Creativity only on order - Bigger cooperation between manufacturers and designers necessary when making original furniture pieces

Search for interesting, creative, original furniture in Serbia will quickly turn into aimless wandering from one showroom to another, where one can find only serially produced pieces, all looking alike. Domestic furniture makers usually do not cooperate with interior designers, which needs to change in order for the situation in furniture shops in Serbia to improve.

According to Natasa Vujovic, marketing consultant at the Serbian Investment and Export Promotion Agency (SIEPA), in order to survive in the domestic market and be competitive in foreign markets, Serbia's furniture industry must involve designers in the production process.

- With low-cost Chinese products in the market, it is very difficult for companies offering no designed furniture to survive in the region - our interlocutor says and adds that this is the reason why SIEPA has launched the Creative Space Serbia platform within which it organizes presentations of creative pieces of furniture at the design week in Milan (Milan Design Week).

Over the past few years, as part of the SIEPA program, 18 designers and 15 companies have presented themselves at the Milan event that gathers the most popular designers and manufacturers from all around the world.

- Until this year, our products failed to find their way to buyers. However, domestic companies increasingly understand that the market has changed and that they cannot await only big orders any more, but must also make smaller series of designed furniture in order to be competitive not only in the region and Europe, but also in Asia - Vujovic explains and points out that they currently negotiate the export of designed furniture to Switzerland, Germany, Luxembourg and Singapore.

(Ana Babic)

During the last few years SIEPA has organized contests open only to designers, who have submitted their design solutions in line with the exhibition concept, and then famous manufacturers have made pieces of furniture on the basis of winning entries.

- We've decided to change this practice for the 2014 Milan Design Week by first organizing a contest for manufacturers in June 2013 and then a contest for designers in early summer - Vujovic announces.

Eccentric details

One of the participants in this year's Milan Design Week is Ana Babic. At the event in Milan, this young designer presented her shelf dubbed "play" and made by the Kraljevo furniture factory Jasen as well as the "light sisters" lamp made by the Lanterna company from Novi Sad.

- Currently I am negotiating with companies from Berlin, Luxembourg and Miami, which are all interested in buying my products. Given that talks with manufacturers about the price and transport are now in the final phase, I hope that these shelves and lamps will soon become available to buyers in one of these cities – Babic stresses.

Although companies abroad are more interested in these products, this young designer has also been contacted by buyers from Serbia, who can now buy the products only if they place an order for them.

- My products, which are a bit eccentric, will soon hit one of the furniture showrooms in our country, but I still don't know if they will be produced by the manufacturers I've already worked with during the exhibition in Milan or some other makers – Babic adds.

(a shelf made by Papilio Design)

Originality is not expensive

Based on what we've learned from the experience of showrooms in Serbia, imported designed furniture is much more expensive than the one locally produced. Luckily, there are some domestic manufacturers which offer their unique pieces at affordable prices.

In times of crisis people buy only what is necessary, but they still love to see and own different and original pieces of furniture, Papilio Design CEO Dragan Vucic says to eKapija. A team of designers of this company designs shelves, furniture sets, armchairs, dressers...

- For the time being, our products can only be ordered online, and we hope to open our own showroom soon – Vucic says and adds that the aim is to make it possible for Papilio Design to sell creative products at low prices.

All those who want to furnish their home with original furniture, or wish to have only eccentric details decorate their living space, can now buy these products only if they place an order for them. Cooperation between domestic manufacturers and designers will result not only in a bigger number of creative products in furniture showrooms across our country, but also in the export of original pieces of furniture made in Serbia.

I.M.