It’s that time of year as many of us are getting ready for Vegas Market Baby! As you prepare to walk the halls in uncomfortable shoes, eat too much, drink more than you should, and sleep less than you want to, I offer a few reminders.

For the people selling stuff:

• Keep it short, nobody really wants to hear your talk and everybody has other people to see.
• Save the BS and shoot straight. If your marketing department has gone all goofy with technical speak that nobody can understand then summarize, and evangelize.
• Ask a bunch of questions because the retailers are the ones traveling the market so make sure to understand what is hot from their perspective. If you hear something over and over you probably need to pay attention.

For all of you buyers:

• Don’t get caught up in the aforementioned BS slinging. If a claim is made, ask them to show you some proof of that. If you don’t immediately understand what they are talking about, simply acknowledge that it’s probably sales doublespeak designed to divert your attention away from the fact that it’s really just a polished up version of last years model.
• Are the companies you’re talking to trustworthy? Do they tell you one thing and do another? Ever feel like your business relationship is one-sided with them keeping a fling on the other side of town while they ask you to stay faithful? #cakeandeatit2
• Do your share of visiting current suppliers but be sure to spend at least 20% of your time checking out some people you haven’t seen. You never know what you might find out there.

Yes, some of this advice actually serves me as I make an appeal for you to come and visit us in C1595 at the PureCare/Knickerbocker space. First of all, it’s where all of the cool people go. Second, we have ice cream in the afternoons on certain days. Third, Spink and Edgar is a guest there this year and we have an incredible new line to share with the right retailers. Our new product doesn’t look like anything else on retail floors, it definitely doesn’t feel like other beds, and our farm to bedroom story beats that tired memory foam, gel, hybrid crap every day of the week. My MANY THANKS to Eric Johnson our product designer for creating something incredible, and to A. Lava, Bekaert, and Culp for bringing us some really great materials and expertise.

Final words of advice….leave the hookers alone it’s really not worth it, be careful walking the streets… people die in that traffic, and if you visit the legal pot shops in Vegas just know that you are probably going to run into someone you know. That’s how that works. Have a great market; hope to see you next week!