Shifting Trend in Furniture Industry:
The making of household materials using wood has been part of Ethiopian history for centuries. Furniture manufacturing has also seen a rise in the last decade. With the ever-growing construction of hotels and residences of different types, the furniture business has been entertaining quite a surge in demand in recent years. However, the expected benefits of this rising demand have been lost to imports with little appetite for locally manufactured furnishings. However, a slowly shifting interest of the public in locally manufactured furniture might see a more expanding local sector with a potential for exports, writes EBR’s Trualem Asmare.
It is believed that furniture design in Ethiopia dates back to the Axumite dynasty, one of the ancient civilizations in the world. Ethiopian furniture has lived as a reflection of the history of the country in a designed materialistic form. Furniture plays a crucial role in interior design in Ethiopia with a historical-cultural mix being augmented by western trends. The matter is also influenced by trade relations with Arabia, India, and Rome that have lasted for centuries. One can now see the evident various types, designs, shapes, and materials of the furniture.
As much as the use of the different kinds of woods to create home furniture has been part of the country’s history, its advancement doesn’t represent its age. Ethiopian furniture has been dependent on imported raw materials and products. According to Melaku Alebel, Minister of Industry, the country imports 30Pct of the finished furniture it demands from abroad. However, the figure is much higher when considering the volume of imports of inputs and semi-processed materials. Hotels, apartments, and governmental offices are among the groups of the major customers of imported furniture.
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We are happy to announce that Lykie Events Ltd, Prana Events, and ATP (African trade partners) have signed an agreement of understanding with the Association of Designers of Kenya (ADKE). The agreement's goal is to establish a framework for the companies' interaction, engagement, and collaboration in order to advance the furniture, interior, and finishing industry value chain in the east African region.
We were delighted to be part of The Construction Sector Dialogue themed "creating sustainable solutions in the construction sector."
The conference was held @the Serena hotel in Nairobi, Kenya.
What is Wood Staining?
Before we tell you how to stain wood, it’s important to know what wood staining or refinishing actually is.
To stain wood, you’ll need a freshly sanded wood surface. From there, you apply a coat of stain to transform the wood’s color or emphasize the wood grain.
The process of staining and sanding a piece of wood is called refinishing. When you refinish a wood surface you strip the wood of any pre-existing varnish or stain.
Next, apply a new coat of stain followed by a wood finish of your choice, such as polyurethane, and that’s it!
Don’t forget to take a look at this amazing woodworking guide to learn more about paints and stains on wood and what you can do with it!
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With the growing population in Africa demand for home and office furniture market in Africa is simultaneously increasing. When people move into a new home, they need wardrobes for their clothes, chairs, a dining table, sofas, kitchen cabinets and all kinds of furniture. Like households, offices also buy a lot of furniture too.
African is fast emerging as an important market for furniture on a global scale. Total furniture market imports into Africa amounted to more than US$ 5 billion in 2018. Ten main furniture importing African countries each of them importing over US$ 100 million of furniture.
Africa’s rapidly growing urban population and their spending capacity, along with the growing economy are the primary reasons why furniture business is enjoying the best time of its life.
This is just a short glimpse of a rewarding business stream which is waiting to be explored. Several African countries have good potential for developing their furniture industry, both for internal consumption and for exports. The more promising prospects are in South Africa, Egypt, Morocco and Nigeria, but also Namibia, Tunisia, Kenya, Zimbabwe are possible candidates for a relevant expansion of their furniture production.The global economy is prophesized to grow by 2 to 3 percent between the years 2011- 2020. Africa is projected to grow approximately by 6%. The reason behind these projections is the rising middle class in the African cities. These people are the dwellers, who migrates from the rural areas and villages to the cities for employment prospects. This class includes salaried job holders, small and medium scale business owners.
The sales for the imported custom made furniture has been increasing since the last 3 years. In order to start up furniture business in Africa, one should know the needs and demands of the customers being targeted. Some buyers are more concerned about beauty, quality and durability of the furniture, and will pay high prices to get furniture that meets these requirements. Some other buyers are highly influenced by cost and their choices are restricted to the price of the furniture. They will love to have beautiful and high quality furniture only if it can fit into their budget. Some customers prefer imported furniture and some prefer the local one.
The key to succeed and make money is the ability to fulfill the needs and taste of buyers. Some of the countries like Nigeria, in order to develop the local furniture industry and to create the employment opportunities introduced a ban on the imported furniture. In countries like these, it is advisable to form joint- ventures with the local manufacturers. There are certain advantages which one could get in forming a collaboration with local manufacturers. It will provide you a platter of the information about the latest market trends, taste, opportunities and much more. Not much research and development would be required. Furthermore, setting up a business in a joint venture with local manufacturer would prove to be cost effective as compared to establishing one’s own enterprise.
The 2020 expo sales team traveled to Turkey, Denmark, Sweden, Finland, Kenya; carrying the idea of networking with international trade fairs and the furniture sector key players;
Build potential business relations, connected with individual companies and promoted the FINTEX 2020 expo.
The FINTEX 2020 team travelled across Europe to promote its upcoming second session which will be held from March 5 – 7, 2020 at the Millennium hall, Addis Ababa.
Europe
The leading trade fair of the sector;
East Africa
