THE SUMMER MARKET: AUG 4 – 7, 2024, JAVITS CENTER

WHITE PLAINS, NY, August 8, 2014…Two special programs will showcase emerging home and lifestyle product designers at NY NOW®, the Market for Home+ Lifestyle (formerly NYIGF®)®), August 16-20, 2014, at New York City’s Jacob K. Javits Convention Center. The Emerging Designer Maker Platform in NY NOW’s HANDMADE® Collection will provide the opportunity for two young companies to participate in their first wholesale market; and within Accent on Design®, the JOIN Design Seattle and American Design Club collectives will showcase more than 40 independent designers.

“NY NOW offers these ‘incubator’ spaces in key product collections to give new companies access to a major home and lifestyle market,” said Christian Falkenberg, NY NOW director and senior vice president. “This benefits attendees, who are the first to see their prototype designs and brand new products, as well as designers who get invaluable market exposure, retail sales opportunities and industry experience.”

Within the NY NOW HANDMADE collection, the Emerging Designer Maker Platform introduces the work of emerging craft designers and makers, selected on the basis of design concept, creativity and originality. Summer 2014 Emerging Designer Maker Platform participants, and their new product introductions, are:

J R Meyer Lighting (Norwich, Vermont): Jon Meyer launched J R Meyer Lighting this summer. He has made furniture and worked with wood since the age of eight, following in the footsteps of his father and grandfather. Meyer graduated from the University of Vermont, earned an MFA from Rutgers University, and an MID in product design from the Pratt Institute. His new line of lighting fixtures feature wood and wood veneer, combined with hand rolled glass.

Above The Fray (Bangkok, Thailand): Achara Masoodi started her company in February 2014 in her native Thailand, following an extensive apprenticeship with a veteran leather accessories maker. The handmade vegetable-tanned leather accessories she designs bridge unconventional techniques with traditional craftsmanship. The Euclid, for example, is a stitch-free wallet with minimal hardware.

Emerging Designer Maker Platform applications are accepted only from designers in business for one year or less and artists entering the wholesale marketplace for the first time. Participants are chosen by artisans, retailers and craft industry advisors comprising the HANDMADE Designer Maker jury. The Emerging Designer Maker Platform runs Saturday, August 16, through Tuesday, August 19, at New York City’s Jacob K. Javits Convention Center.

Additionally, two design collectives – JOIN Design Seattle and The American Design Club (AmDC) – will showcase emerging and innovative design within Accent on Design. For 30 years, Accent on Design has been the industry’s leading source of design-driven gift, home and lifestyle merchandise. Its dynamic, juried collection of contemporary and innovative products is presented within the NY NOW HOME collection.

JOIN Design Seattle, a group of independent, Seattle-based designers who cooperatively participate in wholesale markets, will bring 14 designers – its largest group to-date – to participate in NY NOW. These designers, six of which are first-time participants in NY NOW, largely represent “made in the USA” resources, in categories such as ceramics, home goods, jewelry, holiday and gifts. Summer participants include: Aleksandra Pollner; byAMT/Mimot Studio; Caravan Pacific; Cofield; Fleet Objects; fruitsuper; Grain; History+Industry; Mister McGinnis; Nell & Mary; Pat Kim; Piano Nobile; Pigeon Toe; and Sarah Loertscher.

AmDC, a professional community of American designers whose goal is to heighten awareness for emerging designers and provide exhibition opportunities, will showcase 30 design studios, approximately half of which are new to the market, within Accent on Design this summer. These designers represent a wide range of product categories, including soft goods, lighting, personal accessories, home and garden accents, jewelry and furnishings, and participants include: Aaron Poritz Furniture, Alice Tacheny, Aminimal, Avandi, Beth Macri Design, Bhold, Bower, Brian Farrell Art and Design, Canoe, Death At Sea, DMFD, Elisa Difeo, Go-Comb, GothamSmith, Liz Collins, Misc. Goods Co., Pletz, Reed Wilson, Robert Debbane, Skinny Vinny, Studio Ultralite, Tanya Grunberg, Thea Grant, Wayward, and Wyatt Little.

NY NOW, the Market for Home + Lifestyle, will run Saturday, August 16, through Wednesday, August 20, 2014, at New York City’s Jacob K. Javits Convention Center and Passenger Ship Terminal Pier 94. NY NOW’s four comprehensive collections – HOME, LIFESTYLE, HANDMADE and NEW! – will encompass 100,000 products in 400+ product categories. Some 33,000 attendees from all 50 states and more than 80 countries worldwide are expected. Information and registration is available online at www.nynow.com.