Shenzhen aims to broaden exhibitor base
By Thomas Russell -- Furniture Today, September 9, 2007
Shenzhen, China — Organizers of the Shenzhen International Furniture Exhibition want to gain a broader base of international exhibitors, starting at the March 2008 show.
With that goal in mind, the show invited representatives from international furniture trade associations to China to attend the summer Shenzhen show in August to hear a presentation on opportunities SIFE presents to foreign exhibitors.
Show organizers say they hope to help companies tap into the growing Chinese market for furniture.
According to show figures, SIFE has the highest percentage of domestic buyers in its base of attendees of any of the large shows held in China over the past year. In March, buyers from China represented 89.5% of the total visitor mix. The show with the next highest level of domestic visitors was the Famous Furniture Fair Dongguan at 88.8%, followed by shows in Shanghai and Guangzhou at 80% and 74%, respectively.
The effort to boost international exhibitors is largely in response to the successful debut of an Indonesian pavilion at the March 2007 Shenzhen show. That area held 40 exhibitors that placed an estimated $20 million in orders at the show, according to the SIFE Web site.
Most of the remaining 600 exhibitors were from mainland China or Hong Kong.
"With our show, we have a great opportunity to have space ready and have the best channels to reach the domestic market," said Noah Vogelsang, an international business executive for the Shenzhen Furniture Trade Assn., a group that helps organize the show.
The show occupies the 1.7 million-square-foot Shenzhen Convention & Exhibition Center. Vogelsang said that the center can accommodate additional international exhibitors by consolidating some of the space now occupied by domestic manufacturers.
"We can bring it together and make it a more competitive floor space, Vogelsang said. "We are cleaning up our image and making ourselves look a little sharper."
The show also may be able to expand to an exhibition center of more than 3 million square feet planned to be built near the Shenzhen International Airport.
For more information, visit www.chinafurnitureexpo.com.
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