International travel remains a concern for High Point Market
A view of the High Point Furniture Market in June 2021, showing sparse crowds during the pandemic. Attendance has since bounced back but market officials say it's been a challenge to get international travelers to return. PAUL GARBER/WFDD
The High Point Furniture Market wrapped up its spring session this week. The last two spring markets brought big crowds, a continuing bounce-back from 2020 when the market was canceled due to COVID.
But getting international travelers to return has been a challenge, says Tammy Nagem, president and CEO of the High Point Market Authority. She says she feels good about the gains that have been made in bringing them back.
"We have seen a 5% increase in international at this market, starting to see our friends from Asia coming back as well as Central American, South America," she says. "Caribbean has been strong.”
Market participants are also concerned about bringing back international business.
Manveen Katari has exhibited at the market for 12 years with Katari Impax Inc., a company from Canada. She says a global client base has always been part of the draw.
“You get orders from Dubai, from Costa Rica, from Europe," she says. "And we have done orders in the past and, you know, continue to work with customers all over the world. ”
Katari says she’s grateful the pandemic didn’t have a worse impact on her business than it did.
Wake Forest University student Sheryl Zhang is contributing coverage in partnership with WFDD.
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