India’s leading home fashion trade fair duo Heimtextil India and Ambiente India, held during June 20-22, 2017 in New Delhi which marked the start of the pre-festive retail season in India witnessed around 198 exhibitors and 7,457 visitors. Many exhibitors at the one-on-one buyer-seller meetings confirmed having received orders.

Ajay Arora, managing director, D’decor said that their association with Heimtextil in Frankfurt stands through ages. This is where it all began for them and they continue to support it as they truly believe in the business effectiveness of the platform. For home textile players, this is right place to be if in the trade. He further added that in this edition there was increased customer walk-ins and over 130 new inquries – for D’decor.

R Surenthar Kumar, deputy general manager-sales and marketing, Shri Laxmi Cotsyn said that 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 them and the buyers have been very clear, which is important for them.

Ambiente India exhibitor, Ahmad Arsalan, director, Ahmad Gift Exports who was also impressed with the internationality of the visitors shared that this has been their first time at Ambiente India and they are overwhelmed with the kind of visitor response received. They have got a lot of enquiries from different industries such as hotels, designers as well as international buyers from Thailand, Germany among others. They 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 that as a platform Heimtextil India and Ambiente India 2017 proved to be beneficial to him for having meetings and discussing his requirements directly with manufacturers. They will be placing orders for the season with two of the exhibitors, KC Fabrics and Styler.

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 that they managed to meet new vendors which they were trying to search and couldn’t get connected and they 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 thoughts on the the conceptualisation and making of this record-brekaing installation, Limca record holder Kanika Bawa said that 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 they 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 that he has 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. He is looking forward to his participation at the Ambiente show in Germany which will be a big game changer for introducing his brand Play Clan to the global audiences.

During the fair to address consumer goods and textile traders concerns over the new GST regime, an exclusive seminar was organized with the presence of notable tax guru and experts.

The next home fashion trade fair duo Heimtextil India and Ambiente India will be back next year during June 27-29 in New Delhi.