NRF 2027 Booth Guide: Exhibiting at the Javits Center in New York

NRF Retail's Big Show returns to the Javits Center in New York City on January 10 to 12, 2027. It is one of the few shows where almost everyone walking the aisle works in retail. That changes what a good booth looks like.

Who walks the floor

NRF says more than 41,000 retail professionals attend each year, with decision-makers from more than 100 countries. These are store operators, merchandisers, technology buyers and brand leaders. They are not browsing. They are looking for something that solves a problem in a store, a warehouse or a checkout line.

Exhibit and sponsorship information comes straight from NRF at sponsorship.nrf.com. Once you have your space, that is when we get to work.

Design a booth that looks like a store

Retail buyers think in shelves, counters and customers. The fastest way to earn a second look is to show your product where it actually lives.

Build a small scene. A mock checkout, a shelf section or a display wall tells a retail visitor what you do before you open your mouth. A bare table with a banner does not.

Show it working. Live demos beat brochures. Plan power, screens and a spot for the person giving the demo to stand where the crowd can see.

Add a meeting space. The real business at NRF happens in conversation. A quiet corner or a closed meeting room, even a small one, lets you talk numbers without shouting over the aisle. Our booth size guide shows how much floor space that takes.

Light it properly. Retail people notice lighting because they use it every day. See why lighting decides whether anyone stops.

If you are also doing CES

This is the problem we get asked about the most. CES closes on January 9 in Las Vegas. NRF opens on January 10 in New York. That is one day and about 2,500 miles by road.

A booth cannot be dismantled, crated, trucked across the country and rebuilt in a day. If you are exhibiting at both, you have three realistic options:

Two booths. Build one for each show, or build one custom booth and a smaller, simpler one for the second show. It costs more upfront and removes nearly all of the risk.

Rent one of them. Keep your custom booth at the show that matters most and use a rental display at the other. A rental can be delivered to New York without touching your Las Vegas freight.

A lighter second booth. A smaller portable display, a backwall and a few furniture pieces can travel on a separate truck and be set up quickly.

Whichever you choose, decide before you submit your freight paperwork. The two shows have different deadlines, different warehouses and different labor rules. For the Las Vegas side of the plan, read our CES 2027 booth guide.

Exhibiting in New York is its own game

New York is known for tight labor and delivery rules, and the Javits Center runs on tight schedules. Trucks usually get assigned delivery windows, and the venue decides who does what on the floor. If you miss your time slot, the cost is real. You can find more detail on our Javits Center page and our New York page.

Three habits keep the surprises small:

Ship early. Use the advance warehouse where it makes sense. Our advance warehouse breakdown explains when it pays for itself.

Know your labor rules. Who can touch your booth, and who has to, is decided by the venue, not by you. Start with union labor basics.

Budget the whole bill. Drayage, electrical and rigging are billed on top of the build. See drayage explained and what a booth really costs.

A short timeline from here

The show is about 13 weeks away. Work back from there: design and graphics approved by early November, fabrication through early December, pre-build and crating in mid December, freight on the truck by the end of December. Your exhibitor service manual sets the exact dates, so read it first.

Why local helps

We are based in Haverstraw, New York, a short drive from the Javits Center. For a New York show that means we can do site visits, see your space and fix problems in person instead of by phone. We build for exhibitors across the country, but New York is home.

What a retail visitor asks in the first 30 seconds

People walking the NRF floor have a short list of questions. Will this work in my stores? How fast can I roll it out? What does it cost? Who else uses it? Your booth should answer at least two of them without a word from your team. Put a customer name, a number or a short before-and-after on the wall behind you. Proof does more than adjectives.

Book meetings before you arrive

The best NRF booths have a full calendar before the doors open. Email the buyers you want to see, tell them where to find you, and design the booth so a meeting can start the moment they arrive: a place to sit, a screen to share, and a bit of quiet.

Quick answers

When is NRF 2027? January 10 to 12, 2027 at the Jacob K. Javits Convention Center in New York City.

Who attends? NRF reports more than 41,000 retail professionals each year, from more than 100 countries.

Can I exhibit at CES and NRF? Yes, but not with the same booth. CES ends the day before NRF opens, so plan two booths, or a custom booth plus a rental.

How much does a booth for NRF cost? It depends on size and how much is custom. Start with our price check and the booth cost guide, and remember the venue charges on top.

Let us look at your space

Tell us your booth size, your goals and which shows you are doing. We will tell you what makes sense and what it will take. Contact us or browse our custom exhibits and gallery for ideas. For a full planning list, see our trade show checklist.