An international sectoral benchmark, the Salone del Mobile.Milano is currently finessing the upcoming edition, which boasts a new format for the classic section and two events providing unprecedented visualisations of contemporary design and the workspace. The Salone’s close partnership with Milan is key, making the city and the event the capital of design, as the ADV campaign states.

With just under 60 days to go until the opening of its 56th edition, the Salone del Mobile.Milano is the sector’s acknowledged showcase for excellence and quality and the international appointment for those who work in it. It also attracts more than 300,000 visitors from over 165 different countries with its comprehensive and extensive range of goods – from furnishings to lighting to the workspace – and is covered by more than 5,000 journalists worldwide.

5 exhibitions: the Salone Internazionale del Mobile, the International Furnishing Accessories Exhibition, Euroluce, Workplace3.0 and SaloneSatellite, will run concurrently at the Fiera Milano Rho from Tuesday 4th to Sunday 9th April, open to professionals every day from 9.30 to 6.30, and to the public on the Saturday and Sunday:

“The Salone del Mobile is on the home strait and both the companies involved and the organisers are looking forward to mid-April with great optimism. This positive mood is driven by the sector’s upbeat performance during the first ten months of 2016, and it will hopefully maintain this trend over the next few quarters. Italian furnishing continues to gain ground on almost all the international markets. The Salone del Mobile’s strong international vocation saw the return of 67% of the high profile foreign professionals with solid buying power at the last edition”, said Salone del Mobile.Milano president Roberto Snaidero.

Data processed by the Federlegno Arredo Eventi Study Centre show that exports during the first ten months of 2016 confirmed the Salone as a powerful driver for the growth of Italian furnishing and lighting companies. Foreign sales rose above 11 billion euros between January and October last year, with signs of significant growth in France (+5.3%), the United States (+8.1%) and China (+18.4%) in particular.

“ICE – Italian Trade Agency has been working very closely with FederlegnoArredo for years to support the prestigious Salone del Mobile and the excellent products it showcases”, said Giovanni Sacchi, Director of the Made in Italy Export Promotion Department of ICE – Italian Trade Agency. “We’ve run an extensive on and off line communication campaign in the leading foreign sectoral newspapers in the run-up to the Salone over the last few months, while numerous promotional meetings have been scheduled during the year, involving China, the US, Russia and Iran, which are our priority export markets.”The Salone del Mobile is reprising its role as a major resource for the Italian system, thanks to its ability to attract professionals, visitors, designers, buyers and journalists to Milan from all over the world, a strength that has helped Milan become the capital of furnishing and design, as has its with its powerful bond with the city and its institutions. The Italian communication campaign slogan Be the First to see the Latest is further affirmation of the Salone’s role.

“As always, Milan will be ready for and even more equal to this extraordinary international event, which brings in huge numbers of people from all over the world”, said Mayor of Milan Giuseppe Sala. “The Salone del Mobile has always been a test bench for our city, which is proud to be seen as the capital of design and keen to retain its pre-eminence, demonstrating again this year that it is the ideal context for an event of such importance. Because Milan, together with the Salone, has the power to highlight and throw into great relief the entire sector, from the talented young designers to the great international names, to the innovative startups to the historic companies.”

Following the successful launch of the last edition of xLux – the section devoted to timeless luxury reworked in a contemporary vein – the Salone Internazionale del Mobile has brought in an innovative format for classic furniture and furnishing accessories, in Pavilions 2 and 4, under a new name, Classic: Tradition in the future, and with a more homogeneous, balanced and fluid layout. A central “promenade” takes visitors into a space that draws on values such as patrimony of knowledge, craftsmanship and the skills needed to create classic furniture and objects. The exhibition will also feature the theatre and one room from the successful Before Design: Classic project presented at the last edition of the Salone del Mobile.Milano, along with the short film by multi-award winning director Matteo Garrone.

The two biennial exhibitions will be running in full synergy with the Salone Internazionale del Mobile, Euroluce in Pavilions 9-11 and 13-15 and Workplace3.0 inside Pavilions 22-24 dedicated to the workspace, as well as the International Furnishing Accessories Exhibition and SaloneSatellite.

Now into its 29th edition, Euroluce showcases the very best the lighting market has to offer, from decorative products to illuminotechnical products – used in the industrial, street, theatrical and hospital lighting sectors – as well as lighting and home automation systems, light sources and lighting application software, all with a particular focus on energy saving, environmental sustainability and light pollution.

Workplace3.0 – now into its 18th edition – is based on an innovative concept based on design and technology for designing workspaces and is an event that responds to the rapid change in the world of work and the latest market demands.

The exhibition will showcase the ultimate furnishing solutions for offices, banks, insurance offices, post offices and public spaces; chairs for offices and community spaces, acoustic products, internal partitions and coverings, office furnishing accessories, audio-visual technologies and technical and security systems. SaloneSatellite, in Pavilions 22 and 24, with free public entry from Cargo 5, is an unmissable event. It brings together a selection of young designers from 5 continents with entrepreneurs, architects, interior designers and the press. The theme of the 20th edition is “DESIGN is ...?”, an open, topical and crucial question.