Salone del Mobile 2027: the focus is on the market for large-scale projects
Among the new features of the 65th edition is the debut of the Contract Exhibition, designed to support businesses and tap into a market worth 80–100 billion
At a particularly challenging time for the furniture sector – which is suffering most of all in terms of exports, which in the past were, in fact, the driving force behind companies’ growth – the Salone del Mobile is reinventing itself, developing new formats and services to support businesses during this market phase, which is turbulent to say the least, with exports falling by 5.7 per cent in July, according to figures from FederlegnoArredo.
The debut of the Salone Contract
The new Salone Contract – the space dedicated to the large-scale projects sector, which will make its debut at the 2027 edition of the event – is a step in precisely this direction. It is a project on which the Salone organisers have been working for two years and which already saw a sort of ‘pilot edition’ last April. Curated by Rem Koolhaas and David Gianotten of the OMA studio, the new platform aims to ‘create a new market within the Salone del Mobile’, said President Maria Porro during the press conference previewing the 2027 edition, which will take place from 13 to 18 April.
This is because the market for major projects is a complex one, in which many Italian companies are already active and competitive, but which is characterised by constantly evolving rules and challenges. This is why it is important to have a platform – the only one of its kind – that supports businesses in seizing the opportunities offered by a rapidly expanding sector, where value is shifting from the product itself to the ability to manage a complex project.
Market figures
According to estimates by PwC (with whom the Salone has signed an agreement to carry out dedicated studies and research), the global potential value of contract supplies is between 80 and 100 billion euros, with the Americas accounting for the largest share (34.8–42.6 billion). The Living sector represents the largest segment (40–49 billion), followed by offices, retail and hospitality. “Contract business is about networking,” added Maria Porro, “and that is what we will be doing at the Salone, facilitating meetings between manufacturers and the key players in this sector: architects, developers, project managers and general contractors.”
Creating opportunities for growth for exhibitors is, after all, “the guiding principle that has always shaped the decisions of the Fair’s governing body,” said Claudio Feltrin, president of FederlegnoArredo, who also spoke about the current economic climate in the sector.
