Kitchens, the market holds. Sector worth over 3 billion

It will be the strategic location, at the beginning of the trade fair route. Perhaps it is that kitchens are one of the main attractions of the Salone del Mobile in Milan - and in fact, the even-numbered years in which the biennial Eurocucina takes place are traditionally the ones that record the highest number of visitors. The fact is that these days the two pavilions hosting kitchen and household appliance manufacturers are literally stormed by operators, with very long queues to visit the stands, where solutions integrating design and increasingly advanced technologies dominate.

This is a good sign for a sector that, in Italia, is worth more than 3 billion euro (FederlegnoArredo data), growing by 1.5% by 2025 thanks mainly to the boost from the domestic market, but which has seen exports fall by 5%. The influx of many foreign buyers was therefore positive, to push exports in this sector, which account for about one third of the overall turnover. "We saw many visitors from South America, particularly Brazil, but also from North America and Russia, as well as Italia and Europe. Fewer Chinese operators, on the other hand, than in the past, and also fewer people from the Gulf, as was to be expected,' observes Antonio Arangiaro, CEO of Binova (Dexelance Group).

Despite the enthusiasm for the great turnout, there is no shortage of fears about the effects of the war: 'We saw few operators from the Middle East and the Emirates in particular, a market which, on the other hand, grew very strongly last year and on which we place great expectations, especially on the contract projects front,' says Fabiana Scavolini, CEO of the Marche-based group, for example.

Even at a general industry level, the Emirates is one of the countries that had recorded the most significant growth in 2025, with +39.8% compared to 2024. So a slowdown in this market is definitely a detriment for companies, not to mention the increase in production costs. This is also the concern of Markus Miele, chief executive director and co-owner of the German Miele Group: 'It depends on how long this war will last. The risk is the impact on production costs caused by high energy and some raw material prices, but also the impact on consumers' purchasing power. Miele confirms the excellent turnout at the Eurocucina stand: 'The Salone del Mobile is the reference fair for the kitchen sector,' says the entrepreneur.

In fact, Eurocucina, also following the loss of relevance of the Cologne fair, is becoming the reference event for many German manufacturers: this is demonstrated by the large number of brands from Germany exhibiting this year, an increase compared to even just the edition of two years ago (official figures speak of 49 German exhibitors, in total for the entire fair, against 34 in 2024).