Salone del Mobile.Milano 2016: the drive to furniture industry export finds new strength in the revised graphical design and communication approach, as well as in an innovative concept for the exhibition of high-end product.
Mission: conquer the most promising international markets, from the United States and China to Iran. Strategy: focus resources and energy on new communication and exhibitions concepts to promote made-in-Italy production around the world. The next “Salone del Mobile.Milano”, at Fiera Milano Rho from 12 to 17 April, is getting ready to show the creative, organization and sales potential of Italian furniture and design, with more than 300 thousand operators expected from over 160 countries, while visitors during open days on Saturday and Sunday should exceed 30 thousand; with 207 thousand square meters of net exhibition space and 2,310 exhibitors (30% of them foreign companies). “If you’re not there, you should be” is the sine qua non condition to join the “community”, scattered between the expo center and downtown locations (such as the “Rooms. Novel Living Concepts” exhibition, curated by Beppe Finessi, at the XXI Triennale in Milan, from 2nd April to 12th September 2016, “space&interiors”, organized by Migliore+Servetto Architects, and the short film “Before Design: Classic” by multi-award winning filmmaker Matteo Garrone), between Salone and Fuorisalone, combined with new design and communication to highlight the transition of the global furniture show par excellence from a brand to a world-class design icon. We will not forget the first edition of “Salone del Mobile.Milano Award”, with an awarding ceremony held on May 4, with different categories including: best designer, best young designer, best kitchen product, best furniture product, best bathroom product, best display and classic furniture.
Room for luxury
According to tradition, the stars of the event will be the Salone Internazionale del Mobile and the International Furnishing Accessories Exhibition, hosting over 1,300 exhibitors on a 150,000 square meter area, split into two categories, Classic and Design, along with “SaloneSatellite”, dedicated to the best R&D trends by design schools and new talents, and the biennial exhibitions “Eurocucina” (including “FTK” for kitchen technology) and the International Bathroom Exhibition. There will also be new launches to support deeper penetration into the major global markets. A differentiator within the concept will be “xLux”, a new exhibition area presenting an integrated route through the production of furniture between classic and design, with a blitz into the fashion world. In recognition of a product category already largely established on the American markets, from East to Far East, “xLux” will focus on linear products embellished with details, finishings and warmer, softer materials, enhanced by strong presence of leading fashion brands, including Borbonese, Fendi, Ferrè, Paul Mathieu, Roberto Cavalli, Ungaro and Versace, as well as prestigious global brands such as Aston Martin, Ritz, making its world debut, and Tonino Lamborghini.
“The 55th edition – said Roberto Snaidero, President of Salone del Mobile.Milano – will be a huge international draw, with 70% of the operators coming from over 160 countries and a wide range of top commercial offerings from the very best companies on the Italian and foreign markets, combined with culture and product culture through our collateral events. Internationalization and innovation are the key drivers of this important edition. In particular, companies taking part in the Salone affirm that 63 percent of revenue is generated by exports, while 67 percent of them have made substantial investments in innovating machinery, equipment and software; research and development, especially within the companies themselves, and in the design of new products.” Such effort has been supported by institutions: in collaboration with Ice-Italian Trade Agency, the made-in-Italy 2016 promotion plan is supported by more investments aimed at increasing the number of qualified foreign visitors and activate the best contacts for B2B meetings.
Conquest of the Dragon
Strengthening the foothold on growing markets is a top priority. In a landscape where Italian furniture is getting stronger in traditional European markets, Germany and France first, the most promising destinations are the United States and China. Eyes are also turned to Iran, where new policies for open trade are creating significant opportunities for made in Italy export. It is not mere chance that, in Miami (Florida), at the “Design Miami/ArtBasel” event last January, Salone del Mobile.Milano presented a review of the top-notch production of Italian design, while China is hosting the first “Salone del Mobile.Shanghai” from 19 to 21 November 2016: based on previous experience in Russia, the exhibition will cover a 4 thousand square meter area, with a program including “Master Classes”, dedicated meetings about the key topics of architecture and design, presented by leading Italian representatives of the design business, and “SaloneSatellite” open to young designers under 35.
The Chinese market, approached by the furniture business in recent years also through a partnership involving FederlegnoArredo Eventi and BolognaFiere, is acknowledging the role of Italy as top furniture partner, with 19 percent growth of Italian export in the January-September 2015 period compared to the same timeframe of 2014, and 270 million euro estimates by the end of the year, as also indicated by the latest figures of Centro Studi FederlegnoArredo Eventi based on Istat data. The outlook is also optimistic, with a 40 percent increase within 2019. The market share is 15 percent on total Chinese import (1,537 million euro). Looking at product categories, the export ranking is headed by upholstered furniture (plus 33 percent), bedroom (plus 56 percent) and decorative lighting (plus 15 percent), with a strong expansion trend for kitchen sets (plus 39 percent). On the whole, Italian companies in the furniture industry hold leading positions in export to China in 70 percent of furnishing products. Made-in-Italy furniture is the world’s third largest industry by total annual export (13.6 billion euro) and has the best active trade balance, second to China only, with 10.3 billion euro. Competitiveness goes hand in hand with innovation, as witnessed by 22,741 drawings and models (more than Spain, France, Great Britain and Sweden all together) registered in the database of OHIM (EU Office for Harmonization in the Internal Market).
