The Export Furniture Exhibition (EFE) 2019 concluded its biggest show on March 12 after four successful days with elated exhibitors meeting more buyers from a wide base of countries and signing orders right until the end. The event, one of the largest international furniture fairs in Southeast Asia, was held from 9-12 March 2019 at Kuala Lumpur Convention Centre (KLCC). It is presented by the Malaysian Furniture Council (MFC) and organized by EFE Expo Sdn Bhd. Year 2019 marked EFE’s 15th edition and its grand celebration. The furniture fair was officially launched by YB Puan Teresa Kok, Minister of Primary Industries represented by YB Datuk Seri Shamsul Iskandar Mohd Akin, Deputy Minister of Primary Industries.
Buyers were greeted with more products and new collections than ever before from more than 300 exhibitors from Malaysia and Asia. The trade show is one of the largest furniture sourcing hub and more than 9.0% bigger this year grossing 35,000 sqm and drew more overseas buyers including a strong number of first timers to its recent 2019 edition to lift off the Asia buying season. The share of international buyers increased 5% to 8,246 while the local visitors increased 34.43% to 5,591. Total visitors recorded an overall increase of 15.0% to 13,900 and the number of halls increased to 9 from 8 the previous year.
After 15 successful editions, it has assured buyers, visitors and exhibitors that EFE is a bigger and better networking platform for the entire industry. The event has displayed the best in Home, Bedroom, Sofa, Kitchen, Office, Children, Living Room and Outdoor furniture including furniture accessories.
With an established reputation for robust trading, EFE 2019 gained extra pace from new exhibitors and buyers making up a substantial of the overall presence. The larger exhibition space created room for the launch of more new initiatives to drive design quality and business opportunities. For the first time, an Indonesian showcase of innovative furniture designs, handcrafts and decorations were made available with the participation by Indonesia’s Furniture & Craft Manufacturers (IFPF).
The show encompassed many highlights, amongst the prominent ones were:-
- The Buyers Introduction Programme (BIP) and International Sourcing Programme (INSP) is a collaboration between MATRADE and EFE. The programmes were aimed at attracting international buyers to EFE and to match Malaysian furniture companies with foreign buyers from all over the world.
- The Professional Designers Program (PDP) was one of the highlights of the show which featured innovative furniture designs by Malaysian manufacturers mentored by professional designers from Italy, Belgium and Australia with the aim in promoting Malaysian furniture design.
- Networking Buyers’ Night cum 15th Anniversary Celebration. Export Furniture Exhibition is the signature event of MFC and is fully backed by them. The Malaysian Furniture Council consists of all the 13 State Furniture Associations of Malaysia and is the national body which represent Malaysia’s furniture industry. It is an exhibition for the industry. It was a night of celebration for exhibitors and buyers to relax, network, socialise and enjoy with all the food, drinks and entertainment made available. It was also a night of recognition for the winners of the coveted Malaysian Furniture Creativity Award (MFC Awards) and the winners for the Best Booth Competition. The coveted MFC Awards event has the full support of Federmobili with the President as Advisor. The competition included seven international media partners as judges.
EFE 2019 saw several innovations brought to the forefront, opening up new avenues for more than 15,000 business visitors who came from across the world looking for business opportunities and product sourcing.
EFE 2020 will be held at a larger scale covering about 50,000 sqm of exhibition area at KLCC. Office furniture is set to create an impact with more office furniture exhibitors participation. The international exhibition is scheduled from 9-12 March 2020 at KLCC and is expected to attract more exhibitors of office, kitchen and board furniture including more international visitors. The larger exhibition space created room for accommodating more exhibitors by EFE to launch more new initiatives to drive design quality and business opportunities.