Atlanta, Ga. -- The 2018 Southeast Flooring Market, which took place January 3-4 at the Cobb Galleria Centre, reported double the number of 2017 exhibiting companies and a 52% buyer attendance increase year over year.

More than 1,000 flooring buyers from 19 eastern states attended the show. The largest attendance increases were from Tennessee, Alabama, and North Carolina. Over one-third of the total attendance at the show was represented outside of Georgia.

“The Southeast Flooring Market has developed into the premier expo for our region,” said Matt Wadsworth from NGF. “It has provided an excellent format for NGF Distributors to connect with our customers and showcase new product introductions.”

Tim Gilmore, the southeast regional vice president of Southwind Carpet, said, “The Southeast Flooring Market for Southwind was a very strong show. We saw a tremendous number of dealers and it was a great opportunity for them to see our 27 new carpet product introductions, the largest number of new styles ever introduced at one time by Southwind Carpet.”

Strategic marketing efforts for the 2018 event focused on growing buyer attendance. One of the key attendee programs featured an exclusive VIP program for top buyers in the industry called the Red Carpet Club. Exhibitors nominated their top 25 accounts to be personally invited as VIPs, who received special benefits from the show. This program also helped show organizers identify the top buyers in the region for this group of exhibitors.

“Since it is not cost efficient for our company to travel to Surfaces, the Southeast Flooring Market is a wonderful opportunity to see what new products are available from all the different flooring manufacturers,” said Mary Ann Gore of Bridgeport Carpets and a Red Carpet Club member.

The next Southeast Flooring Market will take place January 9-10, 2019 at the Cobb Galleria Centre. The majority of exhibitors from the 2018 show have already signed on to participate.

For more information, visit seflooringmarket.com.