MRket/Vanguards Gallery Show Launches New Initiatives, Areas

Numerous changes and new initiatives will be afoot at the next MRket/Vanguards Gallery trade show, which will take place at the Javits Center in New York Sunday July 19 to Tuesday July 21. (Full disclosure: MRket/Vanguards Gallery and MR are owned by the same parent company, Business Journals, Inc.)

The show will introduce a new interactive area on the show floor, The Hub, which will serve as a photo studio on Monday and Tuesday when key and outstanding items from exhibitors will be shot for a post-show look book. On Sunday, MR Magazine editors will be in The Hub where they will conduct one-on-one video interviews for a new series called “Game Changers.” It will spotlight people and brands that are moving the menswear market forward.

Sunday will also include a live Q&A with MR Editor in Chief Karen Alberg Grossman and Jack Mitchell of the Mitchells Family of Stores to be followed by a book signing of complimentary copies of his book “Hug Your Customers.”

Vanguards Gallery, the area for new and emerging brands, will debut a new subsection called Vanguards Platinum. It will feature new names that produce high-end, luxurious products such as Anthony Miles, Brett Johnson Collection, Creed, Galet, Guglielmo G, Mark Giusti, Northern Cobbler, Pasotti and Rafi & Olga, among others.

Also new to the show will be a pop-up shop by BEAM, a Brooklyn-based boutique owned by Ali Arain and Gregory Coccaro that carries unique lighting, furniture, home goods and art. All the merchandise will be available for immediate sale.

There will also be a new lounge in the Made in Italy section that will serve espresso and Prosecco. In addition, the Modern Prep Lounge will return to showcase “The New Way of Prep” and lounge sponsor Southern Proper will host a two-hour event there on Sunday.