Over 600 exhibitors take over MITEC and PWTC.
Malaysian International Furniture Fair (MIFF), the largest trade show in Southeast Asia, is all set for its biggest edition in four weeks – buoyed with more than 600 Malaysian and international exhibitors expected to attend.
The four-day annual show organised by UBM Malaysia runs from March 8th to 11th at the new, spacious, state-of-the-art Malaysian International Trade and Exhibition Centre (MITEC) and the nearby sister-venue, Putra World Trade Centre (PWTC).
With the availability at MITEC, the show has expanded by 25 percent to over 100,000 square meters of space, themed “Design Connects People” to inspire greater design and innovation on the trading floor to drive commerce.
Renowned for quality, value, and robust on-site business deals, the trade show has attracted exhibitors from 13 countries – Malaysia, China, Taiwan, Indonesia, Hong Kong, Korea, India, Japan, Vietnam, Thailand, Turkey, Singapore, and the USA. The MIFF is also the world’s biggest showcase of Malaysian wood furniture.
In tandem with the exceptional response from exhibitors, the number of pre-registered attendees (including many first time visitors) has risen by 10 percent as of the end of January, in comparison with the previous year.
A 40-person strong delegation of Japanese retailers, and for the first time, two buying missions from the American Society of Interior Designers and Interior Designers of Canada will be hosted by MIFF.
“This is the 24th year of MIFF and the show is going stronger than ever on all fronts. We are going big, not just in terms of size, but also in terms of design ideas in our new business segments and networking programmes, this is our most exciting edition by far. The number of Malaysian and international exhibitors has exceeded our estimate of 600, and we are still receiving bookings. This can only mean good news for buyers, a trading floor packed with more new products, more trends, more suppliers, and this time, extra products and more furniture ideas coming from millennial generation designers,” said MIFF General Manager Ms. Karen Goi.
Also meeting the media were representatives from several exhibiting companies. They are Mr. Logan Lim (director of Forest Contemporary Furnishing Design Sdn. Bhd.), Ms. Melissa Tan (Export Manager), Mr. Shai Yurkevich (project manager of Getha Bedding Malaysia Sdn. Bhd., Mr. Nick Wee (marketing manager of BSL Furniture Decoration Sdn. Bhd.), Ms. Adela Askandar (CEO of Kedai Bikin Sdn. Bhd.), Mr. Ervin Quek (marketing executive and member of Business Development and Internal Auditors), and Ms. Khoo Ai Lee (senior manager of Mobila Design Sdn. Bhd.).
The layout of the show has been redesigned and upgraded to support new segments and key product categories, such as:-
Design Rena
A new addition to the MIFF with 15,000 square meters of curated floor space exclusively for 80 top Malaysian manufacturers to showcase their products in lifestyle settings.
MIFF Office
The returning office solutions exhibition is the largest in Southeast Asia with 120 exhibiting companies expected.
MIFF Timber Mart
This new addition to the MIFF provides a one-stop sourcing and trading platform for global suppliers and buyers of wood products and wood-related materials.
FDC in Action
The highly anticipated Furniture Design Competition (FDC), provides product design and booth styling presentations by winners and finalists of the FDC, led by MIFF Creative Director and chief judge of the FDC, Philip Yap.
Millenials@Design (MAD)
This new segment features ready-to-market furniture by young designers from FDC in Action, Pattern Banyak, and the Tanggam Design Centre by the Malaysian Timber Industry Board, in collaboration with the Sarawak Timber Industry Development Corporation.
MIFF’s strategic partner, the Muar Furniture association, returns with a bigger group of exhibitors under the Muar Hall banner. Muar is the local industry heavyweight that accounts for 60 percent of Malaysia’s furniture exports.
China Hall, Taiwan Hall, and a South Korean group of companies supported by the Korean Federation of Furniture Industry Cooperatives (KFFIC) headline the international attractions.
A dynamic seminar series will see renowned international and local experts sharing insights into their own experiences and interpretations of market trends. Speakers include Enrico G. Cleva, Roberto Mutti, Franz Rivoira, Shinichi Mitsuki, and Philip Yap.
Since its inception in 1995, MIFF has grown to be a global Top 10 furniture trade show with a diverse crowd of international buyers. In 2017, MIFF featured 550 companies, achieving yet another sales record of USD 940 million and nearly 20,000 visitors with global buyers from 132 countries rising by 5 percent (to a total of 5,603).
More information on MIFF 2018 is available on www.miff.com.my.
