Laura Van Zeyl, the Vice President of Lighting Technology Development & Marketing at Dallas Market Center, attended the American Lighting Association (ALA) Conference in Vancouver and reported back with the latest news, upcoming trends, and exciting developments in the lighitng indsutry.
Laura was previously the publisher and editorial director of Residential Lighting and Home Fashion Forecast magazines, and she has been covering the 
lighting and home furnishings industries since 1993. In 2011, she served as a judge for Lighting for Tomorrow, the industry competition for innovative and energy efficient lighting. In 2014, she was named one of "100 Women of Inspiration" by Today's Chicago Woman magazine.
Read below to hear Laura's insights from the 2017 ALA Conferene, and if you haven't done so already, be sure to register for January 2018 Lightovation by clicking here.
Contributed post from Laura Van Zeyl:
Aside from the January and June editions of Lightovation – Dallas International Lighting Show, the American Lighting Association (ALA) Annual Conference represents one of the only opportunities for all segments of the residential lighting industry to get together. This year’s conference, held September 10-12 in Vancouver, BC, was especially well received. It was the first time in two decades that the event was held in Canada (ALA membership encompasses all of North America).
The group put together an outstanding program with many actionable takeaways for the 550 attendees.
Here are our top five key highlights:
- There is opportunity in disruption. In his opening keynote, Jon Sayah of Fleco Industries/Lights Fantastic set the tone for the remainder of the Conference by showcasing how much both lighting technology and the retail experience has changed, and will continue to change rapidly. More than ever before, the lighting industry is in the business of selling goals—what lighting can do to enhance lives—versus merely selling products. As awareness of lighting’s impact on health continues to grow, the industry’s importance will only expand. Products exhibited at Lightovation that do more than illuminate or decorate exemplify this trend, such as tunable LED where color temperature can be adjusted for task or mood.
- Lighting is the logical “on ramp” to the connected home. It was clear from several general and breakout sessions at conference that connected systems represent one of the biggest disruptions and opportunities for the lighting industry. While concerns about lack of standards and security/privacy issues remain hurdles to overcome, lighting’s necessity in the home and ease of adoption—often as simple as changing a bulb—allow consumers to easily and affordably experiment with smart/connected products. Lightovation should see even more products in 2018 that are compatible with platforms like Z-Wave and Amazon’s Alexa, as well as convenient app-controlled lighting and fans.
- Quality lighting is important to consumers. Research conducted by Meredith Corp., publishers of ALA’s annual consumer magazine Lighting, revealed that 83 percent of consumers feel that lighting fixtures are either “important” or “very important” to their homes. What attributes are most important when these homeowners are selecting their fixtures? Design tops the list, followed by the quality of the product and the amount of light it gives off. Most noteworthy in this study: Price is no longer one of the top considerations for consumers when selecting lighting, which will help keep it from becoming a commodity moving forward. Great design, quality, and performance abound in Lightovation introductions.
- Millennials will help shepherd the lighting industry into a bright future. Underscoring the optimistic mood about capitalizing on new opportunities was the presence of Young Executives at this year’s ALA Conference. Always a robust group, Millennials were more visible, active, and vocal than ever before at Conference. Mentoring will clearly be a two-way street, with experienced generations creating opportunities for the younger set to use new tools and platforms for engaging effectively with industry peers and the increasingly important consumers who mirror their demographic. William Senofsky of LED Inspirations gave a particularly inspiring pep talk to young executives about encouraging a growth mindset and not being fearful of failure. Watch for information about a Cheers With Peers social event during January 2018 Lightovation, a popular Dallas tradition bringing the ALA Young Executives together with the Under 40 crowd at ART – The Creative Home Furnishings Network.
- Women in the lighting industry will have an amplified voice. At this year’s Conference, ALA launched its first Women in the Industry group with a reception just before the closing night gala. While specifics are still taking shape, the stated purpose is to create a forum for networking, sharing ideas, experiences, and tips, with a goal of enhancing each other’s careers and the industry as a whole. Stay tuned to learn about events for this emerging group taking place during Lightovation, Jan. 17-21, 2018, which will also encourage momentum.
The next ALA Conference will take place Sept. 24-26, 2018, at the Omni Grove Park Inn in Asheville, NC. Registration is already open at www.alaconference.com.