TRENDS & STRATEGIES
FOCUS
REVIEW
20 YEARS FURNITURE CHINA
SHANGHAI. WHAT’S NEXT?
by Giovanna Castellina
CSIL International Marketing
E
XTRAORDINARY FURNITURE
JOURNEY
Furniture China exhibition’s
amazing adventure developed in
parallel with the Chinese furniture
industry growth. China has witnessed
an unprecedented period of growth in
the last two decades and today the
country is the largest producer,
exporter and consumer of furniture
worldwide.
20 years ago China was out of the top
10 ranking of furniture exporting countries and about 50th as far as imports
are concerned.
Since the 1990s China has recorded
double-digit growth in production every
year. Within 10 years, from 2002 to
2012, production value and exports
multiplied by 9, with profit increase
being even higher. The average annual
production growth over the period
2002-2012 was +25%. The Chinese
furniture industry has now become a
huge integrated industry with more than
5 million employees, accounting for
more than 40% of total world production (according to CSIL statistics).
China ranks first also for exports. About
www.worldfurnitureonline.com
US$ 50 billion of furniture is sold
abroad, whereas the value was in the
range of US$ 5 billion just a decade
ago.
The impressive economic development
of the country boosted the 1.3 billion
population’s disposable income, also
causing a surge in domestic consumption. Since 2009, the country is the
largest furniture market in the world with
US$ 134 billion. It is also the country
where the largest increases (+8% in
real terms) in furniture demand are
expected. The domestic market, in fact,
will be the driving force behind China’s
Mr. Wang Ming Liang speaking at the Opening
Cerimony of Furniture China
furniture growth, not only for domestic
production but also for imported furniture. The furniture industry has become
the fourth largest consumer goods
industry in China.
UPHOLSTERED FURNITURE INDUSTRY. PREMIERE IN 2015
The sofa segment played an important
role during 2014 exhibition, as its role in
the Chinese furniture system is crucial.
In SWEECC, the “100 Sofa Show”, a
specially themed show featuring sourcing for better fabric with 100 new
designs of fabric sofas, was presented
in Hall 4. The ‘Sofa & Bed Show’ - a
brand new upholstery exhibition - will
debut concurrently with Furniture China
2015, occupying 40,000 sqm at
SWEECC.
Globally, China ranks first in the world
for its upholstered furniture production,
consumption and exports. Upholstered
furniture accounts for about 17% of the
total Chinese furniture production.
Upholstered production increased
annually by 20% over the last five years
while exports increased by 22%, thus
representing the best performance at
December 2014 - WF 29
FOCUS
REVIEW
TRENDS & STRATEGIES
international level. Upholstered furniture accounts for 14% of total furniture
consumption. Local manufacturers satisfy the whole domestic consumption;
indeed upholstered furniture imports
account only for around 1% of the total
consumption.
DESIGN IS THE FUTURE
In the new Chinese furniture era, creative design has become an indispensable element of success. Two Design
Halls focused on design - Hall W4 for
Brand Design and Hall W5 for Original
Design - gathering not only 106
exhibitors bringing their innovative products but also fresh design concepts
covering 16 international design brands
from Indonesia, Philippines, Singapore,
India, Thailand, Australia, Belgium,
Switzerland, Germany and the United
States.
Home Plus is the most noteworthy highlight in Hall E4, which is cooperated
with Architectural Digest. On the other
hand, to encourage original designs,
the organizer is partnering with Elle
Decoration to launch the Gold Idea
Furniture Design Award of China, and
invited Professor Dr. Peter Zec, founder
and CEO of the Red Dot Award, as the
president of the jury. This year Design
of Designers (DOD) hall hosted works
from 60 designers.
The 20th edition of Furniture China and FMC
Exhibition took place from 10 to 14 September,
jointly organized by UBM Sinoexpo and China
National Furniture Association. Top Chinese furniture companies and 307 overseas exhibitors
for a total of 2,685 exhibitors displayed their
latest products, design and technology at Shanghai New International Expo
Centre (SNIEC) and Shanghai World Expo Exhibition & Convention Centre
(SWEECC). This year’s exhibition attracted 98,401 visitors, a +15.34% increase compared with last year, including 21,823 overseas from 158 countries
and regions, which raised +3.3%. 2,685 exhibitors attended the show.
Among the national pavilions, the Korean one was exhibiting for the first time
together with France, Belgium, Spain, Portugal, Malaysia, Indonesia and
Singapore. To be noticed the presence of Brazil and Poland, also for the first
time in Shanghai.
WHAT’S NEXT?
The 21th edition of the show, Furniture
China 2015 will be held from 9-12
September, in the same exhibition venues in Pudong, Shanghai — at Shanghai
New International Expo entre (SNIEC),
Shanghai World Expo Exhibition and
convention Centre (SWEECC).
About 98% (that is 658 selected key
exhibitors) have confirmed their participation in Furniture China 2015 and
there are nearly 400 new companies
requesting some 40,000 sqm net for
the show in 2015.
30 December 2014 - WF
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