Salon Du Meuble De Paris -January 2000 - The Future

Furniture World Magazine

The 1999 edition of the Salon du Meuble de Paris welcomed some 45,000 visitors, up 19% on 1998. Buyers mainly came from France but the number of visitors from abroad to the Salon du Meuble de Paris is increasing rapidly. In 1999, it increased by 21%, and exhibitors by 10%. Among the 1,500 exhibitors, 42% came from abroad, from 38 countries. The survey carried out last April by IFOP [French Institute for Market Research] highlighted the fact that buyers come to Paris not only to discover new products and renew their collections but also to gather information on the trends in the sector and to get an overview of the market. The Salon du Meuble de Paris is not only a place for innovation, a showcase of the trends of Classic and Contemporary Furniture and the signs emerging from the world of the home environment and design. It is also the transmitter of trends, a place for exchanges, hence its role of cultural leader. One of the characteristics of the Salon du Meuble de Paris is that it adds a cultural vocation to its commercial function. For the Salon du Meuble de Paris, furniture is one element of the surroundings in which each person wishes to live. It is a behavioural model, a lifestyle medium. This is why Paris is a tool for moving the profession forward, a cross-roads where the it takes its meaning. Of course people come to Paris for classic and traditional furniture, but Paris also has an enviable place in the world of contemporary furniture. In the last five years, the Salon du Meuble de Paris was profoundly transformed. The creation and evolution of the Village, thereafter of La Métropole are the best examples of this. Amongst the obvious signs of this progression, the image projected by these two sectors enables the Salon du Meuble de Paris to be one of the most important international exhibitions. In January 2000 the Salon du Meuble de Paris takes a new step forward. It expresses a clear desire to insert the indispensable commercial relationship into cultural, social and public life As a ground breaking Exhibition, the 2000 edition of the Salon du Meuble de Paris embodies the «Future». In January 2000, four fundamental points will symbolise the way ahead for the Salon du Meuble de Paris. A Sectorisation based not only on themed sectors, but also on markets and distribution networks. A new Métropole underpinned by the desire to make it a place where one can prepare for tomorrow. Its exhibition area is increased with le Rond Point de Paris and Contract. The development of the Internationalisation of the Exhibition. A new expansion in the Services policy of the Exhibition. Sectorisation 2000 With the aim of making the product offer easier to read, the evolution of sectorisation is based on the markets and distribution networks. Representatives of large volume retailers, traditional distribution and independent distribution will be united in «their» professionally recognised sectors. Representatives from large volume retailers and traditional distribution will pay particular attention when visiting Halls 1, 7/2 and 7/3 devoted to «general furniture», complementary furniture, chairs, bedding, kitchens and upholstery. Independent distribution and one part of traditional distribution will be more interested in: the Classic Style and the Reproduction Furniture - Hall 7/1. the new grouping of Métropole, Rond Point de Paris and Contract - Hall 3. the contemporary/modern sector - Halls 2/2, 2/3, 3. the Village, Paris Sélection Déco and the Salon du Tapis situated in Hall 4. The Village 2000 Created in order to enable certain exhibitors to give a specific environment to their products, this sector has become a reference point for the traditional Art de Vivre. The streets of Village 2000 are lined with houses designed by the exhibitors and punctuated with childhood memories The wash house square [la place du lavoir] brings a sense of community, the fountain is a meeting place, the café terrace symbolises relaxation At the dawn of the new century, the Village is a pivotal element in the Salon du Meuble de Paris. Mingling authenticity and contemporaneousness, it is an area for recreation and the reinterpretation of a specific Art de Vivre à la française. It is the symbol of French leadership in the Classic furniture world market Paris Sélection Déco 2000 Next to the Village, Paris Sélection Déco perfectly reflects the evolution of the market. Using very appropriate layout graphics, it offers to an international clientele of furniture retailers, boutique owners, consultants, decorative designers the complementary elements which cannot be dissociated from the decoration of the home : occasional furniture, carpets, fabrics, porcelain, lighting In 1999, Paris Sélection Déco saw the number of its exhibitors double. In January 2000, the exhibition is being increased again. New companies are strengthening the success of Paris Sélection Déco 2000. La Métropole 2000, Contract, le Rond Point de Paris In order to gain 8,000 m2 of exhibition area, La Métropole has changed location. It will now occupy the southern part of Hall 3. Contract and le Rond Point de Paris are joining La Métropole for added coherence. This evolution also enables the creation of a large area devoted to contemporary/modern style with Halls 2/2, 2/3 and the entrance to Hall 3. Created last year at the centre of the Salon du Meuble de Paris, the Contract sector was warmly welcomed by international exhibitors and visitors. The specifically «decorative furnishings» nature of these surroundings devoted to Contract markets, the presence of numerous consultants, architects, decorative designers, policy-makers for major accounts, distributors specialising in local authorities, service sector buyers and hoteliers : all provided a synergy between the traditional visitors of the Village or La Métropole and those of the Contract sector. In January 2000 Contract will be located at the entrance to Hall 3 opposite the Village (Hall 4), on the edge of La Métropole. Next to the Contract sector, at the entrance to La Métropole, close to the Village : le Rond Point de Paris The creation of these new surroundings devoted to furnishing fabrics and top of the range accessories, shows the desire of the exhibition to develop contemporary furnishings. Those concerned will set up their stands at a crossroads of exceptional interest and will find themselves in a premium location with a remarkable identity and stand graphics. An opportunity for numerous fabric designers, accessory manufacturers -lighting, furniture, complementary furniture- to meet the majority of their clients : from the architect to the boutique owner. La Métropole, a singular area exclusively devoted to the presentation of contemporary furniture, asserts itself as the bridgehead of the Salon du Meuble de Paris. It arouses interest, friendliness, curiosity Anything «new» is shown there, not only new products but also new environments, new ideas, new desires La Métropole expresses an ever-changing art of living. In the market for the home, closer and closer to the fashion market, La Métropole presents the inventory of our progress in the art of living. This living exhibition area bases its identity on its twin nature, both commercial and cultural. Here one turns the pages of current topics as of a magazine. In La Métropole, not only are products on display, powerful products which modify the area, modern and functional products, but a vision of everyday life is also presented : transversality is developed, bridges are built between fashion and the home. Also, January 2000 sees the setting up of «Design Lab», an area where talented designers express themselves as they announce the third millennium. La Métropole, layout graphics 2000 January 2000 : under the artistic direction of Christophe Pillet, La Métropole is offering new layout graphics put in place by Ronan & Erwan Bouroullec. They are yet another sign of the desire of the Salon du Meuble de Paris to feature manufacturers and their products. The staging of La Métropole 2000 sets the exhibition in a particularly dynamic environment. It is expressed in several types of aerial structures which leave all the space on the ground free, a combination of strata, a representation of the contemporary city made of superimposed layers. This architectural structure is given life by fixed images and videos but also by luminous windows with varying levels of light, like the flats in an apartment block which, come the evening, have their lights turned on and off. These aerial surfaces, made different by the variety of structures and the mixed nature of the iconography highlight « living ». The main cultural events of La Métropole 2000: The principal guest An undisputed personality from the contemporary world, he exhibits his work at the entrance of La Métropole and takes a look at the future. Les Routes de la Création 2000 As the cultural heart of La Métropole of the Salon du Meuble de Paris, this area of privileged information brings together for the first time its different themed exhibitions. Are to be found : Repères, le Phare and the work of the Designer of the year - his election will take place next September. Who will enjoy that distinction and succeed Ross Lovegrove and Alberto Meda? - the French best-sellers for the last year of the century and the shop window for the international press. Les Routes de la Création 2000 : The shop windows for the international press - For the first time, the Salon du Meuble de Paris has asked 12 international magazines to choose three or four useful objects to take into the XXIst century. An international panorama for the home environment, a state of mind, an information tool at the service of visitors and exhibitors These pieces of furniture, these objects give a legible and singular idea of our framework within which to live tomorrow. Les Routes de la Création 2000 : Le Phare - Le Phare 2000 once again explores transversalities, offers bridges, provokes confrontations, exposes connections between worlds which too often ignore each other but influence our way of living. This is not only a separate exhibition, it is a commercial sector of the exhibition which is developing a true commercial dimension. Five directions = Random, Composite, Cybernetic, Organic and Synthetic, demonstrate all the types of relationships existing between art and science, chance and necessity, research and technology, scale and density, the natural and the artificial through examples which characterise all the elements of our daily life: home, equipment, furniture, ornaments, computers, multimedia, fashion, culture, knowledge, thought Les Routes de la Création 2000 : Repères «A Guide to New International Trends» - As an inventory for the year 2000 of the emerging signs in the world of the home, «Repères», mixing cultures and traditions, styles and fashions, craft and industrial know-how Is the expression of our era. With «Classic furniture, Contemporary furniture», «Repères» suggests the future evolutions in the organisation of the home They are given material expression by an exhibition at the centre of the «Routes de la Création» and in a publication which, with the interesting material that it presents and its format, you will want to keep. «Design Lab» «Agora des Créateurs», the VIA exhibition Because the Salon du Meuble de Paris considers its role also to be to encourage young creative designers, the 2000 edition sees the setting up of «Design Lab», an area for the expression of the philosophy and identity of La Métropole. It is a demonstration of the ground breaking quality of the Salon du Meuble de Paris. This area highlights a large selection of the future protagonists of the home environment graduates, young designers, interior designers, representatives of the new methods of distribution, graphic artists Because their preoccupations are close, this nursery for talent is hosted alongside «l'Agora des Créateurs, Design et Arts Décoratifs», the exhibition offered by VIA. Men, their creations, their abilities these shape the future. «L'Agora des Créateurs» is a reference guide of those who work in the field of the decorative arts : architects, interior designers, designers, stylists, colourists, layout graphic designers, graphic artists, computer graphic designers To mark its commitment to the field of innovation, the VIA event at the Salon du Meuble de Paris is constructed in three dimensions with the assistance of the V.R.M.L. virtual techniques. Development of the internationalisation of the Salon du Meuble de Paris In June 1999, it is clear that the commercialisation of the Salon du Meuble de Paris has the wind in its sails. It is currently registering an increase of five points in requests for participation compared to last year. It is interesting to note that the Belgian, Italian, Spanish, Thai and Mexican pavilions like those from Japan, Indonesia, Egypt and Andalousia will again be present in Paris next January. Two new countries will be joining them, Cyprus and Poland. In the field of individual participation, particularly noteworthy at the present time is the arrival or return to the Exhibition of the French company La Savoyenne, a company of the Groupe Fournier ; Nordika from Germany ; Almassan from Spain ; Mine ; Adimou Rassoul from Senegal and Lema from Italy, which is exhibiting the creations of Piero Lissoni in La Métropole. Expansion of the services policy of the Salon du Meuble de Paris In this field the main new element is the creation of seminars, platforms for international exchanges of information The Salon du Meuble de Paris has chosen to reflect an alternative kind of meeting between the influencial buyers and the manufacturers. It proposes to put in place an «ideas exchange» bringing together influencers and international buyers. It is a matter of engineering meetings between Canadians and Koreans, Norwegians and Argentineans or Frenchmen The Salon du Meuble de Paris will now be organising meetings on the new international markets, allowing those concerned to discover each other A first in the world of trade exhibitions ! This service is joining those traditionally offered by the Salon du Meuble de Paris. For example : the databases available at the exhibition to find rapidly which exhibitor manufactures which piece of furniture, for which market ; the business service which brings together a number of services from photocopying to the availability of interpreters ; the use of the Internet site, a modern trade tool accessible to exhibitors ; the supply of personalised admission tickets for exhibitors' guests ; the availability of the visitor database, some 86,000 trade contacts. For more information on the Paris Show e-mail usa@novalys.com