
HIGH POINT – Four major Polish furniture brands will be attending this week’s premarket event in hopes of gaining interest from U.S. buyers for lines that include an assortment of product ranging from upholstery to case goods.
The four companies are Benix, Black Red White, Gala Collezione and Szynaka Meble. They are occupying roughly 500 square feet of space each – for a total of 2,000 square feet total – in space 204 of 220 Elm. Design partners Zieta, Vzor and RAW occupy an additional 600 square feet in the space.
Gala Collezione and Benix both specialize in upholstery. BRW produces upholstery, mattresses, dining tables and chairs and RTA and fully assembled cabinetry and Szynaka Meble produces master and youth bedroom, living room, accent furniture, upholstery and office furniture.
The companies planned to show at premarket in March and also at the April market. However due to the cancelation of those events, this marks the first time they are able to show here this year.
The showroom has been set up as part of the European Smart Design From Poland project financed by the Polish National Foundation. For more information on this initiative and to make appointments at premarket, click here.
The companies have a lease agreement for three markets, noted Tomasz Wiktorski, a consultant to the Polish Chamber of Commerce of Furniture Manufacturers and owner of consulting firm B+R Studio.
“We were ready for the spring market but the COVID outbreak resulted in the market cancelation,” Wiktorski told Furniture Today. “We have since gained experience with American clients during that period. We also have hired a consultant from Greensboro – the great Jeff Holmes – who has visited Poland and our companies last February. We are sharing a lot of knowledge from both sides…We also are doing publicity in the Polish market to encourage more companies to expand in the U.S.”
Buyers can also learn more about the Polish furniture industry by clicking on this video link – https://www.linkedin.com/showcase/pl-furniture/videos/
I’m Tom Russell and have worked at Furniture/Today since August 2003. Since then, I have covered the international side of the business from a logistics and sourcing standpoint. Since then, I also have visited several furniture trade shows and manufacturing plants in Asia, which has helped me gain perspective about the industry in that part of the world. As I continue covering the import side of the business, I look forward to building on that knowledge base through conversations with industry officials and future overseas plant tours. From time to time, I will file news and other industry perspectives online and, as always, welcome your response to these Web postings.