Milano Special 04.2011

Dear Readers

In just a few days' time, that famous week in April, in which the international design scene descends on Milan, kicks off. The Salone del Mobile - this year accompanied by the Euroluce expo - will be opening its doors for the 50th time. We'll be there with our team and our Concept Space, and would be delighted if you came to see us in Hall 15, Stand C29.

With its unstoppable growth in terms of visitors and exhibitors, almost no other event requires such a careful pre-selection of its best manufacturers and happenings as much as the Salone del Mobile and the vast Fuori Salone do. Therefore, we would like to offer you our trusty Architonic Guide, available as a PDF download and, for the first time, as an iPhone/iPad app.

Stay on top of it all!

Your Architonic Team
Zurich | Milan | Barcelona | Berlin | Cologne | Copenhagen | Stockholm | London | Miami

Milan: legendary centre of Italian design history and location for the leading international rendez-vous of the design industry - the Salone del Mobile. It's the 50th edition of the fair, an anniversary that marks the event's sharp ascendance. Anyone who thinks that the Salone was always the Salone is, sadly, wrong. Just 15 to 20 years ago, it was almost exclusively an Italian fair, while imm in Cologne was the leading international expo.

The fast growth of exhibitors and visitors, has, of course, its disadvantages, particularly for a business-oriented professional public. A critical mass appears to have been reached a while ago. Add to this the fact that some top-name manufacturers aren't showing at the fair, but across the Fuori Salone. This balances out the mass of visitors, admittedly, but it does make the idea of a fair, where an entire industry can be found under one roof, obsolete.

In spite of all the stress, we love this city and this event. Each year, we discover new things in this charm-filled northern Italian metropolis, and you'll be perfectly armed, too - in spite of the jam-packed fair halls, metro stations and streets - if you have the following two items with you: a pair of well-soled sneakers and our handy Architonic Guide, which, as ever, will lead you unfailingly to the exhibits of the best manufacturers and the best of the Fuori Salone.

The guide is available to pick up from all the manufacturers who feature in it and can already be downloaded as a PDF or an iPhone app. The app version will, in particular, save you a lot of time and searching in the city, thanks to the fact that Google Maps is built into it.

Architonic will be there with its team and also, for the first time, with its Concept Space. We look forward to you visiting us in Hall 15, Stand C29. There, we'll be happy to tell you all about our latest services for manufacturers, specialist retailers, agents, architects, designers and design-lovers!

An additional information booth, especially for specialist retailers, will be located at the stand of Spanish carpet manufacturer nanimarquina in Hall 16, Stand E33.

2011 sees Architonic extend its strategic alliance partnerships with the addition of a high-calibre member - Material ConneXion from New York.

Founder George Beylerian, along with his team, have, since the advent of internet databases, belonged to the premier league in the field of materials research and consultancy.

Its international scope and shared professional focus on B2B and the premium segment provide the common ground for the partnership.

Both portals are the ideal complement to each other, and share the same target groups, who will profit in the future from an exchange of selected content.

We look forward to a successful partnership!

Visit our partner at the Milan Furniture Fair:
Material ConneXion: Located in the entrance area between Halls 14 & 18

Alongside countless exhibitions in the Zona Tortona, Zona Romana, Brera Design District and the Ventura Lambrate, the Triennale di Milano in the Parco Sempione will be one of the cultural highlights of the Salone del Mobile, as the museum for architecture and design always marks the furniture fair by putting on a varied programme of first-class exhibitions.

This year, as the Salone del Mobile celebrates its 50th birthday, the greats of Italian design history will be honoured with an exhibition entitled 'Le Fabrriche dei sogni' (The Dream Factories).