Lessons from the world's 2nd-largest furniture show
Powell Slaughter, Case goods editor -- Furniture Today, February 3, 2003
The easiest furniture show to work as a reporter also is one of the world's largest, second only to High Point. It's Cologne, and I can't help but think that some of the reasons I find my time there well spent apply to buyers as well.
I don't mean to say Cologne is a cakewalk. The show has close to 1,400 exhibitors, and I can't hit 3% of them in the time I have. Sore feet and end-of-day exhaustion are part of any furniture market. What I do mean is that the management in Cologne has created an event that allows visitors to get a handle on a huge array of products.
The most striking feature of the show is the way exhibitors in comparable categories and price ranges tend to be grouped together. Want cutting-edge, full-line producers at premium price points? Head to Hall 13, level three. Need tables? Try 13, level one. Non-European sources mostly show in one area. There are clearly defined locations for, say, Filipino or U.S. exhibitors.
There are many exceptions, of course, but in Cologne it's a lot easier to compare apples to apples, so to speak.
High Point's variety of showrooms, from quaint to sleekly modern, and its patchwork quilt of exhibitors strike me as part of its attraction. Surprises lurk around every corner and down every street. But that array can bewilder newcomers, especially if they're the international buyers that High Point looks to as a growth opportunity.
It's worth noting that in the past two years, several U.S. exhibitors in Cologne have told me they are seeing customers, especially from Asia and the Middle East, who've opted out of High Point, or at least don't come stateside as often.
If nothing else, Cologne illustrates how a show with a single organizing entity and a single venue can make for an event that's easier and more productive for exhibitors and buyers alike. Tupelo certainly has benefited from having one set of chiefs steering a very large ship. I hear lots of positive buyer comments about Tupelo, but many love to complain about High Point.
I know, I know, we have the relatively new Market Authority in High Point, but many industry people question just how much authority it has. With competing showroom management in major buildings, abundant free-standing and company-owned locations, and the sheer size of the High Point show, it appears unlikely the world's largest furniture trade event truly will consolidate under a single umbrella.
I'm reminded of the Fine Furniture plant near Shanghai, China, and how it would be next to impossible for an existing plant anywhere in the world to remodel along such efficient lines. That's the benefit of building from the ground up. (I'm talking to you, Las Vegas.)
I'd suggest a visit to Cologne for furniture market management everywhere. The worst that could happen is they'll get a fresh perspective on what makes a market worthwhile.
