2/2/2009
A trade show for gift and souvenir buyers is scheduled at
Pipestem Resort State Park, Monday through Wednesday, Feb. 9-11. An annual tradition, the trade show brings vendors and gift shop buyers together under one roof for three days. This gift show is one of the few remaining trade show venues of this kind. Buyers must register in advance or at the door. There is no charge for buyers to attend.
“The show is an opportunity for gift shop or businesses with gift sales to meet with more than 55 wholesale vendors and see merchandise and new products for the coming year,“ explains Steve Bolar, Pipestem Resort State Park Superintendent. “It is a one-stop wholesale shopping opportunity not only for our park system gift areas but for any gift shop or business that is interested.”
The gift show is known as Gift Buyers Marketplace or the Pipestem Gift Show and welcomes buyers from parks, attractions, retail shops and shop buyers looking for new souvenir or gift ideas for retail sales. This 2009 Gift Buyers Marketplace features items ranging from shirts and caps, wood works and novelty items to West Virginia products.
A free workshop, “Attracting New Business in a Weak Economy,” is scheduled for Feb. 9 from 7 – 8:30 p.m. for show attendees. The format will be a panel discussion featuring glass artist Ron Hinkle, woodworker Sue Jennings of Allegheny Treenware and entrepreneur Ellie Conlon of Thistle Dew Farm and Mountain Craft Shop. The program includes marketing strategies, sharing ideas on how to rev up promotions and sales, and creating effective display and merchandizing themes. This workshop is sponsored by Preservation Alliance of West Virginia in conjunction with Pipestem's Buyers Marketplace and supported by a grant from the Claude Worthington Benedum Foundation to PAWV's West Virginia Cultural Heritage Development Program: a program helping to build relationships between West Virginia foods, arts and crafts producers and West Virginia retailers and tourism outlets. There are several West Virginia artisans included in the vendors participating.
“In today’s retail world it is nice to have an opportunity to meet many vendors under one roof,” says Sue Newton, gift shop coordinator at Pipestem Resort. “This show lets me consider different items and choices at one place. I get to actually look at the merchandise to make a buying decision and talk with the salesperson one-on-one, and the vendors get to see a lot of buyers.”
The Marketplace starts Monday, Feb. 9, from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. and runs through noon Wednesday, Feb. 11. The agenda includes opportunities for buyers and vendors to network as well as one-on-one appointments and merchandising opportunities. A vendors list is available. The exhibit hall is staged in the Hudkins Conference Center at Pipestem’s McKeever Lodge. Buyers must register to attend the show. Buyers may download a registration form at www.pipestemresort.com and click on Buyers Registration Form . Pre-registration by phone is recommended for buyers or register as a walk-in either Monday or Tuesday.
For additional information about Pipestem’s Gift Buyers Marketplace 2009, vendors list or buyers registration, call Pipestem Resort at (304) 466-1800.
Contact Information
Ruth Ann Hatcher or Sue Newton
304-466-1800
conventions@suddenlinkmail.com