The International Furniture Fair Singapore Post Show Report
Furniture World News Desk on
4/23/2015
The International Furniture Fair Singapore reported that the 2015 / 32nd ASEAN Furniture Show (IFFS/AFS 2015), The Décor Show, and Hospitality 360° came to a close after four full days of business meetings, networking, seminars, and design-related activities.
A total of 487 exhibitors from a record number of 39 countries participated in the trilogy of events this year, occupying 60,000 square meters of beautifully-decorated halls at the Singapore EXPO. In terms of footfall, IFFS welcomed 18,836 visitors from 102 countries to the fair, including 92 buying delegations and 380 VIP Hosted Buyers of The Prestige Club.
Mr. Ernie Koh, Chairman of IFFS Pte Ltd & President of Singapore Furniture Industries Council, expressed, “IFFS is well poised to assist international manufacturers enter the Asian market, as well as to allow local or regional firms to break into the global scene. Companies are attracted to the unique blend of East meets West that is adaptable to either side of the spectrum, the ease with which business can be conducted here, and the well-established infrastructure that the island nation offers.”
The fair expanded its pool of design-centric exhibitors that consistently feature well-presented collections.
Besides appreciating designs that have already been commercialised, students participating in IFFS also learned about the importance of good design in a piece. Dr. Zorica Djoković, Headmistress at Drvoart Technical School (Serbia), shared, “We came to Singapore with the objective to showcase our work. However, we’ve been pleasantly surprised with requests from manufacturers to actually produce our students’ designs! The exposure and welcome we’ve received is incredible.”
Even as IFFS evolved to include more design elements, it stayed true to its core of being a trading and sourcing platform for regional and global talents and businesses. To attract and retain quality exhibitors, the Organisers recognised participating companies with Best Exhibit and Best Stand Awards. Winners were selected by a group of nine independent judges comprising designers, architects, and members of the media.
In addition, the Organisers also put in place an exclusive Hosted Buyers’ Programme to facilitate exhibitors’ meetings with important customers at the show. the show reported that this initiative was well received by participating exhibitors and their invited guests. For exhibitors, the Hosted Buyers’ Programme allowed them to schedule meetings with their invited guests without having to deal with administrative and logistical arrangements, enabling them to focus on conducting business and networking. Members of the Club also received an assortment of perks and privileges, including complimentary accommodation, return transfers, special access to networking lounges, meals, and a ticket to the popular IFFS Exhibitors’ & Buyers’ Night.
Mr. Koh concluded, “Hot on the heels of a successful edition, the team is already working on producing an even better show in 2016, where we will co-locate with Koelnmesse’s third edition of furniPRO Asia for the first time. We are also collaborating with the American Hardwood Export Council on a sustainable campaign to promote furniture design and business in skilled manufacturing, and this showcase will make its debut at IFFS 2016. There is much to look forward to and we’ll share more details as things firm up.”
About International Furniture Fair Singapore Pte Ltd (IFFS Pte Ltd): International Furniture Fair Singapore Pte Ltd (IFFS Pte Ltd) is partly owned by the Singapore Furniture Industries Council (SFIC) and MP International Pte Ltd. IFFS Pte Ltd’s primary objectives are to organize and manage furniture and furniture-related fairs, exhibitions, shows, conferences and other events worldwide. This includes the annual International Furniture Fair Singapore/ASEAN Furniture Show (IFFS/AFS), The Décor Show and Hospitality 360°, a keynote event on the furniture trade exhibition calendar.
About International Furniture Fair Singapore/ASEAN Furniture Show (IFFS/AFS), The Décor Show and Hospitality 360°: The International Furniture Fair Singapore, held in conjunction with the ASEAN Furniture Show (IFFS/AFS), The Décor Show and Hospitality 360°, is regarded by industry experts as a premier sourcing platform and design-led exhibition. With three decades of experience since its inaugural event in 1981, the IFFS/AFS remains the most distinctive channel for regional and international companies to penetrate the global market.
The trilogy of events - The IFFS/AFS, The Décor Show and Hospitality 360° - feature a comprehensive range of furniture, furnishing, decorative accessories, interiors and fittings by a diverse portfolio of quality exhibitors, and attracts a healthy and well-represented attendance of trade buyers and visitors. To make it a holistic trade event, the various design initiatives (SingaPlural - Celebrating Design and Furniture Design Award) offer added depth and dimension to this Singapore-anchored trade event, raising its profile as a show not-to-be-missed in the industry calendar.
About SingaPlural 2015: The annual SingaPlural 2015 returned for a fourth edition from March 10 – 15 at 99 Beach Road to showcase the best design elements from the multi-faceted creative spectrum – Advertising, Architecture, Urban Planning, Landscape Architecture, as well as Interior, Furniture, Graphic and Fashion Design through installations, exclusively curated design spaces, symposiums and many other activities.
Organised by the Singapore Furniture Industries Council, in partnership with DesignS, the week-long design celebration featured talents across the creative industries. It was held in conjunction with the International Furniture Fair Singapore 2015 / 32nd ASEAN Furniture Show, The Décor Show and Hospitality 360⁰.
SingaPlural 2015 is supported by the Agency for Science, Technology and Research (A*STAR), DesignSingapore Council, International Enterprise (IE) Singapore, Singapore Tourism Board, SPRING Singapore and Singapore Workforce Development Agency. It is also the anchor event of the Singapore Design Week, which was organised by the DesignSingapore Council, a part of the Ministry of Communications and Information.
For more information, please refer to www.SingaPlural.com or www.facebook.com/SingaPlural. Find us on Twitter (@SingaPlural) and Instagram (#singaplural).