The Agenda Show will move to Anaheim in January 2011, more than doubling its space to meet demand and to make room for new segments, including Agenda Snow and Agenda Garage for motor sport brands, President Aaron Levant said.
Agenda in Anaheim Jan. 6-7 will be held at the Anaheim Marriott and encompass 82,000 square feet.
Currently, Agenda utilizes just under 40,000 square feet at the Hyatt Regency in Huntington Beach.
“It will be the first time we can take advantage of all the demand we have and accommodate all the people who want our product,” Agenda President Aaron Levant said.
The move to Anaheim at this point is only for the January show. Agenda is committed to Huntington Beach for Summer 2011.
Aaron said Agenda likes running the summer show during the U.S. Open of Surfing and being in Huntington Beach, but that its space there is maxed out.
For the January show, Agenda will dedicate 15,000-to 20,000-square-feet to snow. Aaron expects the snow area to be a 50:50 mix of brands that already exhibit at Agenda that have snow lines and pure snow companies.
Aaron declined to say what brands have committed to the snow area, but said some key “heavy hitters” will be there.
Agenda Garage will focus on motor sports, with the initial focus on motocross brands. In the future, that section will include other motor segments such as such as formula drift and rally car.
The motor sports segment is growing, and “we want to be at the forefront of that,” he said.
While Agenda snow will only happen once a year, a smaller format of Agenda Garage will debut in Huntington Beach this summer.
Anaheim is inland, and has a very different vibe than the seaside Huntington Beach. But Aaron stressed that it is still in Orange County and 15 miles from Huntington. The Anaheim Marriott is a newer facility, and has good features, including a Starbucks, he said.
And because the show will stay out of a convention center, brands will not have to pay union fees, he said.
The Anaheim Marriott is “one of the largest spaces we could find in Southern California that is not unionized,” Aaron said.
Agenda has also launched a show in New York this July 19-20 at the Chelsea Art Museum to coincide with Men’s Market Week.
Brands showing there include RVCA, Obey, WeSC, LRG, Matix, Beats by Dr. Dre.
Agenda plans to continue the New York show, but Aaron said it might not always coincide with Men’s Market Week.
Aaron said the New York show is fully owned by Agenda and not part of a licensing agreement or other partnership.
I asked Aaron where all this – the bigger space in Anaheim, adding snow, the New York show – is leading.
“We’re just focused on putting on great shows – there’s no agenda behind it – excuse the pun.”
