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ShopZio B2B Marketplace Adoption Surges

CHANTILLY, VA., (April 9, 2020) – Adoption of the ShopZio B2B digital platform has surged – with more than 100 new vendor registrations in less than one week – following the recent announcement by International Market Centers (IMC) and its digital innovation division, IMC_di, that free subscriptions and transactions will be offered to IMC customers through year-end. These newcomers, which include top industry brands and broad category representation, nearly double the number of vendors on the discovery and e-commerce platform.

“Buyers and suppliers are hungry for solutions to the economic challenges presented by the COVID-19 pandemic, and IMC_di is eager to help facilitate recovery with virtual market tools like ShopZio,” said Eric Dean, president of IMC_di. “ShopZio’s tools for product discovery and sales transactions, coupled with the unparalleled scope and reach of IMC’s marketing capabilities, offer our industry a unique opportunity to conduct business digitally in the short-term and to build a critical mass of content to augment markets when recovery comes.”

Recently acquired as part of the IMC_di initiative, ShopZio is a fully-functional B2B platform that facilitates product and resource discovery as well as transactional e-commerce. In response to economic challenges caused by the current disruption, IMC announced on April 2 that ShopZio marketplace fees will be waived for the balance of the year for all IMC customers, as well as existing ShopZio customers, who wish to use the B2B platform.

Leaders in the gift, home and apparel industries are among the 100+ suppliers who registered for ShopZio this week, with more sign-ups expected over the coming weeks. Vendors onboarding over the next few weeks broadly represent all categories. Gift vendors include: All Across Africa, Catherine Lillywhite’s, Channel Craft, Giftcraft, Golden Rabbit, Oh Sugar!, Pillow Pets, Sullivans, The Whitehurst Company and others; Home vendors include: Amity Home, Arcadia Home, Authentic Models, Bassett Mirror Co., BedInABox, Dôme Deco, Eichholtz B.V., Feizy Rugs, Kalco Lighting Ltd., Johanna Howard Home, OW Lee, Park Hill Collection, Simply Amish, Specialty Sleep Industries, Uttermost and others; and apparel vendors include: Callie B Wholesale, Chic Star, Lucky Feather, Santore Company and others.

“We are so excited about being able to offer ShopZio as a B2B solution for our customers,” said Danah Hurst, director of sales & customer care for Park Hill Collection. “During these uncertain times, we are striving to give our customers the very best tools to explore and buy product.  ShopZio allows us to do just that.”

ShopZio currently has 35,000 active buyers and is already conducting millions of dollars per month in online transactions. ShopZio vendors represent a depth and breadth of apparel, gift and home products, from both established brands and innovative newcomers. Among notable suppliers in home décor and furniture are: Aidan Gray, Brunelli, Karastan, KAS Rugs, Saatva Mattress, Viana and Yamazaki Home; in gift are: Burney Giftware, Delphia, Indaba Trading Ltd., Melrose International, Walton Wood Farm and Wildly Delicious Preserve Co.; and in apparel and accessories are: Caracol Accessories, Pokolo and Stonz Wear Inc.

As an added benefit for both new and existing customers, ShopZio will be linkable directly from IMC’s market websites – AmericasMart.com, IMCHightPointMarket.com and LasVegasMarket.com – destinations which currently receive more than three million unique visitors annually. In combination with IMC’s attendee marketing, which reaches hundreds of thousands of qualified buyers, the websites will enable vendors to actively engage buyers and easily drive e-commerce sales.

The IMC_di staff is continuously onboarding newcomers to ShopZio. For details about IMC’s ShopZio offer, visit www.imcenters.com/imcdi/shopzio-offer/.

About International Market Centers: International Market Centers (IMC) is the world’s largest operator of premier showroom space for furniture, gift, home décor, rug, and apparel industries. International Market Centers owns and operates nearly 20 million square feet of world-class exhibition space in High Point, N.C., Las Vegas and Atlanta. IMC’s mission is to build and operate an innovative, sustainable, profitable and scalable platform for the furniture, gift, home décor, rug, and apparel industries. For more information, visit http://dev-imcenters.pantheonsite.io/.

About IMC_di: IMC Digital Innovations (IMC_di) is a stand-alone division of International Market Centers (IMC), the world’s largest operator of premier showroom space for the home furnishings, gift, and apparel industries. Launched in January 2020, IMC_di will build an industry-changing platform including a global B2B e-commerce marketplace, a full suite of integrated marketing and sales automation software and smart showroom tools. With bold people and bold ambitions — and by investing as much as $100 million — IMC_di will change and grow the industries IMC serves.

 

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Press Contact:

Cathy Steel, (203) 340-9251

cathysteel@cathysteelassociates.com

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ATLANTA, HIGH POINT, N.C., LAS VEGAS., (April 2, 2020) – In an effort to address business disruption caused by the COVID-19 pandemic, International Market Centers (IMC) and its digital innovation division IMC_di announced today that free subscriptions and transactions will be offered to customers through year-end on ShopZio, its B2B digital platform that facilitates product and resource discovery as well as e-commerce.

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CHANTILLY, Va., (June 15, 2020) – Buyer activity and sales levels are surging on ShopZio, a B2B digital marketplace powered by IMC_di, International Market Centers’ digital innovation division. Key online content and activity metrics such as active users, new vendors, active SKUs and – most importantly – sales, are growing dramatically, far surpassing any pre-COVID level.

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CHANTILLY, VA., (March 18, 2020) – Signaling its commitment to digital growth, IMC_di, the new digital innovation division of International Market Centers (IMC), announces more than a dozen recent hires including new staff for development, implementation, marketing and customer success. “IMC is not slowing down. We are accelerating our investment in digital,” said Bob Maricich, chief executive officer for IMC. “With COVID-19 causing postponement of our March and April markets in Atlanta and High Point, we are taking aggressive steps to digitally connect buyers and sellers – wherever and whenever they need to meet to do business.” “We are in exponential growth mode during a time of unprecedented global business disruption,” said IMC_di President Eric Dean. “This first wave of new hires – just two months after our launch – puts experienced professionals into key positions and increases our depth of skills across the entire organization.” IMC_di welcomes Marisa Garcia as Senior Director of Customer Success, with responsibility for building and managing a team that delivers a world class customer experience for both sellers and buyers. Garcia brings 10 years of retail engagement and e-commerce strategy experience to her role, most recently working with Scout & Molly’s, a fashion retailer with 50 locations in 19 states, and JOOR, a wholesale platform and data exchange connecting 8,600 fashion, beauty and home brands with 200,000 retailers across 144 countries. Andrew Meeks joins IMC_di as Director of Marketing, with responsibility for developing a strategic vision and marketing plan for the company’s software platforms. Meeks brings 20 years of tactical and strategic marketing experience for a diverse range of regional and national companies including information and medical technology, legal, heavy industrial and telecommunications. Most recently, as Marketing Director of Marketing Help Atlanta, he packaged his marketing and design skill set into a retained services model for regional B2C and B2B companies. In addition to full-time staff, IMC_di has retained retailer Mary S. Moore, owner of the Atlantabased Cook’s Warehouse stores, as a consultant. In this role, Moore will provide executive-level direction and strategic visioning with a specific focus on the retailer experience. With 25+ years retail experience, Moore understands and appreciates the relationship between markets, vendors, sales representatives and retailers. She also has been in e-commerce for more than 13 years and developed an app allowing people to find foods based on diets, allergies and cuisine preferences. Another nine staff will support IMC_di’s programming, development and customer support needs. Working from IMC_di’s office in Juno Beach, FL, newly staffed positions include Back End Developer, Front End Developer, Application Developer, Enterprise Architect, Product Manager, Project Management Office Lead, Tech Lead and Quality Engineer. New hires in IMC_di’s Chantilly, VA, office will increase capacity and capabilities in development, user experience, sales and marketing, customer success and onboarding. With these latest hires, the IMC_di staff now numbers approaches 60. The company will continue to hire aggressively for technology and customer facing positions, with another 30-40 hires planned in the near term. Details about career opportunities in IMC_di’s offices in Juno Beach, FL, and Chantilly, VA, are available online at https://www.andmore.com/careers-at-imc/. About IMC_di: IMC Digital Innovations (IMC_di) is a stand-alone division of International Market Centers (IMC), the world’s largest operator of premier showroom space for the home furnishings, gift, and apparel industries. Launched in January 2020, IMC_di will build an industry-changing platform including a global B2B e-commerce marketplace, a full suite of integrated marketing and sales automation software and smart showroom tools. With bold people and bold ambitions — and by investing as much as $100 million — IMC_di will change and grow the industries IMC serves. # # # Press Contact: Cathy Steel, (203) 340-9251, cathysteel@cathysteelassociates.com

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2020-03-10