This August marks a special moment in the history of Intertextile Shanghai Home Textiles as the fair celebrates the anniversary of its 20th edition. The show will also set a new milestone, as for the first time it will take up 13 halls at the Shanghai New International Expo Centre for a total of 150,400 sqm, making this edition the largest event in its history. Around 1,350 exhibitors from 31 countries and regions are expected to take part at the fair which runs from 27 to 29 August.
Highlights of this Autumn Edition include the European Hall (hall W1) which features premium manufacturers and editors from Europe under the theme ‘Exquisite Europe’, country pavilions from Belgium, Italy and Turkey, and the Intertextile Design Boutique. The International Hall (hall W2) will house pavilions from India, Korea, Pakistan and Taiwan, while the Morocco Pavilion makes its debut appearance here. And nearly 1,000 domestic exhibitors in 11 other halls will provide a huge range of variety for buyers.
Wider product scope from the industry’s leading suppliers
The main product categories at the fair include bedding and towelling, upholstery fabrics, curtains, sun protection systems and accessories, wall coverings and design. Over recent years, the fair has evolved to cover the full range of home textile products, and this edition sees more wall coverings exhibitors participating, with a particular focus on design-oriented suppliers. Seegreen, for example, has completed contracts for Estée Lauder, and will exhibit British brand Clarke & Clarke, American brand Brentano, and Desima from Germany. They also report that hand-painted wallpaper and fabrics are currently popular in China and Asia.
Yamo are returning to the fair again after the success they had in 2013, and will showcase their collections of silk, linen, natural-material and hand-made wallpaper in hall W2. Design-focused wall coverings exhibitors are an important aspect of this year’s fair, so two other key exhibitors to watch out for include Uniwal and Wallmate. Also within this hall will be a Home Decoration Trend Area which features wallpaper and other home textile products that help to illustrate the trend themes in the Intertextile International Lifestyle Trend Forum.
Hall W1, meanwhile, will showcase premium suppliers from Europe, including a number of leading editors looking to fill the demand in China for high-end products, including Designers Guild and JAB, as well as LaCanTouch which represents the CASADECO, Flordelis, Jean Paul Gaultier and Sonia Rykiel brands. And Unichina will showcase a number of European brands including Armonia, Edinburgh Weavers, Gonzalez Llado and THEVENON.
Bedding and towelling is always a popular category at the fair, and this year some renowned suppliers will take part. German firm Curt Bauer will return again with their bedding products, and report that the need for high-end products in this sector is huge in China due to continued economic development in the country. Mundotextil from Portugal will present their Blank Home brand of terry towels, bathrobes, bed linen and home accessories, including four new collections. Finally, Naturtex from Hungary is another bedding exhibitor worth visiting in hall W1.
Returning again to the fair is the Italy Pavilion, which is organised this year by ICE - Italian Trade Commission. One exhibitor in the pavilion is Sirio Tendaggi Srl, a supplier of curtains and light deco fabrics since 1950. According to Managing Director Diego Vercellino, they see a lot of future potential in the region. “This is our third time exhibiting here as we’re convinced the Far East has big potential in the next few years. Moreover, this fair is a good meeting point for distributors from the US, the Middle East, Russia, Japan and Australia.”
Another exhibitor in this pavilion is Villaflorence Srl who is participating for the first time. They will display their collection of embroidered, jacquard, lace and printed satin duvet cover sets. Manifattura Tessile Di Nole M.T. Spa, meanwhile, will showcase their velvets made from natural fibres, very fine jacquards fabrics and their special blend of viscose and mohair velvet.
The Turkey Pavilion will also feature in hall W1, and organisers, the Uludag Textile Exporters' Association (UTIB), explained why they are returning for the seventh time. “By participating in the pavilion, our exhibitors can understand the Chinese market better, and they have been able to increase their sales in the past because of the fair,” said Ibrahim Burkay, Chairman of the Board at UTIB. “Because of this, they expect us to organise a pavilion here every year!” Key exhibitors this year are ANY, producers of curtain fabrics, fellow curtain suppliers Burkay Tekstil, and Polyteks who will exhibit polyester yarns.
Around 1,000 domestic exhibitors offer huge variety
For many buyers to the fair, one of the easiest ways to sort through the multitude of domestic exhibitors on offer is to focus on certain regional pavilions. This year, pavilions from Binzhou, Gaoyang, Haining, Huzhou, Nantong, Pujiang, Shaoxing, Tongxiang and Yuhang will feature in halls E3 to E7 and N5.
The Haining Pavilion will house a large number of jacquard fabric suppliers as this region is China’s leading production base for such products, with highlighted exhibitors in this pavilion being Haining Jinbaili Textile and Zhejiang Hanboo Home Textile. Occupying one and a half halls at this edition is the Tongxiang Pavilion. It will feature suppliers of jacquard and printed upholstery fabrics, curtains, rugs, cushions and bedding products, including Tongxiang Longxiang Textile and Tongxiang Xinbaolai Textile. And more than 160 exhibitors will feature in the Yuhang Pavilion this year, including Aiko Co Ltd Hangzhou displaying ‘whole-home’ products, Zhejiang Hexin and Zhejiang Hightex exhibiting upholstery fabrics.
One of the leading domestic jacquard curtain fabrics and bedding suppliers this year is Zhekoamg Hanboo Home Textile Co Ltd. They focus on the European and American markets, but report that domestically, much depends on government policy, particularly regarding the real estate sector. “At present, domestic home textile producers are subject to considerable impact from government policy,” Winston Ho, the firm’s representative explained. “But as a ‘traditional industry’ in China, domestic demand always exists, and even if there are fluctuations, they will not be large.”
Forest Group China Co Ltd, the local subsidiary of Forest Group (Nederland) BV which operates in over 80 countries worldwide, also reports strong demand in the country. “Although China’s real estate market entered a period of adjustment last year, this didn’t affect sales figures, and we exceeded our targets in 2013,” Wang Fang, China Region Manager, explained. After using the fair four years ago to make their debut in China, they return again this year with their range of window tracks for residential and contract markets.
Intertextile Shanghai Home Textiles – Autumn Edition is organised by Messe Frankfurt (HK) Ltd; the Sub-Council of Textile Industry, CCPIT; and the China Home Textile Association (CHTA).
To find out more about this event and other upcoming home textile fairs, please visit: www.intertextilehome.com
Media Contact
Liam Rodden
Tel +852 2230 9217
Fax +852 2598 7919
liam.rodden@hongkong.messefrankfurt.com
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