Ninety five Vietnamese and foreign companies are showcasing their products at the ninth Viet Nam Furniture and Furnishing Fair that opened in HCM City on November 16.

VIFA Home has 410 booths displaying outdoor and indoor furniture for apartments, offices, restaurants, hotels, and resorts; handicrafts and home decor; household appliances; garden decor; gifts; and souvenirs.

Also present are companies offering consultancy on equipment, materials, design, and architecture.

According to the Handicraft and Wood Industry Association of HCM City (Hawa), one of the organisers, VIFA Home this year has attracted nearly 20 famous furniture exporters including Scansia Pacific, Duc Loi, Nguyen Thanh, Royal Furniture, Square Home, Woac, and Furniture Maker, who are selling their products in selective markets like the US, EU, Japan, and Korea.

At the expo, they are offering discounts to enable local consumers to buy export-quality products at lower prices.

Speaking at the opening ceremony, Huynh Van Hanh, deputy chairman of Hawa, said VIFA Home would be a good place for Vietnamese firms in woodworking and interior decoration to promote their brands and find business partners.

The fair would help connect woodworking and interior decoration firms in HCM City, Binh Duong, Dong Nai and other localities and create a complete value chain from production to distribution, he added.

Consumption of wood products increased by 8 per cent on average in the last seven years to over US$3 billion last year, partly thanks to increasing demand from property projects, according to HAWA.

It forecast the domestic wooden furniture market to continue growing, especially in the medium and high-end segments.

The expo is on at the Phu Tho Sports Centre in District 11 until November 19. — VNS