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Ausen International Design Center opens near Shanghai

Includes showrooms for furniture, fabric, other home goods

Thomas Russell -- Furniture Today, August 16, 2011

XINBANG, China — A new home for design has opened in this city about an hour southwest of central Shanghai.

Some 600 government officials, consular representatives from the U.S., Italy, Germany and France, and more than 250 interior designers and furniture industry officials attended the July 6 grand opening of the Ausen International Design Center. This reception is in the central atrium area of Building A.

Workers roll out the red carpet in preparation for a July 6 grand opening event at the Ausen International Design Center just outside central Shanghai.

The 550,000-square-foot Ausen International Design Center complex includes two four- story showroom facilities that are open to designers and the public seven days a week. It also includes a 76-room, 94,000-square-foot hotel with two restaurants expected to open in January.

The first of the showroom facilities, referred to as Building A, is 237,000 square feet and houses furniture and fabric showrooms on the first three floors. The fourth floor houses a business center, meeting rooms, a designers' lounge and design library.

Building B is 210,000 square feet and houses decorative accessories, home décor, fine art, flooring, kitchen and bath products, linens and tabletop items.

Combined, the buildings are occupied by more than 100 mostly luxury brands from Europe and North America, including case goods and upholstery resources Edward Ferrell + Lewis Mittman, William Switzer Furniture, Rolf Benz, Parker + Barr and Provasi.

The list includes many brands that have never shown or distributed product in China before, said Bill Grenewald, general manager of the Ausen facility. Others have shown in the past but are now just returning to the market, he said.

Some of the showrooms are devoted to single brands while others are designer spaces that carry multiple lines.

Grenewald said he believes the timing of the opening of the facility, which was in development for nearly two years, is right given the high demand for luxury, western goods.

"Clearly there is a huge market and wealthy Chinese people trust brand names," he said, adding that large-scale houses in China also have western design influences.

Edward Ferrell + Lewis Mittman signed on to the project early on and recently opened a 4,000-square-foot showroom at the IDC.

"We recognize that China is the fastest growing affluent market in the world," said company President Jobi Blachy in a statement. "There is a consumer that is hungry for American style and the quality that American-made product is known for."

The company said it will carry a wide variety of its U.S.-made upholstery and case goods as well as furnishings designed by William Yeoward and bronze accessories designed by Carole Gratale.

"Our goal is to offer the Chinese designer and the affluent Chinese consumer a truly luxury experience by utilizing the best practices from our U.S. showrooms," Blachy added, noting that the company also will host various events in its showroom featuring some of its renowned licensing partners.

In the future, the complex plans to add a furniture museum to showcase various designs as well as a virtual design simulator.

"We have created the most luxurious design center shopping experience in the world," Hunter Zhang, president and developer of the project, said in a statement. "We understand the affluent consumer and the designer in Shanghai and will give them exactly what they need."

For more information on the complex, contact Grenewald at William@ausenchina.com.

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