HANNOVER, GERMANY -
DOMOTEX 2016 four months away, but there are already very clear indications that
the world's leading trade show for carpets and floor coverings will enjoy a
particularly strong and international industry turnout.
In terms of numbers,
DOMOTEX 2016, which runs from January 16 to 19, is expected to feature some
1,400 exhibitors from more than 60 countries.
"The response from the
market has been extremely positive," commented Dr. Jochen Köckler, a member of
the Managing Board of Deutsche Messe. "The show is already almost fully
booked."
"About 85% of the
show's exhibitors will be from outside Germany. They are taking part in DOMOTEX
2016 in order to tap into new export markets," Köckler said. After Germany, the
biggest exhibiting nations in terms of leased space are Turkey, India, Belgium,
China, the Netherlands and Iran.
Carpet Design Awards honor the world's best designer carpets
As in past years, the
big stars in Hall 17 at next year's DOMOTEX will include exquisite hand-made
carpet and rug creations by some of the world's most innovative designers, such
as Floor to Heaven, Jan Kath Design, Reuber Henning, Hossein Rezvani, Rug Star,
Wool & Silk Rugs and Zollanvari. What's more, the products rated the best of the
best among these innovative creations will be honored at the Carpet Design
Awards. The Carpet Design Awards are the world's highest accolade for
contemporary hand-made carpets and rugs and are always keenly anticipated. In
the lead-up to DOMOTEX, an international jury headed by top British designer
Michael Sodeau will select the best carpets in each of eight categories. The
selected carpets will then be displayed during DOMOTEX in the Innovations@DOMOTEX
Area in Hall 17. The winners in each category will be presented with their
awards at a grand ceremony in the Hall 17 Innovations@DOMOTEX Area on Sunday,
January 17.
Spread across 12
exhibition halls, the upcoming DOMOTEX will feature a diverse array of products
and materials from the flooring wholesale and retail sectors, architecture,
interior design, the skilled flooring trades and the furniture and interior
furnishings retail and wholesale sectors. The show's product lineup encompasses
textile and resilient floor coverings for the residential and contract
furnishing sectors, machine-woven and hand-made carpets and rugs, parquet and
laminate flooring, outdoor flooring solutions, and a comprehensive range of
care, cleaning, installation and application technologies.
Innovations@DOMOTEX: showcase for the best new ideas in flooring
The power of the new
is writ large at DOMOTEX, thanks to Innovations@DOMOTEX, a special showcase that
gives visitors a quick, concentrated overview of the best and most exciting
innovations and trends in flooring. The showcase comprises three Innovations@DOMOTEX
Areas - located in halls 6, 9 and 17 - where the best innovations at DOMOTEX are
given artistic staging and extra prominence. The products themselves will be
selected ahead of DOMOTEX by an expert jury headed by the internationally
renowned industrial designer Stefan Diez. Exhibitors still have until November
3,2015 to submit their innovations to the jury in the following product
categories: Textile Floor Coverings/Fibers and Yarns; Resilient Floor Coverings;
Parquet, Wood and Laminate Flooring; Modern Hand-made Carpets; Application and
Installation Technology.
The format also
includes presentations and discussion panels (Innovations@DOMOTEX Dialogues)
featuring high-power architects and designers from Alexander Brenner Architects
(Berlin), BBP - Blocher Blocher Partners (Stuttgart), bogevischs buero
architekten & stadtplaner (Munich), Kinzo (Berlin), D'art Design Gruppe (Neuss)
and JOI Design (Hamburg). Other star guests include the Italian designer and
architect Piero Lissoni (of Lissoni Associati, Milan) and the Austrian architect
Wolf W. Prix (of Coop Himmelb(l)au,
Vienna). These creatives will discuss architectural trends and developments in
which floors and flooring play an important role. The discussion will be
structured around the keynote themes of Hotel and Restaurant, Office,
Healthcare, Living, and Shopping/Retail. The Dialogues will be held at the
Innovations@DOMOTEX Area in Hall 6 and will run from 11 a.m. to 1:30 p.m. and
from 3 to 5:30 p.m. on all four days of the show.
New:
application-specific guided tours for visitors
Since its inception,
the Innovations@DOMOTEX format has always included Guided Tours of selected
exhibits lead by big-name architects and designers. The tours give visitors a
unique perspective on selected products, manufacturers and display stands. The
big news for the 2016 season is that the organizers are expanding the tour
program to include application-specific tours which directly address the themes
covered in the Innovations@DOMOTEX Dialogues. This new part of the tour program
is aimed primarily at creatives from the architecture, interior architecture and
interior design scenes who are at DOMOTEX scouting for new ideas on floor
covering applications. Each of these new tours is timed to depart immediately
after its corresponding Dialogue.
"One
thing we can already say with certainty is that LVT tiles and planks will be one
of the big attractions at the show. And no wonder, with all those innovative
printed designs and textures to choose from," Köckler said. The LVT offering at
the upcoming DOMOTEX will be much bigger than ever before. The show’s parquet
and laminate flooring section will also be bigger, with exhibitor numbers and
exhibition space both noticeably up on 2014. The exhibitor lineup in the parquet
and laminate products section will, for instance, include numerous premium
suppliers such as Bauwerk, Gazzotti, Margaritelli, Mafi and Scheucher.
Another major visitor
magnet at DOMOTEX 2016 will be the Wood Flooring Summit in Hall 9. The event is
expected to feature around 200 exhibitors from the parquet and laminate flooring
industry, plus over 180 providers of application and installation technology.
Among them will be such big names as Amorim, Boen, Faus, Kährs, Meisterwerke and
Unilin.
"The Wood Flooring
Summit is one of the stand-out highlights of the show. It features a rich and
independently selected range of innovative new creations and interior design
solutions from the best of the best in the parquet, wood and laminate flooring
sector. An informative and stimulating showcase for visitors from all
backgrounds," said Ulrich Scheffold, General Manager, Margaritelli Germany.
Staged in Hall 9, the Summit features an exhibition area for product innovations
and a dining and lounge area for informal networking.