This fall, the High Point Market Authority (HPMA) will host a dynamic lineup of educational and social programming for its fourth market at the popular pop-up, The Point, throughout High Point Market, Oct. 19-23.
Located on Commerce Ave, between S. Main and Wrenn streets, The Point debuted in April 2018 during spring market as the first freestanding, High Point Market-branded venue conceived to enhance the buyer experience. Since its introduction, The Point has served as an information hub for market attendees and has hosted celebrity meet and greets, educational roundtables, panel discussions, networking opportunities, and the widely popular Parson’s Table Pop-Up lunch service.
The Point will open on Friday, Oct. 18, at 11 a.m., and the programming is open to all market attendees. Hours are 8 a.m. to 8 p.m. on Saturday, Oct. 19, through Monday, Oct. 21, and 8 a.m. to 6 p.m. on Tuesday, Oct. 22. During the hours of operation, a team of Market Advisors will be on hand to offer one-on-one consultations to attendees in need of information or support. Market-goers are encouraged to drop in throughout market for specific events or to utilize the lounge area to regroup and recharge.
The schedule of events and programming changes daily. The full listing of programs and events for The Point is located in the Events section of the High Point Market website and at www.highpointmarket.org/the-point.
On Friday, programming begins at noon with a welcome reception hosted by industry partner, Steelyard, focusing on both networking and information-sharing for designers coming to market. The Steelyard team will be offering a designer-friendly guide to market, exhibitor information, a panel for discussing the hidden tips and tricks for working market, a swag bag giveaway, a networking hour for industry associations, and an exclusive High Point Market/Steelyard nail polish.
The most popular programming element to date, roundtables will be hosted each day Saturday through Tuesday at 10 a.m. and 2 p.m. Each 60-minute, interactive conversation will focus on an industry-relevant topic and be led by well-known experts.
Sessions will include discussions about digitizing your design with Keith Granet, Beth Bender, Suzanne Kasler and Ruthie Staalsen, after which lunch will be provided compliments of Studio Designer; the future of home as it relates to furniture rental and sustainability with Everset’s Gavin Steinberg and Megan Hopp in partnership with Business of Home; creating more revenue in your design business with Cheryl Kees Clendenon, Kristin Drohan and Veronica Solomon; current and upcoming window coverings trends in both fashion and technology with Deb Barrett, Sophia Bennett and Jill Rodgers in partnership with Window Fashion VISION; the professional gains of participating in a designer showhouse with Meg Caswell, Libby Langdon and Scot Meacham Wood in partnership with Aspire Design and Home; the balance, boundaries and breakthroughs of working with family with Coco and Dash’s mother/daughter duo Teddie and Courtney Garrigan; and the widely diverse and changing landscape of distribution with Jim Ennis, Stephanie Goldman, Brooks Morrison, Warren Shoulberg and Zack Taylor in partnership with the International Textile Alliance.
Special programming will include a Saturday afternoon Luminary Session with Gary Inman featuring an in-depth interview with internationally acclaimed designer Timothy Corrigan, and a Sunday afternoon hands-on workshop with the Trim Queen, Jana Platina Phipps, and special guests Natalie Reddell and Jill Seale, focusing on upcycled embellishments and creating one-of-a-kind accessories from scraps for home decor or wearable art.
Returning programming includes the Parson’s Table Pop-Up, offering homemade lunch service from 11:30 a.m. – 2 p.m. each day and the hashtag printer and photo wall, offering attendees the opportunity to take home with them a branded market memory by posting to Instagram or Twitter with the hashtag #HPMKTmemory.
Evening offerings will include After Hours at The Point, featuring craft beer and wine from local brewery, Brown Truck Brewery, and local food trucks Friday through Monday from 5 to 8 p.m. This will run concurrently with industry mixers hosted by the Black Interior Designers Network, who will host a workshop immediately prior focusing on becoming camera-ready with Mikel Welch and Evette Rios; Kimberley Seldon’s Business of Design, who will celebrate their 15th birthday; the International Furnishings and Design Association (IFDA), who will celebrate the Carolinas chapter’s 50th anniversary and welcome DesignEDGE Summit attendees; and the High Point Market Authority’s new brand ambassadors Deb Barrett and Jackie Von Tobel, who will celebrate the return of their new buyer tour with current and past “touristas.”
The interior space for The Point was developed in collaboration with celebrated design firm Barbour Spangle Design Group. Lighting, furnishings and decorative products to be used in The Point were donated by Modway, Nuevo, Raffel Systems, Shaw Contract Flooring, Sunpan, Surya, Thayer Coggin, WaterMark Living and Worlds Away.
