VIEW Newsletter - October 09

The Sleep Event 2009. Three events in one will combine to present a must-attend event for the hotel sector. As Victor Hugo almost said: "There is nothing more powerful than an idea whose time has come", and in the UK, the time is certainly here for the hotel industry. The hotel market is faced with an almost unique set of circumstances that make it a hot-spot for good business.

The Olympics are coming to Britain in 2012 and that will absorb a huge amount of hotel rooms, and not just in London.

More and more people are taking their holidays 'at home' and are using the opportunity to stay in a 'decent' hotel for a few days. And the current exchange rate between the pound and the Euro that makes a cup of coffee so expensive in France or Italy, also makes a holiday in the UK very attractive to visitors from the continent.

Add to these  'Hotel Chic' - a modern design style that a growing number of householders are using for bathrooms and bedrooms - and the hotel industry is in pole position as an opinion former and a trendsetter.

All of this adds up to those running hotels being really on top of their game because consumers today are expecting high standards as the norm, rather than the exception.

The Sleep Event offers a one-stop shop for seeing new products, learning from hospitality experts and acknowledging the great and the good of European hotel design.

Over 150 exhibitors will show their latest products for the hotels market, including beds, carpets, fabrics, furniture, appliances, accessories and bathroom suites. 

One of the highlights of the exhibition will be The Sleepotel, a live bespoke hotel environment showing the latest hotel interior designs. This area will comprise an Entrance, Bar, Spa/Gym and Hotel Suites/ Bedrooms. Companies such as Shaun Clarkson ID, Atelier Nini Andrade Silva, Spa Vision, Blacksheep, Vallila Interiors in co-operation with Studio Arcibella and Tisettanta are set to inspire visitors with their cutting-edge hotel designs. 

The Sleep Event Conference, now in its 7th year, is an integral part of the event and provides delegates with essential advice and updates from within this rapidly developing sector.

This year it will feature experts from across the hospitality industry including acclaimed designer Marcel Wanders and representatives from Hilton Hotels Cooperation, Marriott International and Starwood Hotel Group.

The conference is split into development and design days with Conran and Partners, Rabih Hage and Concrete Architects offering their own thoughts on hotel design. 

And running alongside The Sleep Event are the European Hotel Design Awards. These take place at the London Hilton, Park Lane on 2nd November and are hosted by Mariella Frostrup. These design awards are now in their twelfth year and celebrate the best designs to come out of the European hotels market over the past 12 months.

The shortlist is selected by a panel of highly respected figureheads with categories covering architecture and interior design. This year, the organisers are honouring Sir Terence Conran with an Outstanding Contribution Award.

The Sleep Event, an exhibition and conference focused on high-end hotel design, will take place on 3-4 November 2009 at the Business Design Centre, London.

Decorex International celebrates a successful 2009 show. Decorex International rounded off The London Design Week in style this year, the optimistic atmosphere ensured that the show was buzzing with a mood of confidence from start to finish. Almost 10,000 people attended the show this year from all over the globe - a very healthy 9% rise on the previous year.

The positive feedback from interior designers, buyers, journalists and exhibitors alike, confirmed that the show has firmly established itself as the landmark event on the international interior design calendar. 

Cathy Oates, Event Director at Decorex comments: “This year’s show offered us everything we could have asked for – an increase in visitor numbers and upbeat buyers, designers, consumers and exhibitors. From the second Decorex started to the moment it finished, we all felt a real buzz about the place and were really pleased to see so many enquiries, orders and contacts being made across the entire the show. All of our exhibitors really upped the ante in terms of stand design and product innovation to create a truly inspiring event.”

Inspirational stand designs and a range of new products meant that the Decorex awards were hotly contested this year. Standards reached an all time high and the judges were spoilt for choice. Soane Britain’s bathroom and dressing room set was awarded the House & Garden trophy by the editor Susan Crewe, whilst The World of Interiors ‘Most Innovative Product’ accolade was presented to Charles Stone by Emma Redmayne and Sophia Salaman. Emery & Cie celebrated receiving the idFX award for ‘Best Contemporary Product’ – presented by editor Kate Burnett and deputy editor Becky Hoh - and the distinguished BIDA ‘Best Stand Award’ was presented to Fromental.

Landing amidst much excitement on the first day of the show was a collaboration between Eurocopter and Hermès. l’Hélicoptère par Hermès provided a show-stopping statement of luxurious design with its bespoke Hermès interior, a matching leather handbag and chilled Veuve Clicquot. The aircraft attracted visitors beyond the Embankment entrance and enabled them to see that interiors design truly has no bounds!

This year’s seminar programme brought together some of the top names from the world of interior design and the UK media through a series of talks. Elle Decoration’s leading stylist, Emilio Pimentel-Reid presented an overview of influential developments in surface textures, whilst trend forecasting from Scarlet Opus and Global Color Research gave visitors invaluable insights into colour, material and product trends for 2010/11. Providing an exciting climax for this year’s ‘Treasured Possessions’ theme, the interactive Pecha Kucha style talk was a huge success and saw well known industry figures such as Mark Gabbertas, Ella Doran, Matthew Lewis, Kenneth Cobonpue, Celia Birtwell and William Yeoward talking about their most treasured items. Seminars from names such as Nina Campbell, Mary Fox Linton, Karen Howes and Joanna Wood demonstrated the wealth of home grown talent at Decorex this year and ensured that the seminar theatre was kept busy throughout the entire show.

Don’t forget to put the Decorex dates in your diary for next year! Decorex International 2010 will run from 26-29 September. We look forward to seeing you there...

Interiors 2010 will introduce a brand new area for the January show, designed to inspire visitors with a number of exciting displays. ‘Thinking Space’ will be packed full of original dynamic features from all corners of the industry… Interiors 2010, the UK’s largest trade gathering of interiors products, will introduce an inspirational new area for next year’s show. 'Thinking Space’ will be a dedicated area packed full of original features designed to provide retailers, interior designers, architects and contractors with added inspiration.  Decorated with the hottest designs and featuring top industry experts, ‘Thinking Space’ brings exciting elements from all corners of the industry together within Hall 2.

This space will include the following features: 

• Seminar Theatre: a hub of educational activity, featuring the likes of Global Color Research and other top speakers
• Young Design Britain Competition: The finalists from eight categories will showcase their outstanding designs, with eventual winners being announced by a high calibre panel of judges
• Designersblock: these leading curators will put on an innovative display marrying established manufacturers with new and cutting edge designers
• Champagne Bar: A stunning area in which to relax and entertain clients
• Top 10 Product Showcase: View the very best designs from the show floor selected by an editor of a top interiors magazine
• A feature from SBI Group: The owners of Duresta, Derwent Upholstery, G Plan and Parker Knoll will put on a display of new and unique products
• Birmingham City University and Global Color Research: A stunning pavilion showing how Global Color Research’s trend predictions can be adapted for key sectors of the industry.

Elsewhere at the show, visitors will see the likes of Alstons, Caxtons, Duresta, Tetrad, Morris Furniture, Mark Webster, Coach House and PD Global all exhibit their latest designs.

With the event now over 80% booked, Interiors 2010 is set to bring the industry together for four days of essential business.  The event will take place at the NEC, Birmingham from 24-27 January 2010.

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