Fairs

MTC HITS HIGH NOTE WITH EXPO SUCCESS

With sales of about RM140 million, Malaysian Timber Council adds another feather to its illustrious cap with the debut of its Malaysian Wood Expo 2019, an international wood and woodworking machinery event

It was an all-round success for the Malaysian Timber Council as it chalked up sales of about RM140 million when it had only targeted RM25 million at its inaugural exhibition – the Malaysian Wood Expo (MWE) 2019. Held at the Putra World Trade Centre from 19-21 November, MWE was the first international wood and woodworking machinery event organised by MTC in partnership with Panels & Furniture Group. The three-day expo attracted 135 renowned exhibitors from 22 countries and over 3,000 visitors. The expo served as a pivotal convergence point for every segment of players from the timber industry. Spanning across 8,000 square metres, the exhibitors showcased a wide range of products such as tropical h a rd wo o d s , te m p e rate s o f t wo o d s , wo o d e n f l o o r i n g , sawntimber, wooden pallets, door and door frames, cutting tools, abrasives, adhesives, coatings, combined machines, dust collecting equipment, edge banding materials and m a c h i n e s , h a n d l i n g e q u i p m e n t a s w e l l a s t i m b e r, woodworking and furniture production softwares. Most of the exhibitors were from Germany, Italy, Australia, France, Belgium, Gabon, China, Chile, New Zealand, Taiwan and Singapore while the trade visitors were from France, New Zealand, South Africa, India, Singapore and Maldives. “We are extremely happy with the outcome of the Malaysian Wood Expo. It was a commercial success with brisk sales, literally. The expo was well-attended by a broad spectrum of visitors and buyers from day one. And to our great surprise, our sales far exceeded the initial target of RM25 million,” said MTC Chairman Dato’ Low Kian Chuan. To boost business at MWE, MTC had organised two business matching sessions – the Overseas Suppliers-Malaysian Importers/Manufacturers Exchange Programme and the Incoming Buying Mission (IBM). MTC also offered special incentives for the purchase of machinery under its Financial Incentive for Purchase of Machinery Programme (FIPM) as well as importation of raw materials under its Import Assistance Programme (IAP). The Overseas Suppliers-Malaysian Importers/Manufacturers Exchange Programme facilitated the augmentation of raw materials from nine countries - New Zealand, Chile, Gabon, France, Romania, Sweden, Ukraine, Canada and the United States. A total of 55 companies placed their orders worth of RM6.10 million of raw materials under this programme. As for the IBM, which was conducted in collaboration with the M a l a y s i a E x t e r n a l Tra d e D e v e l o p m e n t C o r p o ra t i o n (MATRADE) and MTC ’s regional offices, it generated an estimated sale of RM118.93 million. MTC had only targeted a sale of RM3 million from IBM, however, the interest for Malaysian-made products and the reputation of Malaysian timber-based manufacturers who are well-known to supply high-grade products promptly has held them in good stead once again. A total of 64 foreign buyers from 14 countries had over 470 meetings with 93 Malaysian suppliers during the IBM. “Despite the rather sluggish economy, the Incoming Buying Mission has demonstrated that there are many strong investment plans in the timber sectors overseas and this creating a huge demand for our Malaysian timber-based products,” added Low. MTC ’s FIPM programme also served as a major boost for buyers as 86 Malaysian companies purchased machinery worth RM20.77 million. Most of the machinery exhibitors were also pleasantly taken aback by the sales they had garnered even on the first day of the expo. “We are actually amazed by the volume of business we have generated. We have sold all our machinery that were brought to MWE,” said Wood-Mizer Asia Manufacturing Co. Ltd Regional Director-Asia Robert Moxham. MWE was officiated by the Minister of Primary Industries YB Pn Teresa Kok on 19 November 2019. Also present at the opening ceremony was the Secretary-General of the Ministry of Primary Industries Dato’ Dr Tan Yew Chong, MTC Chairman Dato’ Low Kian Chuan, MTC Board of Trustees and MTC CEO Mr Richard Yu. Among the dignitaries who also visited the expo was Deputy Minister of Primary Industries YB Datuk Seri Shamsul Iskandar Hj Mohd Akin.

“I applaud MTC for organising this expo as it is a holistic exhibition which showcases not only products made from tropical hardwoods but also what we can do with temperate hardwoods and softwoods. We can use these foreign timber species to produce furniture and other timber-based products which will increase the value of our exports. This will also reduce our reliance on local raw materials,” said Kok, adding that the exhibits at the woodworking machinery and tools sections were impressive. MTC had also organised a series of pocket talks where industry experts shared their insights to a full house on market trends, e-trade, timber products and timber grading rules, among others. The Council also launched its e-guidebook titled Schedule of Maintenance for Timber in Construction. The ebook is a manual on how to care and preserve timber-based materials used for construction purposes for both indoor and outdoor use.

DUTCH DESIGN WEEK 2019 IS A WRAP!

The positive conclusion of almost ten days of Dutch Design Week (DDW) is that the future knows its challenges but also that a big group of people will not throw in the towel and roll up their sleeves instead. The many (inter)national visitors from various backgrounds are engaged in a debate with those on the creative leading edge. Martijn Paulen: “Important seeds are being planted to ensure that the future is one full of innovative, imaginative ideas, for products, services and materials that truly help the world move forward.” During DDW19 national and international designers, presented not only smart solutions for the major social issues of our times. They presented conceptual and technological innovations, new alternative materials, and innovations in crafts and systems, in addition to a new aesthetic and user culture. DDW19 with a lot of exhibitions, lectures, tours and labs, drew in 350.000 visitors, this year more professional and international.

The 2019 ambassadors Studio Drift, Jalila Essaïdi, Alice Rawsthorn and Stefano Boeri have made a contribution to this success. On Sunday 27 October Paulen thanked them for their indispensable efforts during the exclusive closing event at which the new ambassadors were announced.

N e w a m b a s s a d o r s DDW20

D D F i s p r o u d t o announce that the baton for DDW20, from 17 to 2 5 O c t o b e r, w i l l b e r e c e i v e d b y L i d e w i j E d e l k o o r t , S a b i n e M a r c e l i s a n d S e a n Carney. Edelkoort has held the position of the world’s most important a n d l e a d i n g t r e n d forecaster for decades and she will share her ambassador title for DDW20 with designer Marcelis, who took the design world by storm, and Carney who is responsible for the Healthcare Transformation Services at Philips. “These ambassadors embody the design paradigm from completely different disciplines and backgrounds, in a way that inspires people and teaches them to look at things differently”, director Paulen elaborates on his choice for DDW20. Lidewij Edelkoort is curator, award winning former director of DAE (1998–2008), and above all one of the world’s most renowned trend forecasters. She travels the globe to identify social-cultural trends and apply this knowledge for international clients. Trend Union (Edelkoort’s Paris based agency) also creates trend books for various international brands like Armani and Prada. Lidewij Edelkoort is dean of Hybrid Design Studies and founder of the MFA Textiles Masters

at Parsons in New York. She also founded New York Textile Month, that takes place every September. "I hope it will be a fertile collaboration, where we can advance with the changes that have become so clear this year. Maybe it should still radicalise somehow. I think the most important thing is to connect the local design community with the international design community. Create more togetherness. There already are so many good things, there is not that much we need to do." Sabine Marcelis, who graduated from the DAE in 2011, is a designer with a fascination for materials like marble, epoxy resin, neon and glass and for the way in which things are made. #DDW20 ambassador Sean Carney She had this to say about her new role as ambassador: “I would like to use the year to create a large-scale travelling installation with which to inspire others. I would also like to show how I constantly develop and realise new possibilities within production processes. As an ambassador, I hope to use the year to do this on a major scale and at a higher level.” Sean Carney has great ambitions as Chief Design Officer & H e a d o f H e a l t h ca re Tra n sfo r m at i o n S e r v i c e s w i t h i n multinational Philips and is on the brink of important developments within the healthcare industry. With an increasing and ageing population, there are countless challenges that require solutions of an entirely new calibre. Carney: “We need to bring together the best and smartest minds, from our creative industry, multidisciplinary teams to redefine and transform the future of healthcare. I am looking forward to demonstrating the strength of experience design through making healthcare more accessible and sustainable.”

#DDW20 ambassadors Lidewij Edelkoort and Sabine Marcelis with DDF director Martijn Paulen Simone Frank

COLOGNE IS CREATIVE

In January, Cologne is the centre of the design scene. From 13 to 19 January, 2020, interior professionals and design-savvy consumers come to the Interior Business Event imm cologne in search of inspiration on the theme of home living and design –and to visit around 200 exhibitions in different locations around the city. “Cologne Design Week is a team event. We, as the organisers of the imm cologne trade fair, are among the large number of people in the city who contribute towards the success of what is probably one of the most interesting design events in Europe. Cologne is the centre of the international design scene right at the start of the year. You can sense it in the fairgrounds and feel it in every pore of the city. In combination with the hospitality of its people and its many places of interest, Cologne is worth the journey for many business people from the interiors sector,” says Gerald Böse, President and Chief Executive Officer of Koelnmesse GmbH. “Cologne is creative –this is also demonstrated by the people of Cologne, who not only take up our traditional offer of a weekend visit to the trade fair on the so-called public days, but also go to see the many exhibitions and installations on the themes of design and home living that are held in the city centre.” From the PASSAGEN and the Design Post to the MAKK and on to a prospering design scene In January 2020, as Germany’s largest design event, the PASSAGEN will once again open the international design season with exhibitions and installations from the crème de la crème of the international design scene and, as usual, reveal its entire breadth in the design location that is Cologne. Key players include classic solo figures and young networks, u niversities , n ewcomers, in stit ut ion s, arch itects an d platforms. For one week, they’ll all take up residence just doors away from one another, all pearls strung closely together along a trail through Cologne’s city centre, along its ring road as well as in the Rheinauhafen, Südstadt and Deutz districts, not to mention the creative Belgian quarter and Ehrenfeld. They’re here once again to offer 360 degrees of design, with the whole city becoming a stage for design, atmosphere and inspiration. “In January, Cologne really is like the mecca of the international design scene,” says Sabine Voggenreiter, founder of the PASSAGEN programme, now in its 31st edition, which is organised from her office. “The interplay of imm cologne and the decentralised exhibition programme works so well, because the trade fair is close to the city and the over 190 PASSAGEN exhibitions from Südstadt to the Belgian quarter and the furniture mile on the ring road through to the creative quarter of Ehrenfeld give the Interior Design Week a completely unique character.” To coincide with imm cologne 2020, the Museum of Applied Arts Cologne (MAKK) has worked with the Pentagon Design Group – 35 years after it was founded – to show its first museum installation featuring solely the work of Cologne’s Pentagon group (1985–1991), which was one of the key players in the “Neues deutsches Design” (new German design) movement. “The MAKK isn’t just the only art and design museum in Cologne, it also opens a large design exhibition with spectacular installations every year during imm cologne. This makes it the first port of call for all design professionals and enthusiasts once they’ve been around the trade fair, and it serves as a link to the PASSAGEN design trail. The design-based season-opener in the museum’s exhibition series has been effective in strengthening Cologne as a design location and making a visit to the Cologne furniture fair a special experience,” explains Museum Director, Petra Hesse. At the Design Post, right next door to the fairgrounds, they’re also ready for Cologne Design Week. With over 30 interiors brands – some of which can also be found at imm cologne – the Design Post is an inspiring “must-visit” event in Cologne’s most attractive living room on the “Schäl Sick” (as Cologne natives call the right bank of the Rhine). “Cologne has always been an exciting city when it comes to interior design. There is an extraordinary density and wealth of institutions, showrooms, designers, retailers and service providers in Cologne and the local area. Of course, the uniquely close physical link between the fairgrounds and the inner city – which are separated by just one bridge – provides a very special appeal in this interrelationship. This becomes especially evident during Cologne Design Week – when imm cologne, PASSAGEN and year-round players like us come together to form one big, coherent happening. This all-in-one package has made the week of the trade fair a brilliant start to the interiors year for us for almost 15 years!” enthuses host Volker Streckel from the Design Post, adding: “And where else can you cross paths with the Carnival Prince in the midst of top-class interior design?” The city of Cologne: a location for culture and the creative industry at the same time “Koelnmesse plays an important economic role for Cologne as a business location,” says Annett Polster, Director of Stadtmarketing Köln, which promotes the interests of the city’s businesses. “With its ‘Messe goes City’ initiative, the trade fair is a recurring theme in the city, making it something that local people, guests and tourists can experience throughout Cologne. imm cologne in particular attracts an international audience, which, in addition to what’s on show in the exhibition halls, appreciates the city and its extensive design scene. For Cologne, the week of the trade fair is a fantastic opportunity to present the city’s great diversity as a location for art, design and culture.”

“JOIN US FOR A GREATER HOME / OFFICE FURNITURE & A CLUSTER OF MALAYSIAN FURNITURE BRANDS.”

Connecting you with international buyers and join us for greater prosperity, great partnerships and opportunities.

Bigger and Better, the annual Export Furniture Exhibition (EFE) is already creating an air of excitement and buzz among exhibitors as they will be amongst the first to showcase their latest, innovative and creative products to global buyers when the trade show kicks off the Asia 2020 international furniture exhibition circuit.

EFE 2020 returns with the same dates from 9 – 12 March at the newly expanded venue of Kuala Lumpur Convention Centre (KLCC), Malaysia’s preferred exhibition venue, in the heart of the Malaysia’s capital city. Bigger and better, the show has taken a big step forward with its expansion made available by KLCC’s newly expanded venue space. EFE 2020 is 28.0% bigger as compared to last year’s event (35,000 sqm). Over 400 suppliers from Malaysia and the region will occupy 45,000 sqm trading floor to welcome quality buyers from over 140 countries and regions attending every year. International buyers to EFE last year was 8,639 (10% increase over 2018) and local visitors was 5,198 (15% increase). Overall, there was an increase of 15% to EFE 2019. However, EFE 2020 is expected to attract more buyers and visitors. The stage is set for yet another successful trade event. As one of the leading furniture fairs in Southeast Asia, it has also provided local manufacturers with the opportunity to participate in an international exhibition and do export including providing a successful route to new markets in other parts of the world. EFE 2020 will showcase a comprehensive range of furniture with the latest display of top quality and contemporary furniture where the latest designs for bedrooms, living areas, kitchen, children, office, outdoor living, hotel lounges including furniture accessories. All the main Malaysian and many international brands will be here to give buyers and visitors a complete in-depth representation of what’s available in the furniture and furnishings industry today. OfficeFurniture Hall –Your Exclusive Procurement Centre!

Malaysia has always been known for both its solid wood and office furniture and has a competitive edge locally and in the international market. With KLCC’s expansion, EFE is now able to occupy a larger exhibition space and for the first time has introduced “The Office Furniture Hall” with products made in Malaysia. The response from the industry players was overwhelming and greeted with much enthusiasm. Big office players including VersalinkMarketing SdnBhd, Nexus Office System SdnBhd Classic Chair System SdnBhd Wysen ， ， Industry SdnBhd Apex Office Furniture Exporter SdnBhd, ， Wintech Metal Processing SdnBhd, FlexofficeSdnBhd are participating, just to name a few. It is a must-visit hall for office furniture sourcing professionals. Woodworking Machinery –Towards Industry 4.0, driving the industry towards new heights. As the leading one-stop shopping platform for residential and office furniture in Asia, Malaysia actively promotes industrial upgrading and continues to develop for the benefit of the entire industry chain. In conjunction to the above, EFE2020 will also actively promote the wood, woodworking machinery and accessories event. The Woodworking machinery sector is important to the furniture industry and with the progression to Industry 4.0, industry players will be enlightened with the latest machinery and technology in the manufacture of furniture. The machinery section carries an aim of industrial upgrade in the furniture industry and focuses on innovation of materials, techniques and manufacture towards a higher international level.

MAISON&OBJET KICKS OFF THE BRAND NEW DECADEWITH AN EDITION THAT PACKS A REAL PUNCH

France’s strained social climate had everyone fearing the worst. But Maison&Object, which has been constantly reinventing itself for the past 25 years, managed to retain its magnetic attraction. Marking the event’s quarter century, this particular edition of the international trade fair for the decoration, design and lifestyle sector, which ran from January 17th to 21st at the Villepinte Exhibition Centre in Paris, demonstrated outstanding resilience, recording only a slight decrease in the number of attendees (-3.5%), and an increase in the number of exhibitors (2736), which included 609 new firms.

According to the organiser’s estimates, the retail transactions completed by industry professionals over the course of the 5day event stood at almost 2 billion euros. Maison&Objet’s impact could also be seen in the indirect economic effects it had across France. The trade fair generated pre-tax revenues of 145 million* euros - including €100 million* for Paris and the surrounding area -, secured over 21 million* euros of VAT and raised half a million euros in tourist taxes, underscoring its ability to create value. Generations Y and Z under the spotlight To herald the start of the brand new decade, Maison&Objet decided to dedicate both its 25th anniversary year editions to the same inspiring topic: (RE)GENERATION! The aim? Give visitors the chance to get to grips with the consumer behaviour displayed by generations Y and Z, which is both intriguing and unsettling in equal measure. Assisted by style consultancy

Design… and action!

For this edition, Ramy Fischler, September 2018’s Designer of the Year, put together an XXL installation designed to be a forward- looking “trend incubator”. Five experienced actors spent the full five days improvising sketches that s(t)imulated day-to-day life in the various rooms of the home, using a kind of “design fiction” exercise to help conceptualise tomorrow’s behavioural trends. A dozen short films, which are currently being edited, will be shared over the coming months, inviting design specialists and the trade fair community to question or debate change within their market.

Nelly Rodi, the January edition explored the level of engagement these new meaning-driven consumers exhibit (with a specific itinerary flagging up eco-friendly brands having already been launched last year). The September edition, meanwhile, will turn the spotlight on how these digital natives are an augmented generation, raised on a diet of the Internet and social media.

The ‘What’s New?’ exhibits staged by Elizabeth Leriche, François Bernard and François Delclaux also cleverly explored the way consumers are bringing meaning, nature and virtuous materials back into their homes - all themes close to the new generation’s heart. This shift in consumer behaviour is something that was at the forefront of absolutely everyone’s minds. Starting with the Hotel and Restaurant trade, for whom Maison&Objet had put together a dedicated itinerary taking in everything from furnishings and tableware to cookware, lighting, textiles and fragrances, all addressing that industry’s specific needs in terms of safety standards, accessibility, solidity, etc Something else that was new this time around was the opportunity for hoteliers, restaurateurs and interior designers to take part in over 300 business meetings with a selection of some hundred dedicated brands. Designer of the Year: let there be light! “Simplicity takes a lot of hard work”. That’s how Designer of the Year 2020 Michael Anastassiades, whose lighting designs were showcased at Maison&Objet, chose to present his craft. It was actually a kind of homecoming for this Cypriot designer, as it was at Maison&Objet that he first presented his eponymous brand back in 2007, after studying engineering and graduating with a Masters in Industrial Design from the Royal College of Art in London and then going on to set up his studio there in 1994.

Young Talents in the limelight Constantly on the lookout for the global design scene’s rising stars, Maison&Objet came up trumps yet again with a carefully curated selection of six Rising Talents who, for once, all heralded from France. Hand-picked by a six-member jury, all experts in French design, Adrien Garcia, Julie Richoz, Laureline Galliot, Mathieu Peyroulet Ghilini, Natacha & Sacha andWendy Andreu were the cream of this edition’s crop, and all showcased their creations at the event.

Staying true to its deep-seated desire to promote up-andcoming designers, Maison&Objet came up with the idea of also promoting rising Qatari talent at this particular edition,

marking the start of the Qatar- France Year of Culture. That same strong belief in young design also led to the creation of a

Chinese Design Award in partnership with the Chaoshang group, the inaugural edition of which was launched on December 8th 2019 in Shenzhen. On the other side of the world, Maison&Objet, Paris Design Week and NYCxDESIGN, the permanent New York platform dedicated to design, are also getting ready to organise joint exhibitions in the spring inspired by the trade fair’s Rising Talents. R e a d y f o r S e p t e m b e r ! : W O R K ! , PROJECTS & PARIS DESIGN WEEK

The next dates to get in your diary as far as Maison&Objet is concerned are the y e a r ’s s e c o n d t r a d e f a i r f r o m September 4th to 8th 2020, and PARIS DESIGN WEEK from September 3rd to 12th 2020. The September edition will see the return of two key themes, which have now been officially granted fully- fledged spaces within the trade fair ’s “MAISON” hub: WORK! and PROJECTS.

The former will see Maison&Objet continue to observe the changes in today’s workspaces that are triggering a need for new cross-functional design s o l u t i o n s a c c o m m o d a t i n g n e w combinations: well-being & wellw o r k i n g , c o m m u n i t y & p r i v a c y, e x p e r i e n c e & p e r f o r m a n c e , workspaces & living spaces. It will showcase a culture of hybridization to which Maison&Objet holds up a mirror as the sector’s unrivalled specialist. WORK!, a kind of trade fair within the trade fair, will not only boast its very own dedicated itinerary but will also feature an expert-led think tank and give everyone the opportunity to take part in business meetings to envisage tomorrow’s workspaces. PROJECTS, meanwhile, will target interior designers, presenting the very best technical and bespoke solutions to address their every interior design need, covering hotel, service sector and residential projects. A veritable hotbed of inspiration, notably thanks to the “Archi Designer” itinerary that will give visitors the chance to conduct business meetings in a relaxed and informal setting. All these initiatives should continue to drive forward not only the trade fair’s digital influence, powered by 21 million social media impressions, but also its traditional media coverage, with over 9 million readers and listeners. And awaiting September, Maison&Objet will continue to bring industry players together via its digital platform, MOM (MAISON&OBJET and MORE), which now boasts over 175,000 members, generating 2.5 million unique visits per year alongside the 2 annual trade fairs.