The CASA DECOR event, a platform for interior design, trends and lifestyle with a unique format, closes on 28 May, taking place in a different location in the centre of Madrid each year. For six weeks the exhibition, now in its 58th edition, opens to the public an iconic and unique building in the capital, hosting fifty spaces decorated by established professionals. An opportunity for visibility and promotion for Italian companies already present or intending to approach the Spanish market, which in 2022 recorded a positive sign in bilateral trade between Italy and Spain in the furniture sector, with an Italian surplus of 361 million euros. Spain is confirmed in 7th place in the ranking of Italian furniture customers and the Made In Italy products most in demand in the Spanish market are residential furniture, including outdoor furniture, with particular reference to chairs and kitchen furniture.
Main trends in the Spanish furniture sector
The event highlighted the main trends characterising the furniture sector in the Iberian market:
- Eco-sustainability: natural and ecological materials; water-based finishes; use of recycled materials
- Omni-channel: physical shops still play an important role in the shopping experience, but digital channels are an integral part of the experience for many consumers
- Soft and restful colours, inspired by themes such as nature and sustainability
- Curved furniture (the Bold trend)
Italian design recalls the values of quality, elegance and modernity, combined with functionality and style, which require continuous research and innovation also in production solutions, so that our Italian excellence can maintain a high level of competitiveness in the domestic market and internationally.
VIMAR: space for continuous innovation
And it is precisely on innovation that VIMAR, one of the main Italian players in the home automation sector, puts the accent. With over 12,000 items distributed in more than 100 countries, the company is a point of reference for those seeking high-performance solutions and technological innovation. Present on the Spanish market for over 15 years, it has 180 patents filed since its foundation in 1945. In 2018/2020, a historical period strongly influenced by digital technologies, Vimar opens up to the connected world and launches VIEW, an acronym for Vimar Energy on Web. An ecosystem made up of smart products and interconnected and aesthetically coordinated systems, capable of integrating with the commercial proposals of other manufacturers. IoT solutions that guarantee comfort, safety and energy efficiency and total supervision through simple Apps designed around the users’ needs.
‘Continuous innovation affects all aspects of company life,’ explains Michele Zanella, Area Manager, ‘over time it becomes a real distinguishing factor within company processes, first and foremost that of production. Inventing new products is a fundamental step, but realising inventions is equally so, and conventional equipment is not always the most suitable to make something that was not there. This is why the company tackles the problem in an innovative way, i.e. by designing and developing the most suitable machines for the product in-house.”
Keypoints for approaching an international market in the furniture industry
Roncucci&Partners nominated VIMAR’s home automation solutions to represent Made in Italy in Spazio Italia, a collective exhibition organised by the ICE office in Madrid, as part of the Casa Decor initiative, which saw the participation of twenty Italian companies.
Among these, also involved by Roncucci&Partners, is Rubelli, an international reality specialised in the creation and production of high-end fabrics for residential, hotel and nautical use, present on the Spanish market for over 30 years through a local distributor. Fabrizio Paolini, area manager for the Iberian market for the Veneto-based company, identifies the partnership with its distributor, the sole partner for exclusive distribution in Spain, as a decisive element in developing its business on foreign markets. The crucial point is, in fact, to make synergy, to invest time and resources together in order to drive development.
Rubelli took the opportunity of CASA DECOR to promote the brand in Spain by involving its partner in the market. “It was a very welcome opportunity for us,” says Fabrizio Paolini, “to participate in the Casa Decor event to support our brand. Visibility opportunities are always highly valued by our company and always presided over in collaboration with our counterpart in the market. We do 360-degree communication and also carefully preside over social channels in a market like Spain, where we have built an excellent reputation in the high-end segment. The company counts on a strong presence in Madrid, Barcelona and Marbella, while it is working on strengthening its brand and expanding its sales network in Bilbao, Alicante and Valencia.
We close by mentioning that the Iberian furniture market is growing in the contract segment, with particular reference to hotels and restaurants. The sector can, in fact, count on highly qualified and structured design and interior design studios, which also work very well outside Spain on important hospitality projects.
At Roncucci&Partners we help companies to develop themselves and their business, to embrace change and evolve in order to thrive in a world that is increasingly complicated, insidious and requires a great deal of expertise. We do this by applying timely methods and rigorous strategies, the fruit of many years of experience and the wealth that comes from the many successful cases we have led around the world. Passion and method are indeed our guides to enhance the present and build the future.
