Coverings Attendance Up in Chicago

ALEXANDRIA, Va. – More than 25,000 industry professionals attended the week-long expo Coverings 2016 last month in Chicago, showing an increase over last year’s event.

The April 18-21 show at McCormick Place brought in more people that last year’s edition in Orlando, said National Trade Productions, the manager/producer of Coverings.

The year’s most impressive attendance-segment lift came from distributors with an increase of 18% from the last Chicago staging of Coverings in 2009.

“The uptick in overall attendance from last year signals continued vitality and vigor in the tile and stone industry,” said Coverings Industry Ambassador Alena Capra. “There was an onsite energy that emanated from the show floor, and it is encouraging to have that excitement verified with these recap figures.”  

Veteran Coverings exhibitors noted the excitement on the show floor as well as the ample opportunities for networking and education that took place during the show.

“This year we had great feedback from key customers that came to the show. It’s important for us to have these quality interactions with attendees,” said Sarah Eamigh, director of U.S. marketing for Stone Peak. “The feedback from the architecture and design crowd is always exciting; there was a great turnout from that segment due to the show’s location in Chicago this year.”

There was also plenty of buzz from the Ceramics of Italy pavilion, which impressed attendees with a new central booth design in addition to the bevy of tile products from manufacturers.

“The atmosphere at Coverings 2016 was fantastic – we saw an exciting turnout in attendees here in Chicago,” said Dave Bouchard, representative of Emil America. “Chicago is a great town for the show, drawing in the architecture and design crowd, as well as retailers and distributors. We feel confident with the sales relationships generated by being at the show.”

Natucer, a long-time Spanish exhibitor, found the show to be an imperative part of the company’s global business for sales and relationship building.

“We have been at Coverings since 1998 and have always found tremendous value in the show. The North American market is always one of our top priorities after the domestic market in Spain,” said Victor Gasque Balaguer, area manager for Natucer Ceramica. “All of the programming and networking opportunities at the show are important in growing our relationships and increasing awareness of our products.”

The increase in attendance shows another advancement by the event from the doldrums of the Great Recession; the 2009 Chicago Coverings brought in 22,000, and attendee numbers dropped to 19,000+ for the 2011 Las Vegas edition. Since then, there’s been a steady uptick at the show’s ticket booths with two events in Orlando, Fla., (2012, 2015) and one each in Atlanta (2013) and Las Vegas (2014).

The all-time attendance record for Coverings is 37,000 in 2007, during the height of the 2000s housing boom.

Sponsors of the show are The Ceramic Tile Distributor Association (CTDA), Tile of Spain/Spanish Ceramic Tile Manufacturer’s Association (ASCER), Ceramics of Italy/Confindustria Ceramica, National Tile Contractors Association (NTCA) and the Tile Council of North America (TCNA).

Coverings 2017 will be held April 4-7 in Orlando, Fla.

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