Gulf Construction Online - Turkey gears up for major furniture fair

Manufacturers & Procurement

A stall at a previous event.

Turkey gears up for major furniture fair

01 September 2014

TURKEY is set to host the 32nd edition of the International Trade Fair of Furniture and Decoration, which is expected to attract 18,500 visitors from across the world.

The exhibition will be held at the Hikmet Sahin Cultural Park International Exhibition Centre in Inegol, Busra, from November 4 to 8.

It is being organised by Modef Fuarcilik, which has been strengthening its network of agents across the world and has also been organising road shows in the Middle East, North Africa, Turkic republic states and the Balkan states.

Modef Expo and its international marketing and visitor promotion partner Antexpo have established connections in more than 30 countries including Iran, Iraq, the UAE, Saudi Arabia, Jordan, Lebanon, Egypt, Bulgaria, Algeria, Morocco, Tunis and Kazakhstan, to promote the show and attract VIP buyers from the furniture industry.

Last year, Modef Expo presented the latest trends and designs in furniture with 145 exhibiting companies and labels. The fair attracted 13,927 key buyers from targeted visitor markets, and was visited by 2,454 foreign visitors from 62 countries.

It was a record-breaking number of VIP buyers, according to a spokesperson for the event’s organisers.

“This year too, the visitors will be able to discover a wide range of products and unique samples that reflect both modern and classical design themes, and also understand why the heart of the Turkish furniture sector is in Inegol,” the spokesperson added.

Turkey’s dynamic furniture industry has ensured its manufacturers are increasingly competitive – particularly when it comes to quality, design and price.

At present, around 25 per cent of Turkey’s $6-billion furniture industry in Turkey is exported across global markets. Inegol currently accounts for 35 per cent of this total figure, and the city hopes to export furniture worth $1 billion this year.

With more than 260 large factories, 1,000 showrooms and 1,500 production centres, Inegol has maintained its position as the largest furniture producer and exporter in Turkey.

Statistics indicate that around 1,300 Inegol furniture companies are exporting their products to more than 110 countries.

Modef Expo is primarily geared towards those companies looking to source from a wide range of high-quality of products at competitive prices, the spokesman said. Many of the manufacturers utilise locally sourced raw materials, helping keep the costs low.

Turkey’s location makes it easily accessible to European countries, the Turkic republics and Middle East countries and the exhibition is a central platform from which all of these regions are able to come together to do business.