Tammy Covington, president and chief executive officer of the High Point Market Authority, presented the authority’s proposed fiscal year 2025–26 operating budget to the High Point City Council during a May work session, saying the total operating budget is roughly $9 million and represents about a 1% increase from last year.

“For the third year now, we are adopting the same 4 areas of focus,” Covington said. She told council those priorities are cultivating new buyer targets, ensuring a frictionless guest experience, a customer-focused long-range technology plan and programs to draw the next generation into the home-furnishings industry.

The authority is not seeking additional state operating funds for FY2025–26, Covington said, and expects to continue receiving $4.5 million from the state. She described the revenue mix as about 20% local, 50% state and 30% industry, a structure she said reflects the public–private nature of the market authority’s work.

Covington and Market Authority staff outlined several local initiatives tied to the market: community tours to introduce visiting buyers to downtown vendors; a pilot that allowed nine local businesses to set up for three days in the Showplace parking lot; and an ongoing partnership with Guilford County Schools that brought students from Central, Southwest and Ragsdale high schools to market events for mentoring and industry exposure.

Covington described changes made to registration operations as the main driver of modest expense increases. After switching vendors in recent years, the authority moved registration in-house; Covington said that work—issuing and mailing tens of thousands of badges and managing the registration database—accounts for the largest budget increase line item.

She also said the market saw 10 new or renovated buildings at the most recent market and that, over five years, the authority has added roughly a half-million square feet of showroom space. Covington flagged discussions with the Kitchen & Bath Industry Show (KBIS) about whether the High Point market can host a meaningful East Coast presence for that industry, while noting High Point is unlikely to become a full KBIS event.

Council members thanked Market Authority staff for coordinating public safety and city operations during market. Mayor Cyril Jefferson and council members also noted the Market Authority’s emphasis on local business integration and workforce pipeline work.

The Market Authority’s presentation was delivered as a non-action informational item; council did not take a vote on the authority’s budget during the session. The meeting moved on to the city’s budget presentation after the Market Authority finished its remarks.