Furniture China Show Attracts Record Numbers in 2005

The 11th edition of the annual China International Furniture Expo (Furniture China 2005) attracted record numbers of both exhibitors and visitors to the Shanghai New International Exhibition Center on Sept. 14-17 this year, further consolidating its position as Asia's biggest furniture fair.

Statistics compiled by the organizers, the China National Furniture Association and the Shanghai CMP Sinoexpo International Exhibition Co., show that the number of exhibitors soared 53.1% this year to 1, 421, compared with 928 in 2004.

The international nature of the fair was bolstered by 170 exhibitors from 24 foreign countries and areas, including the United States, Italy, France, Germany, Japan, Australia, Russia, Brazil, India, Thailand, Malaysia, Vietnam, Taiwan, and Hong Kong. This was more than triple the 52 foreign exhibitors who participated last year.

According to the organizers, some of the foreign exhibitors have already established production facilities in China, others-particularly western ones--are targeting the Chinese market, and still others-mainly from Southeast Asia-came with the aim of meeting buyers from the U.S. and Europe.

The number of visitors to the show also reached a new record: 68, 569, up 15.9% from last year. Within this total there were 60, 268 local visitors, mostly from Shanghai Jiangsu, Zhejiang, Guangdong, and Shandong (up 13.5%), and 8, 301 foreigners (up 37.9%), primarily from Japan, the U.S., Australia, the United Kingdom, and Korea, among others.

The exhibition space totaled 200, 000 square meters this year, up sharply from the 120, 000 square meters used in 2004. The displays occupied all seven indoor halls and 10 temporary outdoor halls at the exhibition center, as well as two sub-venues.

Exhibits at the show were divided into five major classifications: home furniture, office furniture, home furnishings and decorative accessories, furniture production equipment, and raw materials. The exhibits covered the full range of the industry, providing a one-shop guide to the latest trends and giving an overall view of the Chinese furniture industry, the organizers said.

Home Furniture's Leading Role

The home furniture area continued its leading role, accounting for almost 80% of all exhibits. Some of the most prominent furniture styles on show were modern, European classic, and Chinese traditional. Types of furniture included upholstered, wrought iron, outdoor, and rattan, among others.

Furniture China has grown rapidly ever since its inception 11 years ago, as evidenced by the expansion from just 3, 000 square meters to 200, 000. "The show has gained growth momentum from the rapid development of China's furniture industry over the past decade, " explained Jia Qinwen, president of the China National Furniture Association.

"Chinese furniture makers are increasingly aware that by developing export sales they can secure better profit margins than they can gain with domestic sales, " Jia went on. "and this has prompted them to participate in the show as a way of promoting exports. That's the reason for the large increase in the number of exhibitors this year." Some 30% of this year's exhibitors were first-timers, indicating the growing importance of the show in the minds of manufacturers and traders.

The president cited customs statistics showing that China's furniture exports skyrocketed from US$1.29 billion in 1997 to US$10.353 billion last year, making China the world's second-largest furniture exporter after Italy. The country's exports of furniture shot up another 32.4% in the first six months of 2005, to US$6.53 billion; and, Jia comments, "With that rate of growth, we are likely to surpass Italy to become the No. 1 furniture exporter in the world by the end of the year."

Interestingly, 60% to 70% of those exports are produced in foreign-invested factories.

Jia went on to say that over the past decade, China has emerged as the "world's furniture factory." Now, he said, "China is poised to hit another peak of growth with the adoption of advanced woodworking equipment, improved design and production techniques, and the reinforcement of international marketing."

The organizers conducted a survey of visitors and exhibitors during the show. The results: 67% of visitors said that the show produced very useful contacts, 50% rated the show "excellent" or "good, " and another 30% considered it "satisfactory." More than 80% said that they would return next year.

Most Exhibitors Will Return in 2006

Among exhibitors, more than 90% expressed an interest in returning next year and ranked the show as the most worthwhile furniture exhibition in China. Fifty-three percent rated the show as satisfactory to excellent, and 42% said that they had achieved their targets. Sixty-five percent found new customers at the show, and 62% signed sales contracts on the spot.

Buoyed by the enthusiastic response from participants and the growing prestige of the show, the organizers expect its exhibition space to expand to at least 220, 000 square meters and its exhibitors to increase to 1, 500 or more in 2006. "The biggest problem for us organizers, " lamented Wang Mingliang, managing director of the Shanghai CMP Sinoexpo International Exhibition Co., "is that there is just not enough exhibition space in Shanghai to accommodate us."

Wang reports that two additional venues, Intex Shanghai and Shanghai Mart, have been reserved to alleviate some of the pressure of space for next year's Furniture China show, which is scheduled for Sept. 11-14. Also, at exhibitors' request, a new section will be added: Kitchen & Cabinet 2006.

Most of the exhibitors interviewed by Taiwan Furniture were happy with the results of their participation, and said that they would return next year. "This is our fourth time to take part in the show, " said Lillian Su, vice president of the Taiwan-invested Wonderful Year Co., which makes office furniture in Kunshan, Jiangsu Province. "We find a significant improvement every time we come-in terms of size, the quality and variety of exhibits, the international publicity, and the exhibition management."

Her company's main purpose in attending the show, she continued, is to make its products better known to buyers from mainland China and overseas. "We'll surely come back next year, " she said, "and we may book more exhibition space at that time."

The company's Chinese operation exported US$35 million worth of office furniture in 2004, and the figure is expected to rise to US$50 million this year. Some 60% of the sales go to the U.S. and Europe, and so Wonderful Year is planning to cooperate with American and Italian designers to develop more innovative products aimed at those markets.

Moving Into Exports

Another Taiwan-invested manufacturer of office furniture, the Shanghai Allbest Furniture Co., has its factory in the Jiading section of Shanghai and has participated in the show every year since 2002 when it began developing export sales (for the previous four years, it carried out contract production for U-Best and Aurora, two big Taiwanese office-furniture brands). "In Shanghai, ' claimed the company's marketing director, James Huang, "Allbest is a famous brand for medium- to high-price office furniture, and our displays at the show have been a focus of attention by international buyers."

The Jiading plant, Huang reported, has eight production lines that turn out office chairs, tables, and workstations. "Our competitive edge, " he said, "lies in our high ratio of self-production, our strong research and development capability, and our strict quality control. Some European designers have approached us on their own initiative about cooperative production of their new designs."

The firm's exhibits at this year's show highlighted newly developed and patented office chairs, including a VIP-02 model that has an L-shaped armrest and adjustable-height back. Its armrest, gas lift, and seat base are imported from Germany and Italy. "This show, " Huang commented, "gives us a good chance to test market acceptance of our new chairs, and the response of buyers has been quite encouraging."

The Shanghai BiaoYue (XiongBang) Furniture Co. displayed its fabric sofa sets for the first time at the show three years ago, and has booked bigger exhibition space every year since. "Our exports have grown rapidly over the past couple of years and reached 12 million renminbi (RMB) last year, " reported the firm's general manager Mao Jian Ding, a 20-year veteran in the field who moved from Beijing to Shanghai to set up his own company seven years ago. "We expect to hit 20 million RMB this year."

The company exports its medium-priced standard-size sofas to Australia, the Middle East, and Southeast Asia. "At this year's show we're focusing on larger-sized American-style sofa sets, because we're tapping the U.S. market, " Mao commented. "We've located quite a few prospective buyers from the U.S. and other parts of the world, and we'll return next year with more booth space."

Mao said that he imported 80% of his upholstery fabrics from Hangzhou in Zhejiang Province, which is known as the "world's factory" for decoration and upholstery fabrics.

Looking for New Customers

The Tiandi Furniture & Decorations (Jiaxing) Co., established in 1998, is a veteran exhibitor at Furniture China. "We've taken part in the show for six years, mainly to promote new products that we have developed and to seek new buyers from Japan and other parts of the world, " reported the firm's president, Shen Ping.

Shen's focus is on the Japanese market because he studied there for seven years. "Our company has 27 regular buyers from Japan, " he noted, "including famous mail-order chains such as Nissen and Dinos, who come to us for our consistent high quality and reasonable prices."

The president said that he was very satisfied with the results of this year's show, where he received trial orders from 26 chains stores in Iceland and US$15, 000 worth of orders for hi-beds from Canadian buyers. Partly as a result, he commented, "I'm sure that our exports will grow at least 25% and hit US$4 million this year."

At the present time 60% of the firm's products consist of wooden bedroom furniture, 20% of student desks, and 10% of country-style dining sets, all made of pine, ash, and birch wood imported from Russia. The company is not concerned about the American anti-dumping duties on wooden bedroom furniture from China, Shen said, "because we export very little to the U.S."

The latest in Chinese tradition combined with modern styling was presented at the show by Ancient and Modern Furniture Design, whose displays included contemporary Chinese furniture, lacquer furniture, and classic reproductions. The Taiwanese company began operating in Zhongshan, Guangdong Province back in 1991, mainly collecting and finishing antique Chinese furniture. It set up its own plant for the production of traditional Chinese furniture, plus a showroom in Shanghai, two years ago.

"We attended Furniture China for the first time this year as part of our effort to develop exports, and we received orders from American and South Korean buyers on the spot, " reported Sharon Xiao, a sales representative for Ancient and Modern Furniture Design.

"Our company's founder, Jerry Chen, is himself our conceptual design director. He has long wanted to make furniture into pieces of art that can be passed down from generation to generation, and to help furniture of Chinese design establish a solid position in the world market for furniture products."

No Nails

Xiao went on to say that her company has been cooperating with prominent architects and interior designers to work out its products, which are all made by hand without nails. "We have such advantages as mature craftsmanship, sophisticated antiquing techniques, and the ability to create products that integrate contemporary design with the elegance of Chinese tradition and culture, " she said. The company uses such hardwoods s redwood, black wood, and ironwood, as well as elm and other softwoods.

Another first-timer at the show, the Shenzhen World of Formless Industry and Trade Co., displayed a wide variety of artistic wooden vases and sculptures for home decoration. Its main purpose was to locate local sales agents in the Chinese market, as well as buyers in metropolitan Shanghai, said its director general of design, Shi Zi.

Ever since its inception five years ago, Shi commented, the company has been devoted to the production of wooden home decorations that incorporate a poetic touch and the Zen atmosphere of the Orient. "We've designed many artistic, decorative, and practical wooden pieces that combine international trends in styling with key characteristics of the traditional arts of different peoples around the world, " she continued, "so that these products can better address the users' pursuit of beauty and enrich their spiritual lives." Also, she added, "Every one of our products-a bottle gourd, a Buddhist pagoda, a water drip--is designed to express a different state of perfection through different forms and shapes."

The firm is very particular about the wooden, lacquer, and painting materials used in its products. For instance, Shi said, they are made mainly of chinaberry and paulownia from Henan Province, wood that does not crack whatever the climatic conditions, resists insects, and has a natural wood fragrance. Furthermore, she continued, "We employ environmentally friendly lacquer and paints, and refuse to use those that are detrimental to human health."

Besides selling in the domestic market, Shenzhen World of Formless Industry and Trade Co. exports its products to such countries as Japan, Germany, and Norway. It found new buyers from both at home and overseas during the show, including one from Bolivia. "We'll come back to the show next year to promote our products to more potential customers, " Shi concluded.