Ambiente India :: Around 198 exhibitors and 7,457 visitors attended India’s leading home fashion trade fair duo Heimtextil India and Ambiente India, held during June 20-22, 2017 in New Delhi. The shows marked the start of the pre-festive retail season in India. One-on-one buyer-seller meetings marked the shows with many exhibitors confirming to have received orders.
Ajay Arora, managing director, D’decor shared: “Increased customer walk-ins and over 130 new inquries – for D’decor, this edition has been better than expected. Our association with Heimtextil in Frankfurt stands through ages. This is where it all began for us and we continue to support it as we truly believe in the business effectiveness of the platform. For home textile players, this is where you have to be if you are in the trade.”
R Surenthar Kumar, deputy general manager-sales and marketing, Shri Laxmi Cotsyn said: “This show not only caters to the domestic market but also the international market. We have received great response from international buyers from Europe, as well as countries such as Kenya, South Africa and Japan. The enquiries and the communication between us and the buyers have been very clear, which is important for us.”
Ambiente India exhibitor, Ahmad Arsalan, director, Ahmad Gift Exports who was also impressed with the internationality of the visitors shared: “This has been our first time at Ambiente India and we are overwhelmed with the kind of visitor response we have received. We have got a lot of enquiries from different industries such as hotels, designers as well as international buyers from Thailand, Germany among others. We would like to have this exhibition happen twice a year!”
One-on-one buyer-seller meetings set the tone of business networking at Heimtextil India and Ambiente India 2017 right from day one. Delegations from the hospitality, retail and large-scale buying segments were present at the fair over the three days and many exhibitors confirmed to have received orders through the pre-arranged buyer-seller meet format.
As part of the match-making programme, Dinesh Keshwani, purchase manager at Krishna Décor said: “As a platform Heimtextil India and Ambiente India 2017 proved to be beneficial to me for having meetings and discussing my requirements directly with manufacturers. We will be placing orders for the season with two of the exhibitors I met KC Fabrics and Styler. I also visited the ‘exploration zone’ and the experience was quite different, nothing of which I have ever come across. I am definitely looking forward to the next year edition.”
Buyers, mainly from the hospitality and retail segments were satisfied that some of their immediate requirements got catered to through the direct interactions with exhibitors. Dipti Pandey, deputy merchandiser-home stop, Shoppers Stop who shared: “We managed to meet new vendors which we were trying to search and couldn’t get connected and we finally found them here. It is a great platform for networking and building contacts. Overall it was a good experience and we look forward to visit the fair next year.”
Not limited to product sourcing, Heimtextil India and Ambiente India also hosted several features inspiring new design visions. CushionKari captured the story of the fabrics and emboideries of India. A rare combination of fabrics comprising khadi, brocade, morr, mixed embroideries; together with the perfect blend of sustainable textiles such as yarn, knit waste, fabric waste shredded as well as eco-friendly materials like banana fibre fabric, aloe vera fabric were used in the making of this CushionKari, attracting industry professionals.
Sharing her thoughts on the the conceptualisation and making of this record-brekaing installation, Limca record holder Kanika Bawa said: “CushionKari was conceptualised taking inspiration from the rich wealth of Indian mythology, heritage and finesse in craft as well as Indian stories passed on from the Vedic period woven into fabrics. Handcrafted using natural and renewable materials, it is completely eco-friendly in nature. We came across many hurdles in the process of assembling the Cushion Kari due to its massive size and uniqueness in design, however we finally managed to tailor it to perfection and achieved the impossible of creating a magnificent art piece which weighing approximately one tonne.”
Anshul Malhotra from Mandi and Himanshu Dogra also from Himachal were declared as the face to represent India at the Ambiente fair in Frankfurt in January 2018.
Winner of the home decor category Dogra said: “I have already learned and gained so much from this platform, but there is still a long way to go. The unique part about ILA as a platform is its innovative format of getting textile and product designers together to explore new ideas and brainstorming possibilities for combining different styles of designs to launch one collaborate masterpiece. For a designer, Ambiente India is a fantastic platform where one gets a chance to interact with industry stalwarts and get their perspective on design. I am looking forward to my participation at the Ambiente show in Germany which will be a big game changer for introducing my brand Play Clan to the global audiences.”
As consumer goods and textile traders raced against time to align themselves with the new GST regime, an exclusive seminar was organised during the fair to address concerns in the industry with the presence of notable tax guru and experts.
“While the GST implementation is expected to positively impact the Indian economy in the coming years, Indian textile industry in particular is poised to grow from the long-term benefits that the new legislation offers. The government projects two per cent growth in GDP by 2020,” shared CA Bimal Jain addressing delegates at the GST seminar.
The co-located fairs will be back during June 27-29, 2018 in New Delhi.
