I arrived in Houston Sunday night for the annual Halloween & Party Expo held at the spacious George R. Brown convention center. I believe that this is the largest expo in the party industry, but don’t quote me on that. It’s certainly a showcase for both large and small manufacturers from all over the party industry.

I was looking forward to a short reprieve from the frigid weather of Michigan, but Houston didn’t accommodate. While warmer, it rained all day, making my 6 block trek from my hotel a wet one. Regardless, I wasn’t here to be outside. I was here to find vendors, see new party products and talk with people I know in the industry.

The conference floor was roughly divided into 3 sections, “Sexy Costumes”, “Halloween & Costumes” and “The Party Zone”. For Discount Party Supplies, I was most interested in “The Party Zone”, but as we carry a small inventory of kids’ costumes, I was also somewhat interested in the “Halloween & Costumes” section. I ventured into the “Sexy Costumes” section only for “research” purposes.

In “The Party Zone” were a number of wonderful vendors whose products we carry. I saw all of the big party tableware producers such as Hallmark, Unique, Creative, and Amscan. I also ran into many balloon, party favor, and toy manufacturers displaying their new stuff. Some of these exhibitors we already do business with and some were completely new to me. Either way, it was exciting to see a ton of new products, some of which we will invariably carry.

At Hallmark, they were displaying a number of their upcoming new licensed themes. Among the new themes were the Green Lantern theme, Captain America party supplies, Thor, Disney’s Cars 2, the new Pirates of the Caribbean, and the Smurf party theme. These new themes look awesome, and I have a feeling that all of them are going to be winners.

Unique had a large variety of their existing product line on display as well as their two new licensed party tableware themes, Justin Bieber and Pinkalicious. The Justin Bieber party supplies are already a hit and we have high hopes for Pinkalicious (I know my girls enjoy the books). I only wish that Unique had had their full Pinkalicious line on display, but I had to make do with just a few items.

Creative has come out with a number of cool, new non-licensed themes such as monkey party, robot party supplies, and superhero birthday. Zebra and giraffe print themes are likely to make an impression, and they’ve also upgraded a number of their “All-Star” sports themes. In addition, they have a vibrant bee baby shower theme that should be popular. Overall, they have come out with some very nice ideas for the spring release.

In the Costume section there were tons of small vendors, medium sized vendors, and the biggies “Rubies”, “Disguise”, and Leg Avenue. While we don’t carry many costumes yet, it’s always good to take a look at the costumes being promoted to get a sense of what the industry leaders expect will be popular.

Rubies was pushing a number of themes, but among the new ones were Glee costumes, Smurf costumes and a large section devoted to Green Lantern. Disguise featured Pirates of the Caribbean, Captain America, and Thor costumes. Leg Costume seemed to focus primarily on sexy costumes, although I unfortunately never made it over to their display. I did, however, manage to make it to their fashion show, where beautiful models showed off the latest. Again, this was for research purposes.

I’m sure there’s a lot of other things and companies I’ve forgot to mention. It was a short and busy trip for me, but well worth it. Overall, this year’s Halloween & Party Expo was a great experience, and I hope to make it back next year.