Salone del Mobile about to close: over 350 thousand visitors expected

Figures with whom it is difficult for a company to come into contact and the Salone del Mobile serves precisely to meet these opportunities, but also to showcase, in our stands, the ability of Italian companies to provide for the realization of the entire project, not only of individual products”. In fact, this difference was seen when walking around the stands: fewer and fewer objects on a pedestal and more and more projects, which express the vision and lifestyle of a brand, expressed in all environments, often also touching on the architectural aspects, like boiserie doors.

This is the case of Molteni&C, flagship company of the Molteni Group, which this year at the show launched its new business unit dedicated precisely to these structural elements. «The Show is very important to be able to tell our customers about this news and to make them understand we have created a stand of 2 thousand square meters in which to show off, in a concrete way, what we are able to do and offer to the market», explains the managing director of the group, Marco Piscitelli, who confirms the feeling reported by many entrepreneurs of a large turnout at the stand. «Even a now large company like ours needs to meet new customers, because we have to tell the market about today’s Molteni, which is different from that of a few years ago – adds Piscitelli -. Having such an expanded range of products and solutions, we need increasingly involved partners who invest heavily in our brand.”

Salon, an investment that bears fruit

This is an important investment, certainly, but a fundamental one, confirms Roberto Minotti, co-CEO together with his brother Renato, of the family company, which was participating in this year’s show with the largest stand, approximately 4,500 square meters on two levels, which every day were filled with operators: «The other day we counted 1,200 people all together, just here on the second floor», says the entrepreneur. And ninth they were visits purely out of curiosity: «We sold a lot – adds Minotti -. We are satisfied because customers have understood and appreciated the collections, the result of partnerships with two new designers, after the painful death of Rodolfo Dordoni, who for 27 years was not only our art director and consultant, but also a friend.”

Extraordinary numbers, contracts signed and new contacts also for Paolo Castelli, an entrepreneur from Emilia who produces high-end furniture with the company that bears his name and brought 20 new products to the Salone, created in collaboration with Italian artisans, with the aim to express and enhance the craftsmanship skills of our country. «We have concluded very important agreements – says Paolo Castelli – including ten new retailers and an order for a luxury villa. We have also started contacts with very important distributors, from whom we expect a good push to grow.” In the first three days, as many as 1,100 Chinese operators showed up at the stand, compared to a thousand Italians. «Many foreigners – confirms Castelli – including many Americans. In the first three days we recorded around 7 thousand visits, more than double last year.”

The new layout of the event

And this despite the new layout of the fair, which moved the best-known international brands to the back of the route, initially worried about a possible drop in attendance. Not only did this drop not occur, but the kitchen and bathroom exhibitors, positioned in the first pavilions you encounter from the entrance, also benefited from it: «A very interesting change for us – confirms Cristiano Crosetto, CEO of Tbes, a company specialized in the production of radiators and decorative radiators –. From the morning of the first day the stand was full. We saw many foreign buyers and also noticed a different composition of visitors: once mostly architects came, now there has also been a significant increase in technical operators and retailers, another very important aspect for us.”