Furniture Today,
AVENTURA, Fla. — Larry Karel, who has hosted regional furniture and accessory shows across the country, is always


looking for new show venues. West Palm Beach, Fla., could join his show mix next year. And he says he’ll take a good hard look at Kansas City.

But don’t ask him about Chicago or St. Louis. “I won’t go there,” he said, firmly.

Karel has been asked about the Midwest a number of times. He’s not there now, although he has hosted shows in the past in Chicago, Indianapolis and Columbus, Ohio.

He wants to make sure the economics and drawing power of potential show sites are compelling before he enters new markets. And even when those factors are favorable, shows wax and wane over the years. Karel’s list of former show cities is a long one, including Las Vegas, Nashville, Tenn., Denver, New York, Hartford, Conn., Fitchburg, Mass., Atlanta and Miami Beach, Fort Lauderdale and Tampa, Fla.

In recent years Karel Exposition Management, Karel’s trade show company, has successfully added Houston and Atlantic City, N.J., to its show schedule. They join stalwarts like Edison, N.J., Orlando and Los Angeles.

Edison, a city on the outskirts of New York named for Thomas Edison, has always shone brightly for KEM, sometimes hosting three shows in a single year. The Edison show, with two editions this year, has been sold out at just over 1,000 booths. “We could have 2,000 booths there,” Karel asserts, if the space was available.

Orlando, the company’s biggest show, was down by 160 booths this year, he said, but he believes the show will be larger next year. There were more than 1,200 booths at the recent Orlando show.

KEM’s final 2013 show is in Los Angeles, Oct. 28-30.

Here is the 2014 schedule, as it stands now:
* Edison, N.J., Feb. 4-6.
* Los Angeles, April 28-30.
* Atlantic City, N.J., May 6-8.
* Houston, May 20-22.
* Edison, N.J., Aug. 5-7.
* Orlando, Aug. 24-26.
* Los Angeles, Oct. 27-29.