Design on stage, I Saloni are back

Big names are coming back to the design show in Milan in 2014. On stage there will be also the biennial events “EuroCucina”, the international showcase for made in Italy furniture, and “Salone del bagno”, the International Bathroom Exhibition.

 

The appointment with the Saloni in Milan, the design show at the Rho Milan expo center from 8th to 13th April, features major innovations and some important comebacks by leading operators in the made in Italy furniture industry. The show contents were introduced – maybe not really as it should be done in a press conference, and somebody indeed left before the end – by the irony of the duo Claudio Sabelli Fioretti and Giorgio Lauro, speakers of the Rai Radio Due radio show “Un giorno da pecora”, who, supported by the “L’Ebernies” satirical duo of Rachele Brancatisano and Serena Pagnani, asked the president of Cosmit Claudio Luti and the other protagonists of the big event of design a lot of irreverent questions during the presentation press conference in Milan, in the prestigious Sala delle Cariatidi at Palazzo Reale. A nice little show, if it had not been addressed to journalists looking for information to be published…

 

Let’s come to facts: the next “Salone internazionale del mobile”, the 53^rd edition in the lucky history of this exhibition completely dedicated to the world of design, will feature the return of the biennial events “EuroCucina” and “International Bathroom Exhibition”, plus a collateral event dedicated to the private homes of eight big contemporary architects and their personal way to manage and experience the living space.

This edition of the furniture show – combined with the “International Furnishing Accessories Exhibition” – has been split, as usual, into three style categories – “classic”, “modern” and “design” – with more than 1,400, exhibitors from Italy and around the world. The Salone Internazionale del Mobile will boast not just the consolidated presence of leading manufacturers, but also the new inclusion of high-end furnishing companies such as Hästens, Kvadrat, Iittala, Tom Dixon, and upmarket fashion brands such as Ferré, Pierre Cardin and Ungaro, making the wide range of goods on offer even more tantalizing. Some very well-known names will be back on the stands of Fiera Milano Rho such as Flötotto, Gebr. Thonet, Scp, Thonet, Treca and Wittmann.

 

“EuroCucina” reached its twentieth biennial edition at Salone del mobile with over 25 thousand square meters of exhibiting surface for 130 companies in four halls, to relaunch the best of “made in Italy” and international production.

This edition features the return of leading names such as Alno, Cesar, Dada, Mobalpa, Pedini, Schiffini and Valcucine. Products range from classic to design kitchens, brick, metal and wood kitchens, with particular focus yet again on natural materials, according to the trend of the past few years, and care for details and finishing.

The export figures for the period January to August 2013, which were 5.4 percent up on the same period of the previous year, confirm ever-increasing interest in Italian kitchens. Significant growth in exports of Made in Italy kitchens was recorded not just in leading markets such as the UK (plus 90 percent), the US (plus 62.7 percent), Turkey (plus 39.2 percent), Switzerland (plus 22.8 percent) and Russia (plus 9.4 percent) – the second destination market, worth 49.5 million Euros – but also in new markets such as Panama (plus 114.2 percent), Singapore (plus 113.3 percent), Hong Kong (plus 60.4 percent) and Australia (plus 47.8 percent). EuroCucina’s collateral event, “Ftk (Technology For the Kitchen)”, devoted to built-in electrical household appliances and cooker hoods, is back again, showcasing products, prototypes and designs for the kitchens of the future.

Two halls will be devoted to the “International Bathroom Furniture Exhibition”, which will feature all the latest bathroom accessories and furniture, shower cubicles and saunas, sanitary ware, radiators, coverings, bathroom and/or kitchen taps, bath and hydro-massage tubs.

“SaloneSatellite” – devoted to creative young designers – counts on the presence of about 650 young designers, 45% of whom are returning for their second or third time. At its seventeenth anniversary, the event is ready to change location: indeed it will be located in halls 13-15, the same as “EuroCucina”, thus ensuring much more functional access. The new location also generates synergy between the creativity of next-generation designers and the kitchen and household appliance industries, the underlying theme of innovation projects.

After the interest sparked by the last edition, a number of handicraft workshops, equally committed to innovation, will return this year: masters of textiles, ceramics, leather and 3D printing (digital craftsmanship) will reveal through live demonstrations what lies behind the objects they make, bringing the visitor into direct contact not only with those who design them, but also their manufacturers.

Finally, the “SaloneSatellite Award” competition is celebrating its 5th edition, promoting contacts between designers under 35 and exhibiting companies. The jury will choose the three best projects in the represented categories.