2024 marks the 60th anniversary of China-France diplomatic relations, the Paris Olympics, and the China-France Year of Culture and Tourism. Currently, the "Reviving Craft: Chinese Handicrafts and Contemporary Design" is being held at the Louvre in France from July 5-19. Three well-established furniture companies from Shunde Longjiang, Milo Home, Qianjin Furniture, and Babolo Furniture, were invited to participate. Their representative works are on display, fostering dialogue and promoting cultural symbiosis, showcasing the unique charm and cultural heritage of Chinese furniture design, and highlighting the Shunde furniture brand globally.

Showcasing Good Design and Products of Chinese Furniture to the World

In the Qianjin Furniture exhibition hall, visitors can see a leisure chair that was inspired by Zaha Hadid's fluid design concepts. The black walnut single chair features smooth, dynamic curves and an overall sculptural aesthetic.

Chen Peibi, the Marketing Director of Qianjin Furniture, introduced that the company is displaying products such as tea tables, leisure chairs, and small side tables at this exhibition. The side tables are inspired by coffee beans, with legs shaped like two halves of a coffee bean. The Flying Tea Table takes its shape from sports cars, transitioning from straight lines to diagonal lines and curves, fully embodying the feel and craftsmanship of solid wood. The company values design and craftsmanship, integrating traditional wood joinery techniques with large-scale CNC machinery, and combining tradition with modernity to create beautiful living spaces.

Milo Home's exhibited products are themed around the civilization of the Xia, Shang, and Zhou Dynasties, including screens, dining chairs, side tables, single chairs, console tables, and beds. For instance, the design of the dining chairs is inspired by Chinese bronze wine vessels. Many products in the exhibition hall incorporate traditional Eastern elements, combining materials such as metal, wood, fabric, leather, and natural stone to create unique designs.

Wu Zixin, the Design and R&D Director of Milo Home, stated that the essence of China's 5000-year-old culture is refined into countless imaginative design elements and stories. These furniture pieces act as "communicating languages," presenting China's stories and the strength of Chinese furniture design.

Babolo Furniture's exhibited works integrate dragon boat motifs. Inspired by dragon boat shapes, they use traditional dragon boat colors—red, green, black, white, and yellow—in representative products such as concentric circular side tables, Chrysler chairs, St. Louis chairs, smile chairs, gentleman chairs, and cloud lounge chairs, which all bear the Babolo brand's signature style.

Feng Peimei, the Brand Director of Babolo Furniture, mentioned that dragon boat racing, as an intangible cultural heritage, aligns well with the exhibition's theme. The dragon boat culture of Shunde, symbolizing unity and effort, reflects the company's pursuit of excellence and willingness to innovate. Dragon boating will be a demonstration event at the Paris Olympics, making this exhibition a great opportunity for Babolo Furniture to showcase its brand on the international stage.

Seizing Opportunities for Brand Globalization, Highlighting the Shunde Furniture Brand

For furniture companies to conduct global expansion, building their own brands is the ideal path, rather than being OEM manufacturing. The three companies invited to this exhibition are long-established local furniture companies with decades of experience in design, craftsmanship, and manufacturing, committed to producing high-quality furniture with their own designs.

The "Reviving Craft: Chinese Handicrafts and Contemporary Design" Exhibition is an excellent opportunity for these brands to go global. These furniture products carry Oriental culture abroad, showcasing the design and manufacturing capabilities of Chinese furniture to the world and highlighting the Shunde and Longjiang furniture brands on the international stage.

Foshan is hailed as the furniture capital of the world, and Longjiang is at the heart of Foshan furniture. As one of the most important, earliest established, and most developed furniture production areas in China, Shunde boasts the most convenient materials supply ecosystem within 5 kilometers and a comprehensive industrial chain layout. The region has over 10 specialized markets for furniture materials, thousands of suppliers, and more than 30,000 related enterprises, with a logistics distribution network covering 95% of the country.

Currently, the Longjiang furniture industry in Shunde is focusing on high-quality development, leveraging policy benefits and opportunities from the transformation and upgrading of traditional industries, large-scale equipment renewal, and consumer goods replacement programs. The industry continues to build its brand and improve quality, striving for industrial transformation through digital and intelligent upgrades, promoting the application of green technologies, equipment, and production processes, and advancing green production and consumption. These efforts aim to drive the high-end development of the furniture industry, keeping Shunde Longjiang furniture at the forefront.

Reporter | Eddie

Revisor | Lynn, Zoey

Photo | Foshan Daily, Nanfang Daily

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