Impressions of the Carpet Week Hamburg 2022

The first edition of Carpet Week Hamburg took place from 4 to 11 May. At this new in-house fair format, 26 suppliers of handmade carpets opened their warehouses and showrooms for their trade customers. The Carpet Home editorial team was on site, of course. There will be a detailed article in Carpet Home issue III/2022, which will be published in July.

New XXXLutz store in Switzerland

Austrian furniture giant XXXLutz plans to open a new 13,000 m2 furniture store in the Swiss municipality of Dietikon, near Zurich, this summer. The building permit for the project has been in place for a good two years. According to information from the Limmataler Zeitung, it is now clear that the starting signal for the store near the freeway junction will be given this summer 2022.

Mömax opens 46th store in Berlin

Mömax continues its expansion. In Berlin, the Austrian furniture chain is already opening its 46th store in Germany. In total, the company, which is celebrating its 20th anniversary this year, now operates 99 furniture stores in nine European countries. "We are particularly pleased to celebrate the opening of what is already our third store in Berlin in our anniversary year. We are by far one of the fastest growing furniture retail concepts," said Tobias Weisse, store manager of the new Mömax store.

Domotex Asia/Chinafloor 2022 postponed

Domotex Asia/Chinafloor 2022, originally scheduled to be held from 25 to 27 May in Shanghai this year, will be postponed. In view of the severe situation of the Covid 19 pandemic and the further tightening of prevention and control in several Chinese provinces the fair will not take place as planned, new dates and other details will be announced soon.

Interview: “A huge variety of carpets at one place – all within one week”

Carpet Week Hamburg: it’s time to get up close and personal with carpets again, to not only see but also touch … discovering new products and trends, engaging in dialogue and placing a few orders too, of course. The Carpet Week initiative will bring more than 20 high-energy carpet wholesalers together in Hamburg (Germany) as they open their warehouse doors for international trade visitors. With the Domotex trade fair having been cancelled twice in a row now due to the pandemic, this concept was devised to fill the gap, providing an intriguing new platform for the industry. Carpet Home talked to event initiators (and exhibitors) Homayoun Farhadian of Faradj & Homayoun Farhadian and Dr. Ali Ipektchi of Ipek – A. Ipektchi.

Henrik Bo Jørgensen to leave Rug Vista

Rug Vista CFO Henrik Bo Jørgensen has announced that he has decided to leave the company in July 2022. “I am sad to see Henrik leave, and I want to thank him for his commitment and contribution during his time at Rug Vista. We wish him all the best moving forward”, says Michael Lindskog, CEO of Rug Vista. The recruitment process for a new CFO will be initiated immediately.

Porta: Co-founder Gärtner retires

Hermann Gärtner, co-founder of the Porta group of companies, is retiring from all management positions in the furniture retail group, thus finally handing over his life's work to the next generation. This marks the end of an era after more than 57 years, and not only for Porta. Hermann Gärtner was one of the outstanding personalities in the post-war history of the German furniture trade. Together with his partner Wilhelm Fahrenkamp, who passed away a few years ago, he turned Porta from very small beginnings into a billion-dollar company with around 7,300 employees and at the same time decisively shaped the history of the Begros purchasing association.

Balta: Business units officially transferred to Victoria

Three of Balta's main business units are now owned by the British Victoria Group: the business units rugs (Balta Home), PP products for the home and non-woven were transferred to Victoria on 4 April; the Balta brand was also handed over to the British. The transaction had already been announced at the end of 2021; it was now completed on 4 April. With this, Balta is now concentrating more on the remaining business areas

Carpet Week Hamburg 2022: May 4 – 11

Hamburg carpet importers organise joint in-house fair.

With the repeated cancellation of Domotex, a strong point of attraction for the carpet industry and an important trading centre for hand-made carpets is missing. Particularly with this product group, individual selection is crucial for the buyer. After all, it is for good reason that the international carpet trade travels to Hanover every January in normal years.

In order to be able to present their customers with as wide a range of handmade carpets as possible, even without Domotex, a number of Hamburg carpet importers got together and founded the "Carpet Week Hamburg" initiative. The aim was to mobilise as many companies as possible to organise an in-house fair on the same date and to promote it jointly. In this way, the importers reflect on the strength that the city offers. Hamburg is and remains one of the largest trading centres for handmade carpets.

Trade fair Heimtextil with 800 exhibitors in June

With 800 exhibitors from a total of 47 countries announced, Heimtextil will be held in Frankfurt as a unique Summer Special from 21 to 24 June 2022, parallel to the Techtextil and Texprocess trade fairs. After two years of pandemic, Messe Frankfurt finally wants to offer new international face-to-face contacts, inspiring business encounters and a holistic market overview, the organisers announced at a joint press conference.

The focus topics at the Heimtextil Summer Special will be both the international high-volume business and the retail trade. After the one-off summer event, Heimtextil intends to return to its normal schedule. The next regular fair will therefore take place in January 2023.