Dallas Market Center, the home of Lightovation, has announced details for the June 23-26 edition of the show. The summer show, following specialized lighting events in previous months, marks a return to a large-scale, in-person trade event with thousands of new products debuting across the 1 million square foot lighting marketplace.
“This is the most important summer edition of Lightovation in years,” said Cindy Morris, President and CEO of Dallas Market Center. “We anticipate a large, active show with buyers arriving from across North America eager to see new designs and technology. The conditions are great for a strong summer event: retail is robust, demand is high, and our lighting brands will have a large number of new collections."
Pre-registration is now available for the show at www.dallasmarketcenter.com/lightovation. By pre-registering buyers receive a FastPass email for contactless, quick entry into the show.
Supporting the health and safety of all customers, the market center continues comprehensive measures that include mandatory face covering and temperature screening for every person entering the marketplace every day. Updates for June include the return of hotel and campus shuttles and a limited number of gatherings.
Lighting buyers enjoy reduced hotel rates for June Lightovation, including a special rate of $139/night at the Sheraton Dallas downtown and a limited flash sale rate of $169/night at the Hilton Anatole through April 30.
Lightovation Exhibitor News
In addition to new collections debuting inside permanent showrooms across the marketplace, several new showrooms, relocations and expansions will debut in June.
Abra Lighting has its own dedicated showroom after being a part of the Spectrum shared showroom. Now in TM 3531 the company presents avant-garde lighting fixtures focused on modern, contemporary, state-of-the-art designs. A new, atrium location for Hubbardton Forge (TM 3725) means ample opportunity to showcase iconic award-winning lighting designs that combine artistry and technology.
Additionally, several brands previewed new or expanded spaces in March and will continue their celebrations for a wider audience in June. Minka Group’s massive new showroom on the fourth floor of the Trade Mart (4103) features all of its brands in a single location. Savoy House (TM 4901) has expanded its space by more than 70 percent to make room for a tremendous number of new collections across their stylish categories of chandeliers, ceiling and wall lights, pendants, outdoor lighting and ceiling fans. Z-Lite (TM 4600) has also expanded. Matthews Fan Company (TM 4737) has doubled its square footage, and there’s more elegance from Elegant Furniture & Lighting (WTC 10080) in an expanded World Trade Center space, while the company retains its footprint in the Trade Mart (3050).
Inside Light + Design on Ten, the smart home showroom that opened June 2019, Smarter Living by Design was recently updated and expanded with new technologies. Anchored by Samsung and featuring a dozen other leading smart home brands, Smarter Living by Design now also includes the company’s Executive Briefing Center and an innovative new display for its popular Frame TVs. Smarter Living by Design is coordinated by HomeTronics, a local custom electronics integrator.
Recently opened on the 10th floor is ProSource’s smart lighting demo center (WTC 10040). This new space is an important smart home resource to educate professionals about lighting applications and integration with other technologies.
Residential Lighting Training Course
The American Lighting Association will host its first in-person Residential Lighting Training Course since October 2019 alongside Lightovation, enabling participants to experience the largest residential lighting show in North America while gaining knowledge critical to earning ALA’s Lighting Specialist certification.
The course will be held in The SMART Center (TM 4826) for full-day sessions starting on Monday, June 21, and concluding on Wednesday, June 23, the first day of Lightovation. The course will run from 9 a.m. to 4:30 p.m. each day and will include a virtual two-hour follow-up course the week of June 28 to review the class content. ALA will then distribute the final Lighting Specialist exam for participants to complete online.
In addition to the in-person coursework, the live Residential Lighting Training Course in June will include daily showroom tours of Lightovation exhibitors. This course is especially timely for honorees in this year’s Light Stars program, which rewards top showroom personnel who don’t normally come to Lightovation with airfare and hotel to participate in the June show. Light Stars will receive a discount on the course and additional hotel consideration to enable participation. A full list of 2021 Light Stars will be announced soon.
Details and registration for the June 21-23 live Residential Lighting Training Course are available at https://alamembers.com/Professional-Education/Course/CourseId/1156. For questions, contact Nici Juneau at nici@alalighting.com.
Spaces to Meet and Eat
No other seminars will be taking place in The SMART Center for June Lightovation, and ALA’s meetings will be limited. However, the shared space with DMC and ALA in TM 4826 will remain open as a lounge space and information center for attendees to relax and enjoy refreshments.
All restaurants across the DMC campus will be open, including the convenient new Trade Mart food outlet The End Zone Sports Bar in TM 4925.
Showroom of the Year Awards
DMC and partners Furniture, Lighting & Decor magazine are excited to return with a live presentation of the 12th annual Showroom of the Year Awards on Thursday, June 24. The awards will honor one Showroom of the Year winner in each of three revenue categories, as well as three specialty awards in the areas of merchandising display, social media engagement and community involvement. The Showroom of the Year Awards event is open to all attendees, exhibitors and reps at Lightovation with no tickets or additional registration required. Watch for additional details about the Showroom of the Year Awards and a special industry celebration that will immediately follow the presentation.
Large gatherings will still be limited at June Lightovation, but the event will welcome special groups for networking and business building opportunities. These include ALA’s Women in Lighting reception on Wednesday, June 23 at 5pm, which is open to all women from all segments of the lighting industry and all levels of experience. This event, whose location will be announced soon, will also include a presentation of the Women in Lighting Leadership Award to Bulbrite President Cathy Choi.
Prior to the start of Lightovation, Lighting One will host its annual Convention June 21-22 at the Marriott Downtown in support of its independent lighting showroom members and vendor partners. Lighting One’s past seven Conventions have been hosted in Dallas in tandem with the June edition of Lightovation, a tradition that has already been announced to continue for the next three years.
ARTS Awards Nominations Open
DMC and ART, the creative home furnishings network, are accepting nominations for the 32nd ARTS Awards, which will be presented during January 2022 Lightovation and the concurrent Total Home & Gift Market. The Awards are the premier international awards program dedicated to home industry excellence and achievement and beings with the nomination of retailers, manufacturers, designers, and sales representatives, including five dedicated categories specific to the lighting industry. Nominations will be accepted online through June 28. Details are available here: dallasmarketcenter.com/ArtsAwards/nominations/
During June Lightovation, exhibitors Varaluz and WAC Lighting will be honored at the HEARTS Awards on June 25. This event replaced the 2021 ARTS Awards for DMC and ART and engaged other home furnishings organizations such as ALA, the American Home Furnishings Alliance, the American Home Furnishings Hall of Fame, the Gift & Home Trade Association, Gift for Life, the Interior Design Society, the International Casual Furnishings Association, the Home Furnishings Representative Association, the International Society of Furniture Designers, the International Textile Alliance, the Sustainable Furnishings Council and WithIt. Earlier this year, a HEARTS Awards auction raised more than $10,000 for No Kid Hungry.
Additional information about the upcoming lighting market is available on the Lightovation page of the Dallas Market Center website. Keep up with the latest developments by following the #Lightovation hashtag on social media, via the Lightovation Facebook Page and Lightovation - Lighting Industry Discussion Group.
