Art & designs sourced for every imaginable product at Surtex
Held every year in New York City, Surtex is a global business-to-business (B2B) event for sourcing original art and design, where artists, art agents, designers, licensors, art agencies and global design studios connect with manufacturers and retailers to create products with a surface or textile design of any kind. Product categories at Surtex include wall coverings, patterns, decorative accessories, bed linens, stationery, giftware and apparel. Sales manager Awanda Booth talks trends, textile designs and techniques at Surtex 2019, which took place from February 3 to 5.
What were the key highlights at Surtex 2019?
What were the key highlights at Surtex 2019? The new co-location of Surtex 2019 with NY NOW, a marketplace for home, lifestyle, handmade and gift items, offered tremendous opportunity for exhibitors to see new business. Many had the chance to engage with new companies and business segments and manufacturers of products like doggie beds, children's umbrellas.
The Trend Theatre was a popular feature with two free 30-minute sessions offered by industry experts and thought leaders. They shared the latest in design, style and buying trends for categories ranging from textiles and tabletop to stationery. Topics included merchandising surface pattern collections; fusion of fashion and home through colour, patterns and materials; what is art licensing and why retailers should care; the power of colour harmonies for home products and interiors; the influence of luxury textiles; and top design trends for children's fashion and lifestyle: Spring/Summer 2020.
What is the percentage of textile design and art exhibited at Surtex 2019? What amount of art and designs are sourced for textile products?
At Surtex, art and designs are sourced for every product imaginable and there is no limit on the number of products that are sourced at Surtex.
What amount of artwork/design gets licensed at Surtex?
Fifty five per cent of the exhibitor's license designs, 29 per cent outright sell and 16 per cent were in Design District and did both.
Which countries are the textile artists and textile designers from?
This year we had 15 different exhibiting countries, which included South Korea, Japan, Switzerland, Australia, Portugal, Italy, Canada, United Kingdom and Mexico.
What colours, patterns, textures and techniques do you see strongly dominating the apparel and home textile sectors? What trends are here to stay for the long haul and which ones are transitory?
This year the Pantone colour of the year is coral, so we saw evidence of that. Overall designs were much more colourful this year than in previous years. Exhibitors took more design risks this year and it paid off. One of the stable designs at Surtex is anything seasonal. Whether it is goblins, Santas, turkeys or menorahs, all seasonal designs are popular. Florals continue to perform well as do watercolor designs.
What is the number of home textile and apparel manufacturers or retailers attending Surtex?
The home textile industry continues to dominate every Surtex show, with the National Stationery show holding a close second position. However, this year, we had more apparel companies, such as Ralph Lauren and Jakob Schlaepfer, attending Surtex.
What was the number of exhibitors and visitors at Surtex 2019 compared to last year?
With the change in co-location and change of floors alongside NY NOW Home, Surtex was curated with over 90 professional exhibitors with extraordinary work to display. Comparison with the past is not possible. (HO)
Published on: 14/03/2019
DISCLAIMER: All views and opinions expressed in this column are solely of the interviewee, and they do not reflect in any way the opinion of Fibre2Fashion.com.
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