The 2007 Las Vegas Summer Furniture Market, July 30 – August 3, 2007, will feature a three-part series by furniture industry gurus entitled ConsumerWatch, ColorWatch and TrendWatch. The series is designed to help buyers see the full gamut of trend – from color palettes to consumer preferences – for the year ahead.

“These seminars will prove to be very valuable for buyers and designers who want to get a broad view of what’s happening in the world from design, color, retail and consumers to demographics and societal shifts,” said Dana Andrew, director of marketing and public relations for World Market Center.

At this summer’s Market, Maxine Lauer, founder and president of Sphere Trending LLC, will present a ConsumerWatch seminar on Tuesday, July 31 at 10:00 a.m. in World Market Center’s Building B that will cover big-picture macro trends that cause consumers to shop, think and live differently, and how that affects the future. Sphere Trending brings together macro and micro trend information and focuses on the “why” behind “what’s new.” Read more »

The High Point Market Authority said Thursday that it has set the dates for the spring and fall furniture trade shows through 2015.

Changes to the market months are in response to a survey of market participants to return to April and October dates. The April market dates reflect the avoidance of religious holidays.

The Portland Museum of Art’s new exhibition pairs architects with furniture makers.

Opening on Saturday, “Getting Personal: Maine Architects Design Furniture” features 15 pieces, many built by Maine artisans.

The exhibit follows the furniture from napkin sketches to final products of wood, concrete and steel.

The show will run through Aug. 28 and is designed to complement the museum’s upcoming “Frank Lloyd Wright and the House Beautiful.”

The museum is at 7 Congress Square, Portland. For more information, visit www.portlandmuseum.org. Read more »

Bretford, Inc., the leading supplier of high quality technology and media furniture that improves how people work and learn, will showcase a multitude of savvy new products during InfoComm International, June 19-21 in Anaheim, Calif. Developed to support the latest audiovisual technologies, Bretford’s fresh offerings range from digital kiosks to technology presentation carts and other intelligently-designed furniture for corporate, education, government and other professional market applications.

Flat Panel Digital Kiosks (FPDK01 and FPDK02):

The new digital kiosks allow for secure and convenient network data access of information to people in virtually any public location. The FPDK01 is ideal for information gathering and general navigation in a hotel lobby or mall. The FPDK02, which includes a CPU holder, can be used for critical access to information from a secure data system, such as in a hospital or corporate office. Both are VESA 75mm and 100mm compatible for use with essentially any 15”-19” flat panel monitor. They include an expandable tray for various keyboard sizes with an integrated, ergonomic wrist rest and mouse pad. The kiosks are available now at list prices starting at $520.00.

Presentation Technology Carts (TC12, TC15 and TC35 Series): Read more »

Furniture business owners from the Brazilian state of Minas Gerais are to travel to China in September to take advantage of business opportunities presented at Furniture-13th International Furniture Fair.

The event will run from September 12 to 15 and over 1,500 exhibitors vying for a slice of the US$4.3 billion that Chinese consumers spend each year on buying furniture.

According to Paul Liu, the president of the Brazil-China Chamber for Economic Development (CBCDE), China’s furniture market is six times bigger than the European market. Read more »

Everything’s coming up roses at the International Contemporary Furniture Fair, just concluded at the Jacob K. Javits Convention Center in Manhattan. OK, that’s an exaggeration. It wasn’t all floral, and it wasn’t all roses, but the recent decorative and back-to-nature trend in modern design is definitely, er, flowering.

From the three-dimensional flowers on Tord Boontje’s Little Field of Flowers rug collection for Nanimarquina (he’s the Dutch designer who started the ball rolling a year or two ago with his whimsically botanical chandelier) to the Le Fleur sofa by Pasquale Natuzzi, from the magnetic flowers of British textile designer Michelle Butler of Isolyn to the botanical inspiration of the new textiles from Rockville Centre-based textile company Carnegie Fabrics, flowers and trees are inspiring modern designers as they have designers throughout the ages. Read more »

Bob’s Discount Furniture, Manchester, Conn., will hold a grand opening at its new store in South Attleboro, Mass., next Thursday. The location is the retailer’s seventh store in Massachusetts, and 28th overall.

The South Attleboro store will serve Bristol County, as well as customers in the Pawtucket, R.I., area.

The 10 a.m. grand opening will be followed by a weekend celebration starting Saturday at 10 a.m. President Bob Kaufman will be on hand to greet customers at the grand opening. Read more »

More than two dozen exhibitors plan to display their outdoor furnishings during the 2007 West Coast Casual Furniture Premarket, set for July 31 and Aug. 1 at the Ontario Convention Center in Ontario, Calif.

This popular premarket offers an opportunity for dealers to examine debuting casual furniture, umbrellas, grills and other high-end home and outdoor products from respected manufacturers. Two days of premarket provide valuable one-on-one interaction for dealers seeking the latest outdoor living furniture and accessories. Read more »

THE Department of Trade and Industry (DTI) is set to give exposure again to Mindanao’s best products by holding in General Santos City an island-wide trade fair.

Ibrahim K. Guiamadel, DTI-Central Mindanao regional director, said the agency is coordinating with the City Government and the Small and Medium Enterprise Development Council for the staging of the “Yamang Mindanao” 2007 edition.

Yamang Mindanao, which loosely translates to “riches of Mindanao,” was initially launched last year and earned nearly P40 million in cash and booked sales for the 128 food and handicraft producers who took part in the event.

Guimadel said they hope to replicate last year’s success where some 29 institutional buyers from Europe, United States, Manila and Cebu came in to scout for suppliers. Read more »

The 19th annual International Contemporary Furniture Fair May 19-22, 2007 will transform New York City’s Jacob K. Javits Convention Center into the global haven for design devotees.

North America’s singular showcase for contemporary design, the Fair draws the most intrepid seekers of design truth and design trends to an extraordinary exhibition of the most inspired models of design on the forefront, as well as thought-provoking programs and a schedule of supplementary exhibits and features.

During the Fair’s four days, 145,000 net square feet (14,500 net square meters) of the Javits Center will bustle with more than 23,000 interior designers, architects, retailers, designers, manufacturers, representatives, distributors, and developers. Members of the general public are welcome on Tuesday, May 22 when the ICFF is open to all comers. Read more »