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"We have invested in quality and demonstrated our desire to continue to produce innovation and 'tell the stories' of our companies and products. We were once again the engine that reignited the city,' said Maria Porro, President of the Salone del Mobile.Milano.
The data of a success
These are the numbers in detail. Over 2,000 exhibiting brands, 34% of them foreign from 37 countries, including 550 young designers from 31 countries and 28 Design Schools and Universities from 18 different countries. The 307,418 visitors arrived in six days from 181 countries with 65% of buyers and trade operators coming from abroad. Particularly significant was the return of Chinese visitors; China has once again become the leading country after Italy, followed by Germany, France, the United States, Spain with Brazil and India in equal numbers. Over 5,400 journalists were accredited, 47% of whom came from abroad.
Maria Porro commented on these figures: 'The 61st edition of the Salone del Mobile.Milano was an international success and there is great satisfaction at having exceeded expectations. Presences represent an exceptional result for which we have worked hard, deeply and radically to give new senses and values to the visit to the fair and new experiences to the visitors who joined us. We have learned several important lessons from this edition: we have learned that a huge event like the Salone can be redesigned to project it into the future, that the sustainability game can be won when the whole system remains cohesive, that new contents can be imagined and used to generate knowledge, growth, value”.
The excellence of design and Made in Italy
Significant recognition of the importance of the Salone del Mobile.Milano and the entire sector also came from the presence of high governmental and institutional authorities, including Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni. Presences that testify to the fact that the Exhibition represents one of the main driving forces of the Italian economy, a model to tell the excellence of design and Made in Italy in the world. The valuable support of Agenzia ICE and Simest took concrete form with the invitation of over 220 buyers and 240 journalists from 64 countries who had the opportunity to meet the exhibiting companies.
A winning strategic choice
For his part, Claudio Feltrin, President of FederlegnoArredo, summarises the success of the Salone del Mobile.Milano as follows: 'Exhibitors have invested their resources well, visitors have invested their time well. The numbers say it, the enthusiasm that was felt during the week and the massive presence of the press and institutions with whom we shared fundamental themes for the wood-furnishing industry such as training, internationalisation, sustainability and a short supply chain with wood made in Italy. The Salone del Mobile.Milano was once again confirmed as the only design fair, boasting a majority of Italian exhibitors, capable of attracting visitors, the majority of whom were foreigners: the best result certifying the value of our know-how. But this year, let me tell you, beyond the numbers and the obvious satisfaction of everyone, the result we - companies and Salone - should be most proud of is that of having made a winning strategic choice, thinking of Euroluce as an innovative and very democratic fair model, appreciated by exhibitors and visitors, which will inspire not only us for the April 2024 appointment, but which, I am convinced, will inspire all the fairs in the world. But in the world, only the Salone is Salone'.
Success for Euroluce side events
The exhibitions 'The City of Lights', curated by Beppe Finessi, were also a great success with the public, transforming Euroluce into a space-time continuum of multidisciplinary creative activities related to light: an opportunity for discovery, reflection on the past and the future, a place for dialogue between technology and poetry, architecture and design.
Objects, photographs, drawings, sculptures and videos were the protagonists of a large site-specific installation and six major exhibitions, including Costellazioni, with its seven individual architectural and installation interludes designed by Formafantasma.
The authors involved in the exhibitions - Hélène Binet, Massimo Curzi, Matteo Pirola, From outer Space, Martina Sanzarello, Michele Calzavara and Berfu Bengisu Gören - were highly appreciated, and there was a boom in presence in the Aurore Arena, designed by Formafantasma, for the Talks programme curated by Annalisa Rosso, which saw the presence of Shigeru Ban, Nao Tamura, Kjetil Trædal Thorsen and Marius Myking of Snøhetta, Andrea D'Antrassi of MAD Architects and the master Gaetano Pesce.
Crucial role of digital
As Maria Porro pointed out, crucial was the role of digital, which allowed both to get in touch with new countries and to maintain a strong relationship with those who could not be present at the exhibition.
This is shown by the data recorded by the digital platform during the days of the Salone del Mobile.Milano 2023. The website, newsletter, app, push and social networks reported daily on the unfolding of the exhibition, the activities dedicated to the public and brands, the events and novelties presented by the companies, including products, workshops and installations.
The international design community responded enthusiastically: on the social front, 30 million accounts were reached and content recorded over 6 million video views and around 80 million impressions. On the website, there were about 1 million visitors and over 7 million page views. The updated Salone del Mobile.Milano app has tripled the number of downloads since the beginning of the year, thanks in part to the presence of the new interactive map service that recorded over 350,000 sessions during the fair and enabled over 750,000 scans with the matchmaking service, supporting the visitor experience and facilitating efficient exchange with exhibitors. The systematic publication of dedicated content on the Chinese WeChat channel, the streaming of the talks organised at the fair and a daily podcast that gathered the voices of some of the protagonists of this edition also contributed to the global storytelling of what happened at the fair.
The next edition of the Salone del Mobile.Milano will take place from 16 to 21 April 2024.
