NOVEMBER 22 – 24, 2019
14 years ago, DesignerCon (aka DCon, presented by toy-industry titans 3D Retro) debuted at the Pasadena Convention Center and quickly became the West Coast’s premier convention for fans, collectors and creators of cutting-edge collectible art and vinyl toys. Last year, DCon moved to the Anaheim Convention Center, tripling in size to 350,000 square feet of vendor exhibition and programming space. Excitingly, everyone came with us and DCon continues to grow in its second year in Anaheim.
In our first year in Anaheim in 2018, over 37,000 art and design fans and families attended the show to buy world-class, cutting-edge art and related merchandise from world-class contemporary artists and brands. This year, the number of vendors and artists is jumping 20% to over 1,000 total artists and vendors, and attendance is expected to exceed 50,000.
We welcome you to explore a section by clicking below, and join us at the biggest DCON ever:
DEMOGRAPHICS
DESIGNERCON FANATICS
DCon Social Media Reach
DCON Newsletter = 30,000+ Followers (Vendors & Ticket Buyers)
HIJINX ARTS NEWSLETTER = 10,000+ FOLLOWERS (ART SCENE)
HIJINX MEDIA NEWSLETTER = 4,000+ FOLLOWERS (MEDIA)
THINK TANK GALLERY NEWSLETTER = 14,000+ FOLLOWERS (ART EVENT GOERS)
SELECT COVERAGE
2019 is a very exciting year – and theme – for DCon. Every year DCon picks a subject around which its vendors and sponsors can design, and with all of the thrilling activity in the worldwide capital of entertainment related to the Sci-Fi world this year, our theme was a no-brainer: SPACE.
2019 has some monumental moments for some of
Hollywood’s biggest sci-fi franchises.
2019 is the year in which the original Blade Runner took place.
Back to the Future II turns 30 in 2019 (joining more than half of our audience in their thirties!)
Disneyland’s Galaxy’s Edge (Star Wars Land) opens a few hundred feet from DCon’s front door in 2019
JOIN US IN CREATING A NEW 2019 MEMORY BY EXPLORING “SPACE” WITH US
We’ve already stacked DCon 2019 with some exciting collaborations, novel experiences, and milestones for international brands/artists making their way to the United States, and we keep adding new values to our guests every day. We've listed a few of 2019’s highlights below, and the list keeps growing every day.
EXCITING DCON 2019 COLLABORATIONS
JOHNNY CUPCAKES EXCLUSIVE TEE DROP
Part of their yearly tradition, famed clothing designer Johnny Cupcakes has teamed up with DesignerCon again for 2019. The exclusive, limited edition Johnny Cupcake tee for the show brings a line of people year after year, and collectors from around the world area excited for 2019’s design. Expect a rad installation with their smell-infused merch displays, too!
MEDICOM X DCON BE@RBRICK ARTIST SET
World famous Medicom Toys teamed up with DesignerCon in 2018 for its first ever show in the United States, bringing some of their most exciting Japanese artists and collectibles and selling out piece after piece. Happy with the long lines filling the show floor all weekend, Medicom is back, this time with a limited run of DesignerCon exclusive designs of their legendary Be@rbricks featuring a DCon-curated list of well-known artists, and even longer lines of international fans.
STEVEN HARRINGTON OFFICIAL DCON BADGES
For 2019 we are excited to have a variety of Harrington’s illustrations adorning the badges that every guest wears (and collects). Ask us how to have your brand present Harrington’s work alongside DCon on every badge!
CAMILLE ROSE-GARCIA SHOW PROGRAM
Los Angeles native CRG has continued to transform the contemporary art landscape. Having been displayed internationally and featured in numerous magazines including Juxtapoz, Rolling Stone, and Modern Painter, she is included in the collections of the Los Angeles County Museum as well as the San Jose Museum of Art, which held a retrospective of her work in 2007. The official DCon 2019 show program is a collector’s item every year, and 2019 will present one of the most coveted annual issues yet when Camille Rose-Garcia creates her original cover art. Ask us how to present the collector’s item alongside CRG and DCon.
JIM MAHFOOD POSTER + BILLBOARDS
Jam Mahfood has worked for every major comic book company in the world, and has a client list that stretches across gigantic companies like Playboy, Disney, Armani, Nissan, NBC, Sony, Comedy Central, TIGI, MTV, Pabst Blue Ribbon, Cartoon Network, Star Wars Gamer, Hollywood Records, Mad Magazine, and many more. We are thrilled to invite Mahfood to create the official DCon 2019 poster and billboard designs that will live in the fan-favorite Fairfax streetwear shopping district and other coveted spots in LA for months leading up to the show. Ask us how to present Mahfood’s work alongside DesignerCon on these high exposure billboard locations.
+ MORE EXPERIENCES & PARTNERSHIPS TO BE ANNOUNCED
DesignerCon brings the best and brightest stars of the designer toy and fine art worlds together under one roof, from individual artists with a burgeoning fanbase to major brands and companies whose products are collected all over the world.
Continuing the tradition of ComicCon's Artist Alley, DesignerCon thrives on connecting creators to their fans.
Some of the confirmed talent for 2019 includes:
DCon is bringing a crowd.
And so is Anaheim.
The Anaheim Convention Center first became a meetings and conventions destination in 1967, and the original construction consisted of the domed Arena (which stands on Katella Avenue), an Exhibit Hall, and Meeting Space. Since those early days, the Anaheim Convention Center has completed a total of six expansions plus several cosmetic renovations to update the Convention Center. Five of the major expansions provided additional exhibit hall and meeting room space. While the fifth expansion, completed in January 2000, resulted in a complete transformation of the Anaheim Convention Center and surrounding campus, the most recent expansion, completed in January 2013, was the Grand Plaza: 100,000 square feet of exterior space offering meeting planners the opportunity for large outdoor gatherings including alfresco dining, concerts, receptions, exhibitions, meetings and more.
It's right next to Disneyland and nearby multiple airports with shuttles directly to its front doors (including LAX). It's one of the West Coast's most accessible locations for an international audience of the magnitude DCon brings.
DesignerCon lives in the creative capitol of the world, and is the most genuine and widest slice of it that you can find. While other conventions might boast larger numbers and heavier corporate attention, DCon connects to its artists – and therefore their fans – in a way that is realer than any other. When you partner with DCon, you buy into a vital creative community and speak directly to an audience of influencers tuned into the vanguard of illustrator, animator, and collector culture.
And since this event takes place at the brink of the holiday season, our impact and consumer spend opportunity is off the charts.
Our only rule?
You must CREATE ARTWORK AT DCON, OR PROVIDE SOMETHING THAT DIRECTLY INSPIRES OR SUPPORTS OUR ARTISTS.
Every single guest, artist, sponsor, and VIP in the whole Anaheim Convention Center – 50,000+ over the three days – will need to access the internet to share their selfies with hard-to-get designer items, access their business emails for networking, and even make sales with their cash registers.
You can literally name the wifi network for the entire Anaheim Convention Center after your company or slogan.
Ask us how.
Our team has built some wild art installations for its brand partners over the years. Be the next to captivate audiences in a memorable way. Hire our team to produce or bring your own.
Sometimes you need more than a simple photo opportunity. Our team understands that an interactive experience is the single best way to leave an impression. See how we've done it before.
For the first time, DCon is seeking an Aisle Sponsor. Tens of thousands of guests are looking for their favorite booths as they walk the floor, and your art pieces in the sky can lead the way.
We have a few different Lounges around the convention floor, including VIP areas, recharging and relaxation stations, panelist and talent green rooms, and more. Give our guests a break.
The Anaheim Convention Center has one of Southern Californias most iconic entryways. They're letting us deck it out with artwork, and we'd love for you to help us show off to the whole city.
Each year, DCon takes out 4 billboards in highly visible locations in Los Angeles and surrounding areas. For our biggest event yet, we want to invite a couple big names up there with us.
Renowned graffiti photog and videographer Birdman has been creating some great content for DCon for years. The video reaches a huge audience and we invite you to join us in presenting it.
Join us in the madness, and perhaps on our radio and TV commercials, too (Cartoon Network, etc).
We have two stages at DCon – the main panel stage during all three days of the convention, and the music stage during the House of Blues After Party. We welcome you to present and event co-curate DesignerCon's most exciting talent to share lessons to the realest illustration, animation, and sculpting fans in the world for the former. We’re making it into one giant art piece.
As for the House of Blues? It’s going to be big.
There are a variety of places in the con that invite smart partnerships with clever and creative brands. Lobby design, ticketing stations, tons of line queue areas, and wayfinding signage are all places that warrant tens of thousands of daily interactions, and each is an opportunity to create a work of art.
One of DesignerCon's most exciting and open-ended areas is the “Tech Zone,” presented alongside media partner VRScout. Think VR & AR, 3D printing/sculpting, software demos, charging stations, etc. Put your product in guests' hands, or transform it with the most cutting edge media in art history.
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We seek a variety of creative partners for many corners of DesignerCon — including on-site activations and promotional packages. We also work to build out customized opportunities to suit each partner we work with. In addition, if you know off the bat how you're looking to be involved, we offer more traditional and straightforward brand partnerships.
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OTHER ADVERTISING OPPORTUNITIES INCLUDE:
• Ads on Tickets (print and online)
•Badge Sponsorship (logos on lanyard badges given to each guest)
• Map Sponsorship (online & printed map inclusion with logos; logo on wayfinding signs on walls + floor)
• Beverage Sponsorships
• Snack Sponsorships
•Media Sponsorships
•Ads in Booklets & Other Programs
DESIGNER CON 2019 TEAM
3DRetro was founded in 2003 by Ben Goretsky and his passion for collectible toys. 3DRetro supplies the best and hardest to find collectible figures from around the world. 3DRetro also produces collectible vinyl figures with artists from around the world including such names as Gary Baseman, Touma, Nathan Ota, Jeremy Fish, COOP, Brandi Milne and so many more. In 2013 3DRetro opened its retail location in Glendale, CA making it a hot spot for collectors. The store hosts multiple release parties throughout the year and features signings with artists from around the world.
Hijinx Arts is a Los Angeles based PR & Management firm that specializes in promoting artists, galleries and special events. The team offers a wide array of scalable, fully-integrated public relations and marketing services to work hand in hand with their clients.
Think Tank Gallery is an alternative arts space and immersive production company founded in Downtown Los Angeles in 2010. They build themed experiences around the country, and hide content in every corner. From building a coffee house in a warehouse with patio performances, to running a skate park in a gallery streaming video feeds through the ramps, to running a month of events in a giant cake wonderland with Cirque du Soleil, Think Tank Gallery nails the branding without upsetting the vibe. They create meaningful – not mindless – entertainment.
