Outside the Commerce and Design (C&D) Building and Suites at Market Square, High Point, NC.

I did it again y’all…High Point Market, done and done. Although this was my second time attending (my first time was last fall), it was an absolute whirlwind! This is the largest home furnishings industry trade show in the world with over 10 million square feet of showroom space, over 2,000 exhibitors, and 180 buildings. You know it’s epic when you have to take shuttles to some of the showrooms. It’s massive and impossible to see it all in one visit or even two or three!

What I’ve quickly learned is that you have to be strategic. When planning your trip, you have to go into it with a clear strategy. Of course you want to build in some flexibility as well because you often end up coming across a showroom or educational session that catches your eye. Rigidity is not the answer, but you still need to be intentional about what objectives you want to achieve.

So, what’s the big deal you ask? Why all the ruckus about this trade show? Well, it’s like the ultimate conference of all conferences mixed with Paris Fashion Week and Super Bowl vibes on steroids, but for designers, decorators, and creatives. Does that paint a pretty clear picture?

There are several goals that can be achieved while attending High Point Market. It’s different for everyone. You just have to have a plan. Here are five (5) reasons why I love going to High Point.

1. Get your network on

Market is absolutely the place to network and make new connections. But it’s also like a huge family reunion too because you run into familiar faces and receive DMs from friends who want to meet up with you. As designers, we’re all over the place and all over the country so this may be that one special moment where you get to connect with them again. There’s also opportunities to meet editors from well-known home design and décor magazines. It could be the start of a wonderful new relationship that can enable designers to get press and visibility for their businesses. You never know who you’ll meet. As designers, we can also be a great connection for someone else. All of us have a superpower and we all have something within ourselves that we can give to help someone else.

Entrance in Eicholtz Showroom, High Point, NC.

2. Scope out new vendors (and grab free food while you’re at it)

Besides the delicious food (that’s free by the way) and what seems to be an endless smorgasbord of wine, cocktails, and margaritas throughout the day, we have the opportunity to meet new vendors. Perhaps we haven’t sourced from them before because we didn’t know about them or didn’t have the right client for their products. Even though I may have my go-tos, I’m always excited and open to see what else is out there. The design world is vast my friend and I’m just scratching the surface!

3. New products!

This is the place to see the debut of new products! We get to sit, touch, feel, spin, open, close, squeeze, and rub on these fabulous pieces. Yikes! It sounds like we’re violating them doesn’t it? If you can look past that, you’ll understand how important this is. In order for us to properly source furniture and décor, we need to be able to attest to the comfort, durability, and functionality of each piece. Our clients can have peace of mind knowing that we’ve tested and approved what we’re proposing for their space. This is the trust factor…and that means everything.

4. Get educated

You can definitely learn something new at Market! I really enjoy the educational sessions and panels that are provided to us as not just professional interior designers, but as business owners. I’m always striving to elevate my business and these sessions definitely contribute to that goal. Pricing, marketing, scaling, hiring, and so much more is covered by industry experts and successful designers that can attest to these systems and processes. There’s such a wealth of knowledge and understanding that we can attain through these sessions. What we learn is so valuable and when put into practice in our businesses, it can be a complete game-changer. You can’t put a price on that.

Hanging out at The Designer’s Lounge at Universal Furniture, High Point, NC.

5. Have fun!

In a world that is seemingly going crazy and everyone appears to be a slave to “busyness”, we need to pause long enough to just enjoy life. Market is a place to connect with people and disconnect from the world. Let you hair down, enjoy the music, good (free) food, and good company. After business has been conducted all day, most showrooms turn into party central at Happy Hour. It’s quite the transformation to see! We’re serious about business, but we don’t take ourselves too seriously. That’s a great balance to strike. It doesn’t have to be all business all the time. Sometimes it’s good to be away from the hustle and bustle of our lives for a few days and just be.

I’ve shared my reasons for taking the time out each year to attend High Point Market. It’s definitely a must for designers. But like I previously mentioned, it’s different for everyone. But I’m willing to bet that no matter what the objectives, most people who go to Market check each of these boxes at one point or another. It’s hard not to. And I bet you’re thinking that I left out one of the most important reasons why designers attend Market…the trends.

No ma’am. No sir. I definitely didn’t forget. I’m saving all of that design goodness for another blog post. I’m going to recap the specific trends I saw as I toured some of my favorite showrooms, so stay tuned!

If you want to see a quick compilation of my experience at High Point this spring, check out our recap video on our Instagram page here. Don’t forget to give us a follow while you’re there!