The Decor + Design and Furnitex exhibitions were successfully held earlier this month at the Melbourne Exhibition Centre with the co-located events attracting thousands of industry visitors over the four days.

Showcasing a select range of the latest high-end designs in interiors, soft furnishings and furniture, the two exhibitions offer the design industry an exciting glimpse into the future of design.

Decor + Design (formerly Decoration + Design) also celebrated its 10th anniversary this year with a new name and a spectacular showcase of exhibition stands. A highlight of the interiors exhibition was the ‘Decade of Design’ featuring five companies who have exhibited with Decor + Design since the beginning: Café Lighting, Hermon Hermon Commercial, Cromwell, MRD Home, and Warranbrooke.

Joel Cooper, Group Exhibition Director of Informa Exhibitions said the success of Decor + Design and Furnitex demonstrates a more confident outlook for the Australian soft furnishings and furniture industry. He added that the feedback from both visitors and exhibitors was excellent, with numerous sales opportunities generated over the four days.

Decor + Design 2014 also organised the International Seminar Series, sponsored by Australian House & Garden Magazine with each session chaired by Editor-In-Chief, Lisa Green. Presentations were made by interior designer to the stars, Kari Whitman (USA), eclectic designer Kishani Perera (USA), and leading trend forecaster Victoria Redshaw (UK). The international speakers were joined by Australian design experts Shareen Joel of Shareen Joel Design/Share Design, Ben Edwards and Juliet Moore of Edwards Moore, and Sonia Simpfendorfer of Nexus Design.

A series of retail presentations were also held over the weekend on a range of practical topics with speakers including Adam McWhinney, Chief Digital Officer and Co-Founder of Temple & Webster; Isabella Maggioni from the Australian Centre of Retail Studies at Monash University; Tim Krotiris of Social Media Servants; Sue Robinson of RMIT; Georgie Leckey of Heatherly Design Bedheads; and Jorma Palo of Vividworks Inc..

VIVID (Vibrant Visions in Design) celebrated its 12th anniversary this year, showcasing the work of 58 emerging designers. VIVID award winners included Melbourne-based trio Rowan Page, Marinos Drake and Ilya Fridman of Studio Batch who won the Beacon Lighting Award – Best Lighting Product; Adam Raphael Markowitz from Melbourne (Concept Award); Fabio Biavaschi, also from Melbourne (Commercial Award); Jeewon Choi of Lidcome College, Sydney (Student Award); and Yulia Holil from Perth (Green Award).

Decor + Design 2015 will be held in Sydney from 4-6 February 2015 at the Royal Hall of Industries. FURNITEX returns for its next instalment from 16-19 July 2015, co-located with Decor + Design at the Melbourne Exhibition Centre.