Las Vegas Market, IFDA Reveal Speakers for Educational Summit

Furniture World News Desk on 5/13/2018

Las Vegas Market and the International Furnishings and Design Association (IFDA) recently announced Speakers for the DesignEDGE Education Summit, which kicks off Sunday, July 29th.

DesignEDGE is a regional industry summit started by the IFDA Educational Foundation (IFDA-EF) to advance educational and philanthropic activities within the furnishings and design industries. This is Las Vegas Market’s second year as the DesignEDGE keynote sponsor and the first year as host of the event. 

The 2018 event kicks off on Sunday, July 29, at 10am, with an inspiring address by keynote speaker Nolen Niu, an internationally recognized and award-winning American industrial designer from California who has developed private furniture lines, custom one-of-a-kind pieces, mass production furniture and retail space for corporate, private and celebrity clientele.

“Las Vegas Market is committed to fostering educational, informational and networking opportunities throughout the industries that we serve, and our expanded collaboration with the IFDA Educational Foundation on this pioneering DesignEDGE Summit allows us to present participating industry executives with a cornucopia of ideas that can help them expand their businesses, and at the same time, provides an important value-added benefit for Summer Market attendance,” said Karen Olson, senior vice president marketing, International Market Centers. “As the leading furniture, home decor and gift destination in the western United States, Las Vegas Market believes strongly in strengthening ties between designers, decorators, retailers, manufacturers, suppliers and the licensing community by providing a full slate of educational programming.”

A highlight of the summit will be a special afternoon panel discussion “From Creation to Consumer: Everything You Should Know,” moderated by Nick May, creator of The Chaise Lounge Podcast, (http://chaiseloungepodcast.com) which was the first podcast devoted exclusively to interior design, now downloaded in more than 100 countries. The panel discussion will be followed by a question-and-answer session.

Panelists include: Julia Buckingham, principal of Buckingham Interiors + Designs Limited; Kelli Ellis, interior designer, artist and founding partner of Design Campus, The Design MasterMind; Katherine Kalen, marketing director for furniture supplier Sunpan; Nina Magon, interior designer, TV personality, and creative director of Contour Interior Design; Neil McKenzie, marketing director, Universal Furniture; and Angela Pickens, Branding Consultant out of Los Angeles.

DesignEDGE is CEU approved (3.5 CEUs) “and a not-to-be-missed summit for any designer, no matter their professional affiliation, who has an interest in growing their business by creating original products or a collection,” says Dr. Wilma Hammett, Chair of DesignEDGE. “We have all the players together – the designers, the manufacturers and a licensing and branding expert who will share their expertise, and experiences and answer any questions. And Nick May is the best there is at asking the right questions to get the answers we want to know. We all see that from his podcasts and his panel discussions at markets”

The DesignEDGE program also will include an introductory “sneak peak” at Las Vegas Market’s proprietary FIRST LOOK trend forecast – from 11:15am – 12:15pm. Julie Smith Vincenti, FIRST LOOK curator and 20-year magazine editor, will spotlight four central themes featuring a curated product assortment that reflects the diversity of furniture, home décor and gifts – at all styles, prices points and categories – available at Summer Market.

Online registration for the 2018 DesignEDGE conference is open now at www.ifdaef.org/designedge. Registration will cost $59 for IFDA members; and $99 for non-members. DesignEDGE participants must also register for Las Vegas Market, with registration available online at www.lasvegasmarket.com.

The host hotel for the DesignEDGE summit is the SLS Las Vegas, however rooms are limited. Summit attendees may book rooms at any Las Vegas Market official partner hotel and use the free shuttle service to attend the summit.

More about IFDA: The International Furnishings and Design Association (IFDA) welcomes members from every facet of the furnishings and design industry. Members are executives and companies professionally engaged in the design, production, distribution, promotion, communication or education in the furnishings and design and/or related industries. For more information, visit www.ifda.com.

IFDA Educational Foundation is a non-profit, tax exempt, 501c (3) organization, raising and distributing funds to foster educational activities, as well as, related charitable endeavors to enhance the furnishings and design industries. For more information, visit www.ifdaef.org.

More about Las Vegas Market: Las Vegas Market is the nation’s fastest growing gift and home décor market and the leading furniture marketplace in the western U.S., presenting 4,000+ gift, home décor and furniture resources in an unrivaled market destination. Las Vegas Market features thousands of gift, furniture and home décor lines, allowing for cross-category commerce among these industries. The Summer 2018 Las Vegas Market runs July 29 to August 2, 2018. For more information, visit www.lasvegasmarket.com.

More about International Market Centers, L.P.: Las Vegas Market is produced by International Market Centers, L.P. (IMC), the world’s largest operator of premier showroom space for the furnishings, home décor and gift industries. International Market Centers owns and operates 12.2 million square feet of world-class exhibition space in High Point, N.C. and Las Vegas. IMC’s mission is to build and operate an innovative, sustainable, profitable and scalable platform for the furnishings, home décor and gift industries. For more information on IMC, visit http://imcenters.com/.