Malaysian Firm Makes A Mark At Frankfurt Home-Textile Show

By Manik Mehta FRANKFURT, Jan 14 (Bernama) -- A Malaysian company is making a mark with its upper-end pillows and other bed products at the ongoing four-day Heimtextil fair, the International Home Textile Fair of Frankfurt, rated as the world’s biggest event for home-textile products. Fernex Sdn Bhd of Kajang, Selangor is again participating this year after a “successful debut” in 2015, marketing director Lim Lee Kheang told Bernama. Fernex, which has manufacturing operations in Malaysian Selangor state and Shanghai (China), is showcasing pillows, toppers, duvets and mattresses. "Our company is 11 years old and we have grown exponentially. Our major markets are in Europe, the Middle East and Asia," Lim said, adding that her company's participation in 2015 had been "very good" for business. "We could establish good business contacts with buyers from a number of countries at the 2015 show. "We have already received orders at this year's show from our existing customers who visited our stand to look at our new products," she said. The company's Techambient pillow, which regulates its temperature according to the body temperature of the sleeping person – attracted many potential buyers. The Fernex stand saw a steady stream of visitors from Germany, France, Belgium, Switzerland, Sweden and North America. Fernex is also participating at the International Furniture Fair of Cologne, which kicks off after the Heimtextil in Frankfurt. Experts familiar with sourcing from Southeast Asia were saying at the fair that Malaysia has good potential to bag orders in the home-textile sector, especially from upper-end markets in Europe. According to a new Managing Report entitled “Textiles in Hotel Design: Hotel Furnishing Success Factors”, published by Messe Frankfurt, the fair organiser, the Frankfurt show offers the world’s biggest range of furnishing textiles for hotels. Olaf Schmidt, vice president (textiles and textile technologies) at Messe Frankfurt, said that “contract business is one of the most important themes at the home-textile show, and hoteliers are one of the most important target groups”. Experts on Southeast Asia agreed that Malaysian companies -- there was just one exhibiting company -- were missing out on good business opportunities by not participating at the show. “It is important to see, and be seen, at this unique and high-profile show where buyers are willing to pay higher prices to match fastidious quality standards and innovative designs,” said Gerhard Mueller, a Hannover-based Southeast Asia expert who visited the show. This year’s turnout at the event from Asia is huge: there are 525 exhibitors from China, 380 from India, 221 from Pakistan, 211 from Turkey, 59 from Taiwan, 28 from Hong Kong, 19 from Japan and 18 from South Korea. In addition to Malaysia, other ASEAN member countries at the show include Indonesia (three exhibitors), Thailand (two) and Vietnam (nine). -- BERNAMA