CITEM to impress Europe with ‘future-perfect’ exhibits

The export promotions arm of the Department of Trade and Industry is out to impress Europe with “future-perfect” exhibits of furniture, furnishings and home accessories, mostly made from materials that are hardly imagined to take unusual shapes and stand out in the world market.

Made of sculpted wood, metals, fiber and welded wires, among others, all surprisingly blended into extraordinarily and stunningly beautiful products, these prized exports will be unveiled by the Center for International Trade Expositions and Missions (CITEM) on April 14 to 19 at the Salone Internazionale del Mobile in Milan, a major world design capital and Italy’s industrial, commercial and financial center.

CITEM executive director Rosvi C. Gaetos describes the Philippine participation in Salone as highly strategic owing to Milan’s role as a global design destination, especially for home lifestyle products of distinctive quality that has turned Italy into Europe’s furniture design capital.

“Our exhibits in Salone will show the government efforts, not only in product and market development, but also in helping spawn design factories that marry industrial production and Philippine craftsmanship. The results of this marriage are being provided access to global platforms for the rise of the Design Philippines brand in the world market,” Gaetos pointed out.

Design Philippines, according to CITEM deputy executive director Rhea Matute, is to develop Philippine brands that propose a design-led manufacturing as championed by the Italian industry with the birth of its design companies such as Alessi, Artemide, Cappellini, Boffi, B&B Italia, and Zanotta.

Gaetos says the Salone will enable Philippine export firms to shine in the birthplace of modern design (Milan, Italy) and hold their own while being together with the world’s top players as equals, yet using their own design language.

“We will show how we design and manufacture our products based, not merely on function and industrial production, but also on our expressions of emotions, poetry, values and identity,” Gaetos explained, citing the distinction earned by the Philippines as the “Milan of Asia” as acknowledged by the American industry magazine Furniture

Today USA in 1984. That distinction, according to CITEM marketing communications director Art C. Dimaano, was further affirmed by bestselling author Elizabeth Reyes in another international trade publication Tropical Interiors, explaining how the Philippines earned the moniker “the Milan of Asia” and continued to deserve it. CNN’s style watcher Elsa Klensch was likewise quoted as describing the Filipino design creations as “Asian Fusion.”

Gaetos says CITEM is working with the country’s top furniture designer-manufacturers to “reinforce that distinction and vision (Milan of Asia) in the furniture world.”

Online reports have it that the contract furniture market in Italy alone accounts for a whopping 2.6 billion euros, driven by tourism, hospitality, education, medical and air transport businesses that propel property development, all requiring indoor and outdoor lifestyle products that set world standards of quality.