Recently I was in Shanghai to speak on an international panel at ‘Wood Flooring Forum 2011’. It was a full day event in conjunction with the massive Domotex trade show held annually at the end of March in Shanghai. The Wood Flooring Forum was held March 25th at the Kerry Hotel Pudong.
Myself (far right) speaking on the panel, sitting beside Frederik Dreesman and Matt Spieler (Guo Hui is on the panel as well, just outside of photo)
Organizers included China National Forest Product Industry Association, Chinese Academy of Forestry, Shanghai Building Materials Industry Association and along with various local government groups. I know that Floor Covering Institute was also heavily involved, albeit they were not recognized on the program.
China is at an interesting cultural stage when it comes to these international event. ‘Face’ is very important and if the right image isn’t portrayed then the desired result of the event is not obtained. I think it would be frustrating to be involved in the organizing committee as I noticed a large number of last minute changes (i.e. speaker changes) occurred.
All in all it was a successful event, one that I would plan to attend again in the future.
The list of speakers was impressive, focusing on Executives from successful American and European companies in the wood floor industry:
- Frank Ready from Armstrong
- Benoit Miquel from Tarkett
- Frederik Dreesman from Homedecor
- Jim Gould from Flooring Covering Institute
Media and Association members:
- Matt Spieler, Senior Executive Editor from Floor Covering News
- Jeff Fairbanks, NWFA Director
- Juergen Fruechtenicht, editor Parkett Magazine
Me shaking hands with Guo Hui.
And key industry leaders in China, often referred to in China circles as ‘backbone companies’ such as PowerDekor CEO – Guo Hui were also in attendence.
My portion involved speeches and then a panel discussion. The topic being: ‘Marketing & Sales: Approaching the Retail Channel in Major Western Markets. This was geared towards Asian manufacturers interested in selling to retail in the US, Canada and Europe. On the stage with me were PowerDekor’s Guo Hui, Frederik Dreesman from Homedecor and Matt Spieler of Floor Covering News.
The coolest part of the whole event was wearing the United Nations type translator head phones.
I felt like a foreign diplomat!
I was flattered to receive a large number of questions from the crowd, the Chinese business community in particular was very excited about internet growth and the BuildDirect model, so this triggered a large amount of discussion. I won’t go into too much detail, but if this is an event that you have interest in attending next year I suggest investigating the Floor Covering Institute site to learn more.
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Nice, I’d love to attend. Next year?