Malaysia Show Highlights Furniture for Export
Thomas Russell -- Furniture Today, May 4, 2011
KUALA LUMPUR, Malaysia - Export-driven producers showcased a mix of largely transitional and soft contemporary styles of case goods and upholstery at the seventh annual Export Furniture Exhibition held here.
The March 3-7 event featured some 400 exhibitors in about 450,000 square feet in six halls at the Malaysia Argo Exposition Park Serdang.
While final attendance figures were not available for this year's event, the 2010 show drew about 12,000 visitors, 9% of whom were from North America.
One exhibitor at this year's show was Even Sofa Mfg. International, which showed a line of contemporary leather upholstery. While half of the company's business is export, it mostly sells to markets including Australia, its largest market outside Malaysia, and also to Belgium, Korea, South Africa and Nigeria.
The company also was keeping an eye out for U.S. prospects, said Bingo Lau, export sales and marketing executive. But a big challenge, she said, is the exchange rate, which tends to make the upper- end lines more expensive for U.S. buyers because of the weaker dollar. In late 2009, for example, one dollar purchased 3.45 Malaysian ringgits, but at the time of the show, one dollar purchased roughly three ringgits.
Upper-end contemporary case goods producer Jamel International showed a line of dining and living room tables of solid marri wood, some of which feature stylish black granite inserts. The tables, some of which have rough-hewn edges made to look like tree bark, have distressed finishes that show the wood grain.
The company wasn't selling into the U.S. at the time of the show, but also was on the lookout for prospects.
Mel Calabro, operations manager, attributed the lack of U.S. sales to the currency situation and the slow economy. He said the company's biggest export market remains the Middle East.
Caccina Sofa Mfg. showed a line of upper-priced leather upholstery, featuring sofa, chair and loveseat sets retailing around $3,500. While the company was hoping to see U.S. buyers at the show, it primarily greeted visitors from the Middle East and Europe. U.S. buyers it has dealt with in the past have gravitated toward lower price points, the company said.
Hotwin Furniture, which specializes in contemporary- leaning informal dining groups, appeared to offer competitive prices on solid rubberwood sets that would retail from $999 to $1,400 for a table and six chairs. While the company has tried to sell to U.S. buyers in the past, it has received lukewarm response, said Julian Chean, head of sales.
 Hotwin Furniture’s soft contemporary dining set is in rubberwood solids with a dark cherry finish. Including six polyurethane-covered chairs, the set would retail for about |
 A table from contemporary dining manufacturer Jamel International is made of marri solids and features black granite inserts. The table would retail for about $5,000 to $6,000 in the U.S., while each leather upholstered dining chair would retail at about $399. |
 Contemporary dining manufacturer Gio-Luzini showed this extendable glass dining table with a metal base. A table and six chairs would retail at $1,200 U.S. |
 This sectional by Even Sofa Mfg. is covered in top grain leather and would retail for about $3,400 in the U.S. |
 Caccina Sofa Mfg. showed this rust colored leather sofa, which along with a matching loveseat and chair would retail for about $3,500. | |
"We try to come up with designs that would attract U.S. customers," he said. "When we have new designs, we send them to them. Customers like what they see, but it's too high-priced."
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