interzum guangzhou / CIFM 2010, held at the China Import and Export Complex, was once again a record breaker to end off its seventh edition on 30 March 2010. Organizers reported a total of 43,709 trade visitors over the four days from the DIY (Do-it-yourself) and BIY (Build-it-yourself); furniture manufacturing, furniture wholesale and retail; interior design, industrial associations and organizations; wood and plastic processing; and trading sectors. This represented an 11 percent increase over 2009's 39,222 visitors.

 

Both the exhibitor number and the exhibition area of interzum guangzhou / CIFM 2010 have registered a marked increase compared to the previous year, with an unprecedented 887 companies from 24 countries and regions (a 17 percent increase over that of 2009) and ten halls with 100,000sqm of exhibition space (a 25 percent increase from eight halls in 2009). The three newly added feature zones in Hall 11.2: the Materials and Components for Upholstery & Bedding zone, the Materials and Components for Interior Works zone and the Furniture Hardware and Components zone, have been welcomed by visitors, saying that the adjustment had made sourcing more convenient.

 

Visitor traffic was very encouraging across all the ten halls with an increase in genuine sourcing interests. Such was the success of interzum guangzhou / CIFM that most of the exhibitors expressed their elation over the crowded aisles and the quality of the buyers present.

 

A returning exhibitor for the seventh time, IMA (Changzhou)'s Vice General Manager, Mr. Eric Wuwungan gave a favorable comment, "We've been here since the first year of interzum guangzhou. We met most of our old customers here and this year, more potential customers have come looking for us. The fair was very well organized and everything has been good."

 

Sharing the same compliment was Ms. Dorothy Tong, International Maketing Manager of the American Hardwood Export Council (AHEC), Southeast Asia and Greater China, "The American Hardwood Export Council is a trade association for the US hardwood industry, representing the committed US hardwood exporters. We have been exhibiting at interzum guangzhou for many years because it is a very large and very important exhibition to us, and our members also participate together with us at the same time. This year's show was very good and our members are very keen to enter China's market. It was also very professionally run, which is one of the reasons we chose interzum guangzhou. We will continue to exhibit next year. "

 

Thanks to its professional management and steady growth, interzum guangzhou / CIFM now boasts many loyal renowned international exhibitors such as the German, Italian and USA pavilions, as well as a substantial number of new exhibitors. Brands that made their debut appearance at interzum guangzhou / CIFM 2010 include Schattdecor, Latex International, Henkel and UPM- Kymmene Corporation, among others.

 

The bustling atmosphere and active response from trade buyers injected great confidence to these new exhibitors. Mr. Ulrich Ringelberg, Director Overseas Sales of Schattdecor said with an obvious excitement, "It's our first time exhibiting at interzum guangzhou. We decided last year to skip other shows in China but to be here at interzum guangzhou. I was very positively surprised on the first two days because I didn't expect such big traffic yesterday. It's totally unexpected. We've decided to be back at interzum guangzhou in 2011."

 

One of the highlights in 2010 was a series of seminars under the joint efforts of the Organizers. Great emphasis has been put into every aspect such as theme selection, guest invitation and event management. These efforts have been well rewarded with positive feedback from delegates and guests to the seminars.

 

Ms. Ursula Geismann, General Manager of National Confederation of German Woodworking and Furniture Industries (HDH), who attended the seminar for the first time as a special guest, noted as follows: "I think the seminar was quite interesting, the topic was meaningful and I was attracted many times by the speeches given by designers and representatives from the associations. I think 'Green Design, Green Home Forum' has achieved great success and I really hope I could give a presentation for the next year to express my opinions and exchange ideas with other speakers and guests."

 

"We are very pleased to see that interzum guangzhou has once again proved to the industry its solid establishment and its leading role among all the other furniture production trade fairs. We are confident that interzum guangzhou will continue with the momentum and play an even more vital role in the future furniture production development in Asia", concluded Michael Dreyer, Vice President, Asia Pacific, Koelnmesse positively.

 

To many, the enthusiastic feedback from the exhibitors and the number of visitors at the fair were clear reflections of the recovery of the furniture production industry.

 

Statistics from the China Customs further confirmed this sentiment: furniture exports in 2009 totaled more than US$25 billion, a 6 percent decrease compared to the same period in the previous year. However, the figure in December increased by 27 percent compared to November to over US$3 billion. This was also a 10.8 percent growth from the same month in 2008.

 

The strong pickup and the continuous growth in 2010 indicate that the furniture production industry has defended itself well against the economic uncertainty. It also signals an optimistic outlook for the industry. The domestic market has also shown strong rebound. With the continuous increase in affluence and living standards of the local Chinese and the rapid growth in the interior design industry, end-consumers are demanding better quality and well-designed furniture to enhance their living and working environment. Hence, up-market furniture sales are expected to grow at a robust rate spurring demand for related production materials.

 

With the vast opportunities ahead in mind, the eighth interzum guangzhou / CIFM, organized by Koelnmesse and the China Foreign Trade Centre (Group), will once again serve as Asia's most comprehensive sourcing platform for the woodworking machinery and furniture production industry from 27 to 30 March 2011 at the China Import and Export Complex in Guangzhou.

 

For more information, please visit www.interzum-guangzhou.com

 

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As a world-renowned trade fair organizer, Koelnmesse has an excellent track record for organizing some of the world's most successful trade events, such as the accomplished interzum, imm and Orgatec in Cologne, Germany and interzum Moscow/Interkomplekt in Russia. With over 80 years' experience in organizing large-scale commercial events connecting buyers and sellers, Koelnmesse brings forth an unrivaled skill-set and expertise needed to develop interzum guangzhou into one of the premier international furniture production trade shows in Asia.