The 9th edition of the Saloni WorldWide Moscow, held at the Crocus Expo exhibition centre from 16th to 19th October, ended with great success.
With 42.818 operators and 402 members of the press, the Saloni WorldWide have proved yet again to be the benchmark Italian home furnishing trade fair for Russia, the former Soviet republics and the Baltic countries. The opportunity to showcase the finest home and office furnishing concepts to a huge public, and the success of the event over the years, inspired the 557 exhibitors (494 Italian and 63 from Belgium, France, Germany, Holland and Spain) to continue to put their faith in the Moscow Saloni.
“The Moscow Saloni,” as said by Claudio Luti, President of Cosmit, the company organizing the exhibition, “are a major event, underpinning our dialogue with the Russian market ahead of the Milan Salone del Mobile, at which the Russians make up the largest complement of visitors. I Saloni WorldWide provide an opportunity for exhibitors to meet buyers interested in Made in Italy, amongst other things, who flock to the Moscow Crocus Expo the minute the fair opens.”
The encouraging visitor figures from the Moscow Saloni confirm the international emerging market interest in high end furnishing products. “The dynamic Russian market,” said FederlegnoArredo President Roberto Snaidero, “imported 379.33 million euros’ worth of furniture, trade furnishings, upholstereds, kitchens, furnishing accessories, lighting, office and bathroom furniture during the first six months of this year, 7.6 percent up on the same period in 2012.”
The spotlight was also on the unmissable SaloneSatellite WorldWide, featuring 31 promising students and young designers from top design schools in Russia, the former Soviet republics and the Baltic countries. The winners of this competition, were as follows: 1st prize Evija Kraukle (Latvia) for “Slider”: a lighting product with multiple light sources and a variety of heights and positions; 2nd prize Wishnya (Russia) for “The Culle”: a pendant light made of environmentally-friendly cardboard, conceived with the intention of salvaging a natural material; and 3rd prize Maria Ignatova (Russia) for “ErGo”: an office chair for the disabled. These three winners as an Award will be sharing a booth to present new prototypes at the Milan 2014 SaloneSatellite, that will be held within the Milan International Furniture Fair from April 8th to April 13th.
The Master Classes organised in collaboration with ICE, the Italian Trade Promotion Agency, and first launched in 2005, were very well attended. The three architects selected for the 2013 series, Patricia Urquiola, Ferruccio Laviani and Giuseppe Della Giusta, discussed retail, design, architecture and industrial communication with design journalist and critic Olga Kosyreva, touching on their own professional experiences.
The Saloni WorldWide Moscow will be back from 15th to 18th October 2014.
