Imm Cologne: Spierenburg and Sanden take over management

A duo will be responsible for Imm Cologne in future: Dick Spierenburg and Bernd Sanden are taking over the management of the Cologne furnishing fair from Claire Steinbrück, who is now working as Business Unit Manager Food Technology in Koelnmesse's Food Division.

Viva Magenta is the Pantone colour of 2023

Viva Magenta with the colour number 18-750 is the Pantone colour of the year 2023. The US colour professionals have been selecting their favourite colour for the coming year for more than 20 years. Magenta 18-750 is "a shade rooted in nature from the red family that expresses a new signal of strength," according to a press release.

Jan Kath: Family Affair 2023

Jan Kath is inviting the carpet trade to attend his in-house exhibition titled Family Affair in Bochum, to be held for the eighth time now. It doesn’t quite do justice to the event to call it an “in-house exhibition”, for as its name indicates, there is really a feeling of being part of a carpet family in Bochum. The show is thus quite social in nature, very much about getting together and enjoying each other’s company, with many guests staying on into the night, talking over good food. Jan and his team will be presenting a number of innovations at the exhibition from 9 - 14 January, including the Insert Coin collection.

Victoria: organic growth of almost 8 percent

Victoria reports a record turnover of GBP 776.1 million (EUR 898.9 million) for the first half of the financial year 2022/23 (1 October). The increase of 58.7 % compared to the same period last year is mainly due to the acquisition of parts of the Belgian Balta Group and the Turkish manufacturer of ceramic tiles Graniser.

Zollanvari In-House Exhibition in January

After the success of its in-house event in early October 2022, Zollanvari has decided to open its Zurich showroom for another exhibition from 9 to 20 January. The new Gabbeh Glitch collection, which was launched in October, will be one of the highlights of the show. It is the result of the creative work of the Milan-based design studio So For So Near.

Interview: Sonia Wedell-Castellano on Domotex 2023

Carpet Home: In just nine weeks Domotex 2023 will open its doors. In the last few weeks there have been repeated rumours about the fair. What is the current status? Can visitors look forward to relevant exhibitors?

Sonia Wedell-Castellano: We expect more than 720 exhibiting companies from 50 countries to fill eight halls at the fairgrounds. And that is really respectable, considering the currently difficult general conditions. But the most important thing for us is the quality that visitors can expect at the upcoming event. And that is really good.

Möbel Martin awarded for customer service

Möbel Martin, with eight branches one of the largest furniture chain shops in south-west Germany, has now been awarded the "Customer Service of the Year 2023" prize in the furniture retail category by Armonia Germany. Over a period of ten weeks, the company was examined in an independent audit by external mystery testers.

Kika/Leiner denies report on planned store closures

With the clear statement "all furniture stores will be retained", Kika/Leiner managing director Reinhold Gütebier refutes corresponding rumours. Prior to this, there were reports that the Signa Group, which took over Kika/Leiner four years ago, wanted to part with several of the 42 outlets.

Peleton co-founders invest in rugs

With its combination of fitness equipment and online fitness courses, Peloton has quickly become a billion-dollar company. Now it is reported that co-founders John Foley, Hisao Kushi and Yony Feng have invested USD 25 million in rug start-up Ernesta. Ernesta offers designer-oriented, custom-made rugs made from a variety of materials.

Ikea grows by 7 per cent in Germany

Ikea Germany ends the 2021/22 financial year (31 August) with sales of just under EUR 5.7 billion (+7.1%). Of this, EUR 1.3 billion was achieved in online retail. Its share of retail sales excluding food fell from 35.1 to 24.5 % because the Corona restrictions were gradually removed in the past financial year and, unlike in the 2020/21 financial year, there was no longer a lockdown. The average receipt in bricks-and-mortar retail rose by 2.5% to EUR 104.12, while online it was EUR 243.64, around 30% higher than in the previous year.