November 6 through 10, 2007

POST RELEASE

One of the largest trade shows of national and foreign furniture, the 3rd International Specialized exhibition Furniture Club held November 6 through 10, 2007 at the International Exhibition centre Crocus Expo completed its work.

According to official statistics about 800 companies from 40 regions of Russia and 16 countries exhibited at the trade fair. Production manufacturers of furniture from Azerbaijan, Argentina, Belarus, Belgium, Germany, Spain, Italy, China, Latvia, Lithuania, Portugal, Syria, Turkey, Ukraine, Switzerland and Japan presented their products and services covering the exhibit space of more than 60 000 sq m. But the major part of the exposition was formed by national companies because the organizers of the exhibition were focused to support national producers and to promote competitive ability of national producers above all. Since the first edition of 2005 such "giants" of the furniture industry of Russia and the CIS countries as Holding of factories of furniture 8 Marta, Möbel and Zeit, Ekmi (Ukraine), Ulyanovsk-Mebel’, Mebel’ Chernozemia, Miass-Mebel’ arranged their expositions at the exhibition Furniture Club. The exposition of the exhibition continued to increase potential due to participation of new companies. Lotus (Kirov), Fiesta Furniture (Vladimir), Leonardi (Kaliningrad), Ekaterinoslavskiye Mebel’nye Masterskiye (Ukraine) and other companies from many regions of Russia, the CIS countries and abroad for the first time participated at the exhibition Furniture Club-2007.

We are glad to note that Furniture Club is a business project because 70% of the audience were targeted specialists and top managers of furniture and adjacent manufacturing segment coming to the trade show from all regions of Russia and CIS countries. The trade show was visited by more than 50 000 people. We have every reason to believe that exhibitors got their targeted specialists and the trade show is estimated as a genuine business project by representatives of business circles.

Many celebrities and prominent persons were among the guests and visitors of the trade show: Valentin Zverev, President Association of Furniture and Wood processing Industry of Russia, Andrey Bobykin, the President of the International Association Union of Designers, Svetlana Krzhizhanovskaya, the Vice-president of the Association of Furniture and Wood processing Industry of Russia, Izabella Rim, the member of the presidium of the International Association Union of Designers, Olga Gurleva, the Head of the project Mebel’-CITY-Moskva, Nikolay Poslukhaev, Director General Holding company Mebel’ Chernozemia, Alexander Levchuk, Executive Director Mobel & Zeit company, and many others. Nikolay Poslukhaev, Director General Holding company Mebel’ Chernozemia, was emotional. “I burst with pride because we observe such a large scale and colourful exposition not at the Cologne or Milan fairgrounds but in Russia. Pleases that today we also have such a modern and spacious fairgrounds as Crocus Expo because huge spaces are required to show furniture products," he noted. Alexander Levchuk, Executive Director Mobel & Zeit company, underlined that “each exhibition for the companies participants is an opportunity to summarize and review the results of annual work. At the exhibition Furniture Club we witness that every year the furniture industry of Russia makes not a baby step forward but a huge jerk”.

However the organizers went beyond increasing of the scales of the exposition - in 2007 Furniture Club was focused on the most actual, young, and experimental. The leading role in the business program of the exhibition was allocated to design of interiors as the most demanded sector in the modern furniture market of Russia. Master classes were organized by the leading design studios and masters on modern techniques and methodics of furniture designing, conceptual design, new technologies and materials. Those who wished got free advisory from Russian architects and designers during the exhibition period. The highlight of the trade fair became the Presentation of the unique project International Design Forum/IDF. IDF will provide yet another perfect platform for exchange of opinions and joint generation of ideas by manufacturers, designers and furniture developers. We can surely declare that IDF will render significant influence on development of the Russian market of furniture, strengthening of business ties between manufacturers, trading organizations and end buyers of furniture products and the project is another attempt to meet the demands of the growing design boom. The event took place within the frames of the 3rd International Specialized exhibition Furniture Club. The organizers of the project are the Professional Community Furniture Club, GAMMA company and magazine Luchshie Interiery. IDF-2008 has been evidently presented as a large scale event which would be held at the next edition of the exhibition Furniture Club. Leading foreign designers of interiors and furniture, the best Russian designers working abroad, experts in marketing, designers, top managers of furniture enterprises and adjacent industries will take part in the International forum. According to organizers plan the presentations of product samples and new materials will be held, new catalogues of manufacturers of furniture will be demonstrated and seminars, conferences, master-classes of actual designers will be arranged within the frames of the forum. This year a number of famous furniture brands held their multimedia presentations and new collections: - Halepensis Group (Spain), Moblesa (Spain), Mobel & Zeit (Russia), Giulia Novars (Russia), L-Style (Russia- Italy). The new project caused keen interest in the professional community. Andrey Bobykin, the President of the International Association Union of Designers, mentioned “I am grateful to Crocus Expo IEC because they do not limit their aim to the exhibition and fairgrounds promoting but also and first of all contribute to the branch problems and issues solution and propose new trends of approach.”

Thus we witness the formation of essentially new approach in exhibition activity. Now a specialized exhibition is not simply a review of achievements of manufacturers, but also a complex, versatile event with a serious and topical business program. The Organizing committee Furniture Club aimed to attract targeted audience not just to visit the exhibition but to participate in it. For this purpose the professional community of essentially new format with the same name Furniture Club has been created. The doors of the Club are opened for the owners of furniture and adjacent manufactures, trading companies, large dealers from Russia and other countries.

The organizers and exhibitors of the exhibition Furniture Club revealed new names in the branch, a number of educational programs were organized for young designers and specialists of the furniture industry within the frames of the show Furniture Club-2007. Those who attended the three days program of the International Scientific and Practical conference Furniture Business Effective Management got principal knowledge and listened to intensive course of lectures including: the seminar Innovation Goods Principles of Creation, Strategic Business Development. Changes Management. 64 stratagems, seminar Effective Methods of Furniture products Sale and the seminar Furniture products Sale Quality Standardization. Principal innovation of the event was the focus on the process of sales which was considered as technological procedure. It’s become even more important due to Russia’s integration into WTO. Round table Retail Trade of Furniture in Russia and seminars Factoring – Unlimited Opportunities for Your Business, coaching Manipulation and Counter-manipulation in Negotiations, round tables Small Tricks of Large Tenders were held at the exhibition.

Young experts received at the exhibition not only additional useful knowledge, but also exchanged new ideas and experience. Everyone had an opportunity to make sure of it when visiting the exposition of the best designs by young designers, students and graduating students of the Moscow State Arts and Industry University (MGHPU) named after S.G. Stroganov.

The organizers of the exhibition and community Furniture Club plan to hold educational programs for professionals and young designers throughout the year. The names of the winner of the contest Furniture of the Year for the prizes instituted by the 3rd International Specialized exhibition Furniture Club and the names of the winners of the fifths selective round of the contest Rossiyskaya Kabriol’ for the National Prize for industrial furniture design were announced November 9, 2007 at the International Exhibition centre Crocus Expo.

Crystal Grand Prix Furniture Club and diplomas were awarded in 10 nominations as following:

• Upholstered Furniture of the Year – enterprise Britanica (Moscow) for the folding sofa Lester
• Cabinets of the Year – ООО Nova Mebel’ (Briansk) for the furniture set for a sitting room Novatsia
• Bedroom Furniture – ОАО HK Mebel’ Chernozemia (Voronezh) for the furniture set Laura
• Kitchen Furniture – ZАОPПО Resurs (Kirovo-Chepetsk) for the furniture set System
• Dining Zone – ООО Aktual’ny Dizain (Tula) for the furniture set Virtuoz
• Kids and Teenagers furniture – ООО Snait (Ukraine) for the children furniture set of L-class
• Best exposition of a national producer – ООО Zhivyie Divany
• Best exposition of a foreign producer – Ekmi (ukraine)
• Components and Accessories – ООО Sol-Plus (ТМ Klassik)
• Supplementary nomination Value for Money – ООО Belotserkovsk Furniture Enterprise Ukriuk

The following companies were awarded the prize for the best upholstered furniture and became nominees for the competition for industrial furniture design:

• furniture enterprise Britanica
• furniture enterprise Marta
• company Pushe
• furniture enterprise Mobel & Zeit
• company Freilin
• company Sil’va
• company Miagkaya Zhizn’
• company Art-mebel’
• Company Dream Land
• ООО Dmitrov furniture enterprise

The following manufacturers were awarded the certificates of the contest Rossiyskaya Kabriol’ for the best cabinets:

• furniture enterprise MIASS-Mebel’
• company Mebel’ Chernozemia
• ОАО Kristina
• furniture enterprise Ulianovsk-Mebel’
• company MosKomplektMebel’
• PО Resurs
• company Nova Mebel’
• company Ufa-Mebel’
• company Feliks
• company Aktual’ny Dizain
• company Mebel’ Express
• furniture enterprise Krasnaya Zvezda
• corporation Elektrogorskmebel’

Arkady Zlotkikov, the First Deputy Director Crocus Expo IEC, summarized: “We are glad to note that not only today's prize winners, but also all articles of interior presented at the exhibition Furniture Club-2007 meet all quality standards and are executed really soundly and with taste".

The efficiency of the furniture exhibition eloquently testified the fact that 120 companies had already submitted application forms for participation in the next edition of the project. The organizers predict the increase of the exhibit space of Furniture Club-2008 up to 70 000 - 75 000 sq m. It is already known today that the trade show will be held in the third pavilion Crocus Expo. Moreover the next year edition will be held at the same time with well known Italian furniture salon I Saloni Worldwide Moscow. It was agreed to organize a national corporative exposition of leading Chinese manufacturers of furniture with exhibit space exceeding 2000 sq m. Agreements on holding of large National expositions of the countries of South East Asia (Malaysia, Singapore, Thailand and Indonesia) were executed. Negotiations for participation in the exhibition Furniture Club-2008 of leading Spanish, Portuguese, German, Turkish furniture manufacturers are under way.

The 4th International Specialized exhibition Furniture Club-2008 will be held November 11 through 15, 2008 in the third pavilion of Crocus Expo IEC.

Statistics:
Overall space	More than 60 000 sq m
Exhibitors	More than 800 companies
Regions of the Russian Federation	More than 40
Countries	17 (Azerbaijan, Argentina, Belarus, Belgium, Germany, Spain, Italy, China, Latvia, Lithuania, Portugal, Russia, Syria, Turkey, Ukraine, Switzerland, Japan)
Visitors	More than 50 000

Press Service Crocus Expo IEC
E. Teterina, I. Romanovich
Phone: +7 (495) 727-27-57