs, and enclosed walkways from one building to another. It has more than 1400 permanent showrooms and about 2500 temporary booths during a show.
Artists and agents that attend the Atlanta show are able to approach companies (manufacturers and distributors*) for contact information, meet with art licensing directors to show art for licensing consideration, get inspiration by looking at all the products, and view what art themes and colors are trending. Because the show is a wholesale trade show for buyers, artists/agents are only allowed to attend if they qualify for the AmericasMarts admission policy. Artists/agents can qualify by being a guest of a company exhibiting at the show**, a guest of a retail buyer attending the show, a buyer if the artist owns a business and qualifies as a buyer, or as press/media (some bloggers have been able to quality). To find out more about qualifying, read “Admission Policy” and “Press Credentials".
* A distributor is a company that manufactures hire to promote and sell their products.
** A company that is exhibiting at the show normally is willing to get the artist/agent a badge if she/he has licensed their art with them.
Showrooms, Products, and Trends
The Mart showrooms on most floors have floor-to-ceiling glass windows that showcase an amazing number of “eye-candy” products. A person walking down hallways on the many floors in the Mart can quickly get sensory overload! Below is a list of short videos from the 2015, 2017, and 2018 Atlanta Shows. Numerous products and trends are shown in the videos. Make sure that you check the date the video was published so that you know that the art may not be the latest trend. However, some art is popular year after year and is still very licensable. Not all manufactures in the videos license art. Although, viewing the products is still helpful to spot what is popular for products, art design, texture, and color.
• “Gift at AmericasMart” promotion for the 2018 July gift show. Six videos with interviewers Brian Patrick Flynn and Patti Carpenter.
1. "High Design, Gourmet, & On-Trend” Join Brian Patrick Flynn for some favorite picks from the High Design, Gourmet, and On Trend floors at AmericasMart.
2. "Terri Schuver from American Made Collective” Patti Carpenter caught up with Terri Schuver and other artists from American Made Collective to talk about the trend of American-made and about how some artists achieve their unique spin.
3. "Tamra Bryant from Creative Co-Op” Patti Carpenter caught up with Tamra Bryant from Creative Co-Op to talk about the new Pure theme, among other new product trend releases.
4. "Robin Goad with Waterford” Patti Carpenter caught up with Robin Goad from to discuss how millennials can be brought into the high-end table top market.
5. "Michael Brezicky with Kitchen2Table” Patti Carpenter caught up with Michael Brezicky to discuss how millennials can be brought into the high-end table top market.
6. " Ellen Fruchtman from Mud Pie” Patti Carpenter caught up with Ellen Fruchtman from Mud Pie to find out what is going on in terms of experiential engagement to create inspiration for attendees.
• 2018 January Show
– "Live from the Show Floor: Gift" - Published on Feb 26, 2018
– "For Exhibitors: The Temporary Experience at AmericasMart" - Published on Feb 26, 2018
– "Creative Co-Op Seasonal 2018" - Published on Dec 26, 2017
• 2017 January Show
– "RAZ Imports Christmas 2017 Glimpse of the line 720page" - Published on Jan 19, 2017
– "Creative Co-Op Showroom Sneak Peek: Traditions 2017" - Published on Dec 20, 2016
– "Creative Co-op Showroom: Home Dec 2017" - Published on Dec 29, 2016
• 2015 January and July Shows
– "The World of Gift" - Published on Aug 28, 2015
– "Spotted at AmericasMart Atlanta" - Published on Jan 20, 2015
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