Stockholmsmässan, which is Scandinavia’s largest exhibition and congress center, organized its first furniture fair in 1951. Since then the fair has grown into what is generally considered as one of the two top-notch furniture fairs in Europe – the other one being Salone del Mobile in Milan. Today the fair attracts around 40,000 visitors from more than 60 countries and over 1,100 media representatives every year, and around 750 companies exhibit their furniture, lighting and textile products. The largest exhibitor nations, apart from Sweden, are Denmark, Finland and Norway, and usually around 80 percent of all exhibitors come from Scandinavia.
Scandinavian design is a well known and highly valued concept for design-interested people all over the world. The largest source of inspiration in this field is Stockholm Furniture & Light Fair, which for more than 60 years has attracted purchasers, architects, designers and journalists to Stockholmsmässan and the beautiful capital of Scandinavia each year in February. With the fair as its natural hub, the whole city gets involved as a large number of events, showrooms and parties are organized during the Stockholm Design Week.
The same week as Stockholm Furniture & Light Fair, Stockholmsmässan also organizes Stockholm Design Week, presenting more than sixty high-profile design events at various venues around the city. The first design week was launched in 2002, and today this theme week has supported Stockholm Furniture & Light Fair in making Stockholm a must-place to be for purchasers, architects, designers and journalists during week 6 each year.
Examples of events during previous design weeks include receptions, dinner parties, “after fair” meetings, vernissage cocktails and open houses at a wide variety of showrooms, design schools, restaurants and studios. To further promote the design week experience, visitors are provided with a special guide “The official guide to Stockholm Design Week” presenting all the events together with suggestions to the best shopping, restaurants and bars all over Stockholm.
All in all, the Stockholm Design Week has developed into a melting pot where just about everyone in anyway connected to or interested in Scandinavian design meet and thrive, bringing home new impulses, contacts and inspiration.
