23 May 2016– Philippine Consul General to New York Mario L. De Leon, Jr. and the Philippine Trade and Investment Office in New York (PTIC) visited the Philippine booth at the 28thannual International Contemporary Furniture Fair (ICFF) at the Jacob K. Javits Convention Center in New York City on May 14 to 17. He was accompanied by his spouse Mrs. Eleanor de Leon and Trade Representative Kat Banzon.
Considered North America’s premiere showcase convention for contemporary interior design, ICFF hosts more than 500 exhibitors from over 30 countries in several categories: furniture, materials, kitchen, bath to fabricators. ICFF isinternationally renowned for its extensive range of world-class furniture products and materials, ranging from luxury to accessible items.
The Philippine booth, which was organized by the Center for International Trade Expositions and Missions (CITEM), showcased an extensive range of selected upscale home designer pieces fashioned by the five participating Design Philippines companies, led by multi-awarded furniture designer Kenneth Cobonpue, who has won the first “Designer of the Year” award inMAISON&OBJECTAsia, topping other highly rated Asian designers. The other participating Philippine brand design companies were Venzon Lighting, Lija By That One Piece, Schema, and Zarate Manila. The design group also involved officials of CITEM, the export promotions arm of the Philippine Department of Trade and Industry, led by Ms. Rhea Matute, Project Manager and Deputy Executive Director for Value Creation & Promotions Department.
Design Philippines is a branding initiative that positions the country as a sourcing destination for finely designed products for the global market. It is a design movement that displays the creativity and originality of a globally competitive and passionate community of Filipino craftsmen and designers. END
