--Congratulations on the Grand Opening of the 22nd Famous Furniture Fair

Having endured the brunt of the financial crisis, the Chinese furniture industry has gained more strength and become much more mature. Recently plenty of signs have indicated that this industry has entered a new phase of development, a turning point to which the 22nd Famous Furniture Fair bears witness.

In the face of new challenges, the acuteness and responsiveness of the furniture industry has been fully activated. Exhibitors had prepared ample information for their new products long before the fair commences. Some companies have bolstered their products' competitiveness by introducing cutting-edge technologies; some attempt to seize the commanding heights of the market by unveiling art furniture and high-end brands of message armchairs after researching the upscale market; some launch causal style products with the concept of leisure in the vogue; some have incorporated into its new designs the notion of mixed fashions.

Even more significant would be the fact that furniture manufacturers have formulated a sustainable strategy to grow with retailers. Some manufactures have forgone their traditional way of establishing business connections with dealers by holding reception dinner. Two enterprises, one from Dalingshan and the other Foshan, held pre-exhibition trainings instead, and one company in Houjie chose to offer trainings after the fair.

The 22nd Furniture Fair Organizing Committee has devoted tremendous efforts to support the moves of furniture manufacturers:

First of all, the fair has created the Famous Furniture• Janyre Home Accents Center in collaboration with the well-known furniture chain brand Jane Home of Pear River Delta, which is the first experiment of the Exhibition plus Retailing business mode. That is, during the show time of Famous Furniture Fair (Dongguan), the Home Accents Center will become part of the Fair, it is then a year around retail mall for the rest of the year. The center is the fair's masterpiece in constructing a complete furniture industrial chain.

With the inauguration of the Home Accent Center, the organizing committee cooperates with the furniture industry to promote the development of the art of accessory. For instance, the China Architecture Decoration Association Committee joint hands with Co-op Land to hold the inauguration ceremony of the 2009 Top 10 National Decoration Designer Competition on the morning of Sep. 5th and presented awards to the 2008 Top 10 Awards. In the meantime, award-winning designers arrived at the exhibition venue prior to the inauguration to obtain first-hand information of the fair. Moreover, the Art Display & Decoration Committee under the China National Interior Decoration Association will organize a delegation of more than 60 designers coming from top accessory companies in provinces such as Zhejiang, Shanghai, Fujian and Hunan, etc. The delegation is scheduled to visit the fair and interact with the audience at a forum held at the Home Accent Center on the afternoon of Sep. 5th.

Secondly, the organizing committee has launched "The Best Retailers of the Year Award", which diverts much of the whole industry's attention to retailers and help to mutual benefitial . A lot of shopping malls, furniture corporations, distributors, and professional media passionately participated in the award selection process, more than 2700 retailers were nominated for the awards from over 20 provinces and cities all over China. 120 winners were selected by a professional judging panel and were awarded in a grand banquet attended by about 1,000 people of exhibitors, retailers and press.

Thirdly, efforts should be spent on designing prior to other aspects, which is the basic of development for furniture industry. "Design Space" is another platform for the cooperation between designers and corporations established by the organizing committee of the famous furniture fair. In this fair, "New Design Generation"  is held followed by a successful design in March this year. In order to enhance the exhibition's efficiency, the organizing committee has strengthened the communication between furniture corporations and designers before the fair and arranged face-to-face meetings for exhibitors and designers. 16 internationally influential young designers coming from 14 countries have been invited to this exhibition. Since their designs are representing the orientation of international furniture design in the future, it will be of great significance for Chinese furniture industry .