It seems that January just wouldn’t be January without a furniture show. Despite the decision by event organiser UBM to call time on its long-running series of Interiors shows, it was only a matter of days before a replacement exhibition was announced. Fast-forward 12 months, and the Birmingham NEC is readying itself for the January Furniture Show – a debut event in fact, but very much a continuation of a 25-year tradition of January furniture buying events in spirit …
The 2015 January Furniture Show, taking place between 13-15th January at the Birmingham NEC, will host more than 300 exhibitors across three halls plus the Pavilion – a true show of the industry’s strength.
Co-organiser Laraine Janes says: “Since we announced last January that a new-format furniture show would be held at the NEC in January 2015, the industry has got behind us and supported us all the way. The message has been loud and clear – the industry wants an annual show, it wants it in January. And it wants it at the NEC.”
The January Furniture Show is set to be the industry’s single biggest UK trade event for the furniture and furnishings sector this year. Long-established great British brands will again rub shoulders with innovative newcomers and international players, courting buyer spend within an increasingly buoyant economy.
It is difficult to say how matters might have played out in the hands of a different show organiser. Furniture Fairs, led by industry veterans Laraine Janes and Theresa Raymond, has been responsible for many of the trade’s key events over the last few decades, so the company was the venue’s first choice of organiser in the wake of UBM’s departure.
“One of our strengths is the length of time we’ve both worked in the furniture industry,” says Theresa. “And I say furniture industry and not exhibition industry, because, right from the beginning, we’ve been firmly ensconced in furniture.” Alongside its management of the Manchester Furniture Show and NBF Bed Show, the company has organised a wealth of furniture exhibitions and export missions – but taking charge of the key January fixture represented the biggest challenge the pair had faced to date.
“The message has been loud and clear – the industry wants an annual show, it wants it in January. And it wants it at the NEC”
“When the opportunity came along there was no hesitation, we just grabbed it,” says Laraine. “We got so many phone calls that the decision was made within minutes – there was no soul searching.”
Support for the new venture was immediately forthcoming, many established exhibitors seeing the replacement event as something of a marketing lifeline. As time went on and more exhibitors were added to the show’s roster, the Furniture Fairs team was duly expanded to fulfil demand, including the appointment of another director, former NEC venue sales director Stephen Richards. Soon thereafter, extra exhibition space was added to the floorplan.
While the team started out with a back-to-basics approach – espousing exhibitor numbers and a renewed focus on furniture over “champagne bars and feature areas” – several high-profile partnerships, overseas promotion and a Silver Anniversary drinks party prove that the fixture is not standing still. Indeed, the event will see the launch of The Furniture Awards, a new industry accolade designed to recognise the best new products across various price points.
Right now, on the eve of the show’s debut, the excitement surrounding the launch of the new event is palpable. It may be taking place a little earlier than usual – this year alone, the show has been pulled back a week to avoid clashing with imm cologne, and will revert to the usual Sunday start day between 24-26th January 2016, across an even larger footprint – but the show remains an essential destination for anyone involved in the UK furniture trade.
Furniture News will be there too, on stand 2H05.
This article was published in the January issue of Furniture News magazine.
