“The news from Cologne is very bad news,” said presenter Maria Porro, commenting on the announcement while presenting the calendar of activities. “Covid represented a turning point for trade fairs, requiring responses that traced different trajectories in the sector. As Salone del Mobile, in that moment of general difficulty, we adopted decisions considered disruptive with respect to the international context: with the Supersalone in September, then the postponement of the fair to June, changing the exhibition layouts after practicing various techniques for listening to our various audiences, introducing digital formats and investing in internationalization strategies. Companies, the press, our stakeholders have followed us and this remains our vision”.
A vision that, also considering the scheduled attendance in the various continents, seems to want to position the Salone del Mobile no longer as an international fair in Italy but as a widespread event, with a key location and moment in Milan but which is expressed – with different formats and timing – in the markets considered key for the companies that are part of its circuit.
Like China for which Italy is the main exporter of furniture (value 479 million euros) and which brought to Milan, during the last edition of the fair, the highest number of visitors ever.