This was my first visit to the Las Vegas Design Center, and I didn’t really know what to expect. As with anything that’s new, you hear different things from different people, and as usual with something new, there is a chorus of naysayers on the sidelines. So as Publisher Jennifer Matthews, Regional Manager Erica Springer and I approached the impressive complex of buildings that make up the World Market Center Las Vegas (Buildings A, B and C), I was more than a little curious. The first thing we noticed is that the market was a hive of activity. It was packed! I’ve since learned that registrations exceeded 50,000 designers, buyers and retailers, a big increase over last year. As we made our way through Building C (a 16-story structure that adds 2.1 million square feet of space), we were also struck by the quality of the exhibitors. Robert Allen has an incredible showroom on the lobby floor that showcases all of their extensive lines together for the first time. Jolie Cross and Glenn Gold gave us a quick tour, and we could see how excited they were with this new venue. French Heritage out of Los Angeles has a beautiful space, too, and we waved to Henessy Wayser on our way to the room where I would be speaking.

My topic was  How the West Is Redefining Luxury, which was an appropriate theme for Building C and Las Vegas (did you know that the word luxury has its roots in the Latin for lechery?). We had a full house, which was gratifying, as I wasn’t at all sure what the turnout would be. (I should have known, though, since World Market Center’s Margaret Casey is a pistol and had done a great job of promoting the event.) Afterward, there was a reception with wine and hors d’oeuvres, and I was able to meet some talented designers who had come to Las Vegas from throughout the West for the summer market. The turnout confirms what we’ve been seeing in the West since we launched the magazine five years ago: massive growth, a burgeoning design community, and a populace hungry for more design resources in the West.

Jennifer and I then took some time to explore, which is always fun. There was a fabulous Design Italia showroom that showcased a number of the great Italian furniture companies, including B&B Italia, Cassina, Flexform, Minotti and Georgetti. There was a historical installation as well, with key Italian design pieces dating back to 1948. What was most impressive was to see how contemporary the 60-year-old Italian chairs looked! The Italians are always ahead of the curve, and they are smart to realize that Las Vegas and the American West is an excellent market for their innovative design. We then dropped by the Kreiss showroom, where tennis starts (and Las Vegas residents) Andre Agassi and Steffi Graf were presenting the second edition of their sleek new furniture line for Kreiss.  Andre explained to me that the collection is an extension of the relaxed, casual style that he and his family enjoy in California and Las Vegas. He and Steffi are very much involved in all of the details of the line, and they’ve had a great response to the collection. I was thrilled to meet them, of course, and I was also impressed with their commitment to this new arena of competition.  Jennifer, Erica and I then did a few more showroom drive-bys, and the day was done. We ventured out to a working dinner, and then (no gambling or glitzy shows!) it was off to sleep.

The next morning, we had breakfast with New York designer Larry Laslo and Robert Allen’s Jolie Cross. Larry was to receive a Design Icon award on Thursday, which is well deserved (though, as Larry says, he’s much too young to be an icon). He’s doing a lot of interesting work in the West, in the Aspen, Colorado, area in particular, and it’s exciting to see his glamorous point of view applied in iconic western settings. His fabrics for Robert Allen are rich, textured, colorful and luxurious (kind of like Larry himself!). It was a fun breakfast, and we cooked up some intriguing ideas to collaborate on in the future.

We then met with Colleen Yoshida and Jennifer Dunne of the Wynn Hotel group. The Wynn is opening a new luxury tower this fall, the Encore. Designed by the remarkable Roger Thomas, who has single-handedly redefined hospitality design in Las Vegas, bringing a contemporary sense of style and wit to the table. I’ve heard that Mrs. Wynn is a fan of Western Interiors & Design, and the magazine is displayed in many of the Wynn’s suites. We’re returning to Las Vegas in November for some special events, and we discussed ways we could partner that would benefit all.

It was time to head back to the World Market Center for the Sustainable Furniture Council’s  One Good Chair awards ceremony. I had served as one of the judges for this wonderful competition, reviewing nearly 300 chair designs that focused on sustainable materials and production processes. It was fascinating, and inspiring! The Sustainable Furniture Council’s Susan Inglis first spoke about the organization’s important mission to both educate manufacturers and consumers about sustainable design and to set standards for production. Then Lance Hosey, author and partner in the pioneering green architectural firm William McDonough + Partners, talked about the competition and showed a wide variety of the chair designs submitted from around the world.  Susan Szenasy, editor-in-chief of Metropolis magazine, was also a judge, and she and I then had the pleasure of presenting the top five entries and announcing the two winners (yes, there were two winners of the One Good Chair competition!) The winners, Jessica Konawicz and Jittasak Narknissorn, were on hand, and Bob Maricich presented each with a check for $2,500. Lance, Susan, Jessica, Jittasak and I then had a lively panel discussion about the competition, lead by Susan Inglis. Jessica is still a design student in North Carolina, and Jittasak is a young Thailand-born designer who now lives in Southern California, and it was exciting to see a new generation of furniture designers win such a prestigious competition.

Before Erica and I headed to the airport, we stopped in the Green Living Pavilion to see Greg and Lori Harden, who create beautiful sustainable wood furniture in Upstate New York. They were excited about this new market and had been receiving a strong response from an entirely new audience of professionals in Las Vegas. Harden was green before the term had any real cache. Why? Simply because that’s been the ethos of the company for more than a century.  Jennifer was staying the night and was able to see many more showrooms and friends before flying back to New York, but I had to catch a flight that evening, so we drove out of the glittering gulch with a new understanding of what the World Market Center Las Vegas means in the design landscape today.