The FINANCIAL — Lifestyle experts, architects, interior designers, decor specialists and exhibitors has gathered under one roof in Frankfurt, at Ambiente International Trade Fair in order to deliver directions for consumer goods industry for the entire year. The five-day design fair has shown the who’s who of the lifestyle world putting their stuff on display.
Five days at the Ambiente International Frankfurt Trade Fair, that traditionally took place in February, the consumer goods industry finished in an upbeat mood. Visitors from more countries than ever before spent their time networking, ordering the latest products from all over the world for their companies and preparing for a digital future.
Occupying an exhibition space of 308,000 square meters, 4,441 exhibitors from 89 countries revealed the trends of the new year. 81 percent of all exhibitors came from outside Germany. The proportion of international decision-makers across all trade sectors went up by six percent compared to last year, making up 60 percent of visitors. In total, 134,600 buyers from 168 countries visited Frankfurt am Main to attend Ambiente.
“Consumerism is fashionable! Ambiente hosts the entire world. Every February, the international consumer goods industry receives direction here for the entire year. This is impressively borne out by the number of orders and the quality of German and international buyers,” said Detlef Braun, member of the Executive Board of Messe Frankfurt GmbH.
Sylvie Meis. Messe Frankfurt Exhibition GmbH/Pietro Sutera
The line-up at this year’s Ambiente has laid emphasis on urban lifestyle and feel-good products that reflected globalisation and individualisation. From Spanish brand Closca, which has developed an entirely-new, folding bike helmet that has won the Red Dot Design Award, to French label Louise Carmen that has redefined notepads and journals, this year’s Ambiente had innovation as its key peg.
Ambiente trade fair is the only place where one could found out that an indigenous German brand Kommod makes use of oak and wood ash from the Bavarian forests. Moreover, French firm Ekobo goes a step further in creating home and kitchen items using bamboo sourced from the sawdust of the chopstick factory. A no-varnish, no-PVC policy means that its products are good to be brought to the table.
Recycling plastic is nothing new in the modern world, but one would definitely still get surprised after being introduced to an artwork of designer Hans Maier-Aichen, who serves as professor of product design at the Staatliche Hochschule für Gestaltung in Karlsruhe. A group of German designers have created stool seats from oddly shaped pieces of recycled plastic produced at an injection-moulding factory. The designers devised a method for pressing heated steel tubes into the underside of the plates to create a simple stool.
A fuss-free steel furniture has been introduced by Danish brand Nichba Design. Among designers and celebrities expected to show up at the fair include Paola Navone, Martha Stewart, Johann Lafer and Jamie Oliver. Arta Broch Ceramics, AWK Steelwares, Cello Plast and La Opala are some Indian names that were displaying their wares at the Ambiente.
In order to take its customers closer to their “Eat Green Goal” a French tableware brand Villeroy & Boch, well-known to Georgian customers, has introduced new designs for on-the-go millennials. A new collection of the French brand has featured portable coffee mugs as well as salad bowls that double up as air tight casseroles.
Testing the elasticity of material, an Israeli design studio Cozi charmed me by exploring stainless steel in multiple combinations—a table top fruit basket, pendant lamps and mirror—all wrinkled to perfection.
Preview Ambiente 2018. Messe Frankfurt Exhibition GmbH/Pietro Sutera
Not only European labels were upping the innovation game this year at Ambiente. Two Asian names, 100 Per Cent Inc, and Tidy, also created solutions that were put on the box for home living. Set up by two brothers 12 years ago, 100 PC Inc looks at material innovation using stone grass, in sync with the Japanese philosophy of simplistic living. The result: stunning sun dials.
While the whole civilized world is concerned with refugee crisis, it would be surprising not to find art works of refugees at Ambiente trade fair. Made 51 is UNHCR’s latest initiative to resettle the displaced through design. Featuring works by refugee artisans and designers, you can take your pick from beautiful handmade products such as smoked bamboo lighting from Thailand, rice sacks from Tanzania and bracelets and bowls crafted by refugees in Burkina Faso.
And while modern consumers are actively switching to distance communication, Ambiente has shown me as a potential customer and just a visitor that nothing can replace personal contact with new and existing suppliers and their innovative products.
Ambiente is the meeting point of the industries. It’s a place for making valuable contacts with countries one normally never get to. While interviewing representatives of companies all has agreed that during five days of exhibition they have received a good number of orders and most importantly they expressed huge satisfaction as the quality of visitors was good.
The next Ambiente will be held in 2019. Ambiente will also be held in India on 27th of June, 2018.
The Ambiente programme offers an array of valuable inspirations. The topics include the latest fashions in the design world, today’s and tomorrow’s trends, guidance on creating the right product mix, POS design and the latest developments in the online sphere. Great ideas are uncovered at a series of special presentations, exhibitions and competitions.
For further information you may contact:
Zaira Soloeva
Senior Project Manager
Official Representative of Messe Frankfurt Exhibition GmbH in Georgia and Armenia
Deutsche Wirtschaftsvereinigung (DWV)
zaira.soloeva@georgien.ahk.de
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