About TIP

The Council participated for the first time in TEXTILES D'INTERIEUR PREMIERE
(TIP'9) fair at Parc Elisabeth, Place Simonis, Brussels, Belgium. Brussels the capital of Belgium is also known as Euro Capital for the entire EU. The fair was organized by M/s. The Trade Link Company Ltd., UK. The entire structure for the Fair building was transported from the UK and made as a Makeshift kind of structure. Textiles D'Interiéur Première (TIP) in its ninth year is a well established international trade fair for quality upholstery, curtain fabrics and accessories from all over the world.

 

The following member exporters exhibited their product through this Council.

1. M/s. Cannanore Handloom Exports, Kannur
2. M/s. Fashion Fabs, Kannur
3. M/s. Goodwill Enterprises, Karur
4. M/s. Shuttle Weaves, Chennai
5. M/s. Nandini Fabrics, Karur

There were totally 112 exhibitors from 22 countries in Europe, the Far East, Australia, Africa and the Americas. This included 44 new companies which work out to a 35% increase as compared to the previous year. Members from Synthetic Rayon Textile Export Promotion Council (SRTEPC), Indian Silk Export Promotion Council (ISEPC) and Association of Corporation and Apex Societies of Handlooms (ACASH) also exhibited their products. Other major participants from India included Reliance Industries Ltd., and GM Knitting Company Ltd., Most of the participants had an open space built-in type pavilion.

Exhibit Type

The main range of products exhibited by the Council's member exporters included curtains and cushion covers besides other home textile items like Kitchen Linen and Table Linen. A vast range of the finest products were exhibited from all corners of the globe. From heavy damasks, velour's and jacquards to ethereal voiles, organza's and silks, an increasing number of imaginative coordinates and accessories adding to the depth of goods were on display.

Buyer's Taste

The general demand is for blends, 100% synthetics and silks. Cotton with a heavy structure was also in a demand. Prints also attracted the visitors. Fine Cotton material from Turkey met with a good response. Multi-colored cotton stripe patterned fabric seemed to have a market scope. Hues of pastel shades as well stronger ones with spot effects of orange, red, green, yellow and turquoise were the color trends. To put it in a nutshell, the demand is mainly for rich and value added products.

The fair had a sizable number of visitors thanks to the marketing campaign by the TIP'9 organizers and DECOSIT fair which was held simultaneously at Brussels from 9th -12th September '01 at a venue which was close to TIP'9 venue. The Council's participants attracted a good number of visitors all of them of serious business potential. Hence, a good number of enquiries were generated. To convert these enquiries into a steady and a long term business will be the task ahead for our member participants. Also for some of our member participants it was a learning exercise in knowing the market trends.

Suggestions:

It is the right time for our members to seriously consider product diversification and try bringing out blends & synthetics. Also the members can look into other value addition processes which include finishing processes to be done on our product range. To name a few, fire retardant and water proof finish for curtains and furnishings and an abrasion resistance and pilling resistance finish for cushion covers and other upholstery materials and so on.
Regarding the product display, it is suggested that the participants display one or two pieces per product group as per the color/design trends and the rest may be offered as swatches for the visitors to choose from.

A continuous participation in the above fair and fixing up a PR agency for establishing business contacts/ appointment for our member participants may be looked into for enhancing the business prospects for our member participants at TIP'9 fair.