How to Make the Most of Your Time at High Point Market

Find new vendors, learn new things, scout for clients, stay organized and have a great time this month

Becky Harris October 3, 2019

Houzz Contributor. Hi there! I live in a 1940s cottage in Atlanta that I'll describe as "collected." I got into design via Landscape Architecture, which I studied at the University of Virginia.

Houzz Contributor. Hi there! I live in a 1940s cottage in Atlanta that I'll describe... More

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If you’re headed to High Point Market in North Carolina this month (Oct. 19-23), making plans and being strategic about how you spend your time will be crucial. These tips from designers with extensive market experience will help you plan ahead, get organized, stay comfortable and make the most of your new contacts. Please continue this list by adding your own tips and insights to the Comments!

Before You Go

“High Point Market provides a mother lode of inspiration and information,” interior designer Beth Rosenfield says. But you’ll need a plan of attack. High Point Market occupies 13 city blocks plus outlying showrooms, has 180 buildings and takes up more than 12 million square feet of space. Put together a game plan ahead of time so you can be as efficient as possible during your visit.

Visit the High Point Market website and scroll down the home page to get excited about everything you’ll see. Sign up for its My Market feature (download the app to your phone). This is a good way to check out the map and familiarize yourself with the neighborhoods, shuttle routes and location of the transportation terminal. Don’t go too deep yet, because first you should think about and set your goals.

Check to make sure your hotel has a free shuttle. If so, there is not much need to rent a car. “We stay in Winston, because they have some great restaurants and we can plan our days out on the shuttle on the way to market,” says interior designer Margaret Rigsby of Taylor and Huie. If you’re feeling overwhelmed, hit The Point on Commerce Avenue first — it’s a central area staffed with market advisers.

1. Set your goals. Before you schedule your time, think carefully about everything you want to get out of what will be a very busy trip. “Before my trip, I think hard about what I need most for my business at that time — new accessory resources, value-oriented rugs, a midpriced upholstery line, etc.,” Rosenfield says. Other goals to consider include:

Finding particular items for current clients
Networking and signing up with new manufacturers
Getting a sense of trends
Being inspired by beautiful new things
Picking up some continuing education units at seminars approved by IDCEC (Interior Design Continuing Education Council)
Visiting your go-to showrooms
Meeting up with other design pros from around the country you’ve connected with
Attending “A Conversation with Diane Keaton”
Hitting some free parties after the work time

Take some time to write down what you want to get out of this market before you begin exploring all it has to offer.

2. Explore the market website and My Market app on your phone. Use the My List feature to add a star to any showrooms you want to visit and any events and seminars you want to attend, to create a customized list.

Familiarize yourself with the map and take notes on all of the vendors you want to visit. Also note where classes and events you want to attend will be held. The My Market app has a GPS feature to help you navigate. “I create a list of vendors I’ve been curious about, and add names of new vendors I want to investigate. Then I map out their showroom locations so I can plan my visits each day most efficiently,” Rosenfield says.

Jane Seymour signs books at a High Point Market event.

3. Schedule your time. Now that you know where you want to go, schedule appointments with showrooms around events you want to attend. Chart a course that will let you efficiently hit all the vendors, events and classes you want to catch rather than running from one end of the market to the other and then back again.

The 13 blocks of the market are divided into eight neighborhoods. “We schedule our days by neighborhood,” Rigsby says. “If we need to visit any off-site showrooms, we save those for the last day.”

Leave time to discover new vendors and meet up with old and new friends. “I used to completely overschedule my time at market, but I’ve learned to leave time to happen upon new vendors,” Rigsby says. “This is really important. If you come home without seeing at least a few new things, it feels stale.” She also notes that the market is much more crowded at the kickoff than at the end, so you can order at showrooms without an appointment more quickly and easily during the last few days.

4. Neaten up your digital presence. You’re going to be passing out your business card, so present your best digital self. Add new projects to your website and Houzz profile. Check all of your professional profiles online — make sure all the links work and that your bio and contact information are up to date.

Clinton Smith, left, moderates a High Point panel with, from left to right, Carson Kressley, Thom Filicia and Michel Smith Boyd in April.

5. Touch base with colleagues. One of the most fun things about the market is catching up with old friends and making new ones. Reach out to other designers you may know only through the internet, and plan to meet at an event or for a meal.

6. Take care of yourself. Speaking of meals, don’t forget to eat and rest, because you’ll need the energy. Luckily, there are plenty of options within the market. “Many of the showrooms offer excellent food for breakfast and lunch, so you don’t have to leave to find a restaurant,” says building designer Jennifer Pippin of Pippin Home Designs. And take time to rest your feet. Rosenfield knows that attending a talk is a good way to give her feet a break, so she schedules her attendance accordingly.

7. Make some fun plans for downtime. Carve out some time to do a handful of things outside of the market. Check out local restaurants and attractions — visit the Junior League’s Designers’ Showhouse. Rigsby’s favorite postmarket activity is grabbing dinner and shopping for shoes in Winston.

What to Pack

High Point Market requires being on foot for endless hours, drinking a lot of water and shaking a lot of hands. You’ll want to keep your load as light as possible. Here are some of the essentials to carry with you.

1. Map of the market. Carry a good old-fashioned paper map or have your market app set up and ready for action.

2. Phone and portable charger. You’ll be taking scads of photos and running down your phone battery quickly; a portable charger will save you from having to find an outlet.

3. Business cards. Networking is a big part of the market, so make sure you’re armed with plenty of business cards. Pop a bunch behind your market badge for easy access.

4. Comfortable shoes and clothes. Your sneakers with the most support are perfectly acceptable, but if you aren’t a kicks kind of person, try flats or other casual shoes that have good support. Because the difference between climate-controlled market spaces and the outdoors can vary, dress in layers; have a sweater, light jacket or scarf to throw on when you’re chilly.

5. An ergonomic bag. This is not the place for that large and stylish leather bag or briefcase with heavy hardware. Try a light nylon cross-body messenger bag to save your neck and shoulders, or a light tote bag. “You can also take along a roller bag, for carrying an extra jacket or umbrella and a snack and water bottle,” Pippin says.

6. Grab-and-go snacks. Keep up your energy with protein bars and fruit. And you’ll need to be vigilant about staying hydrated, so carry a refillable water bottle.

7. Wipes or hand sanitizer. This will save you trips to a far-off restroom for hand washing when free showroom snacks appear.

8. Lip balm and lotion. The environment can be dry. Keep your lips and hands moisturized.

How to Stay Organized

If you’re not organized, you’ll wind up schlepping around a bunch of heavy brochures and catalogs and have a bunch of business cards floating all over the place. And after you get home, you may wind up with photos of mystery furnishings because you didn’t snap pictures of the sources.

1. Skip the paper. You’ll want to save your shoulders by keeping your bag as light as possible, and you’ll save trees by doing so. Instead of collecting brochures and cards, take photos of contact information. “I decline most catalogs so I don’t have to carry them, and most are available online anyway. You can always ask the rep to mail it to you later,” Rosenfield says.

2. Credit your photos. Never believe that you’ll remember where you saw that sexy sofa or fantastic piece of art. After you’ve been running around the market for 10 hours, everything will start to blur. When you photograph something, immediately follow it up with a photo of the tag or sign that has the name of the piece and the vendor.

3. Sign up with vendors that are a good match for your business. Look at your market schedule for the year to figure out what you’ll need to catch at High Point. For example, Rigsby knows she’ll be at the market in Atlanta in January, so she skips any vendors she knows she’ll see there. That frees up her time to see the vendors she can find only at High Point. Ask about purchase minimums and changes in discount levels based on volume to see if a vendor fits your business model and will fit upcoming needs. And ask if the vendor’s lines are repped by a local showroom you like to support — if so, you may not need to set up a direct arrangement.

How to Spend Your Downtime

1. Take some time away from the market. The scene can be overwhelming at times. Step outside for some fresh air and sunlight throughout the day.

2. Tend to aches and pains. The event is exhilarating and exhausting. The biggest thing you’ll want to take care of is your aching feet. Give them a good soak back at the hotel. Better yet, find a reflexology or mani-pedi spa for a foot massage.

3. Get organized. Take notes on everything you want to remember from the day, such as that new go-to source for lighting you found or the dining table that’s perfect for a current project. Plug in new contacts, check out vendor websites, enter your continuing education units, edit and organize your photos (delete the duds now) and share your favorite photos online.

4. Recharge your brain. Carve out some hotel room time to take a break from business. Put on your robe and dive into a good book, flip through a magazine, visit your favorite websites, listen to a podcast, watch some TV or meditate — whatever works best to calm your overloaded brain. You’ll need to catch a good night’s sleep so you can do it all again the next day.

5. Have some fun. Pick from all of the fun market events or hit that barbecue restaurant you’ve always wanted to. Diane Keaton will be speaking on Saturday afternoon at the High Point Theatre. If you want to hear some music, check out the T Sisters, who will be performing at the Center Stage on Saturday night, or Mandolin Orange, which hits the stage on Sunday night.

Check out all the events here. Note that even though the market officially begins Oct.19, there are plenty of market-related activities to attend on Oct. 18.