Furniture supplies show ZOW, which took place in February in Bad Salzuflen, Germany, has confirmed its place not only as a forum for business, but also as one to spot trends.
Over 580 suppliers of surface designs and finishes, panel products and doors, handles and accessories, hinges and lighting used ZOW as the launch pad for new design ideas, prototype and talking points.
Across the product areas the trend towards the mixing of materials – seen at the top of the furniture market for several years – was evident in all market levels. The combination of wood with metal – or extruded plastic in metallic finish – wood and glass in clear, frosted or etched versions was evident on both panel products and accessories. Contrasting colour combinations, for example, light and dark wood finishes, ran alongside the mixed materials theme.
In decorative surfaces, lighter woods continue to dominate. Most suppliers showed three particular trends – metal-look, darker woods, and very straight vertical or horizontal ‘wood grain’ striping. In contrast, mirror effect grains saw the décor suppliers looking to the traditional wood veneer market.
Three dimensional designs and pearlised lustre looks were also seen throughout ZOW, plus very bright primary colours in very high gloss finishes.
Chiyoda had a number of new design ideas on its stand. Its Luce was a 3D effect fantasy finish, while the Baden-Beech finish from the Essentials 2002 collection featured narrow strips of wood effects.
Pfleiderer‘s new designs for frontages confirmed that décor wood grains were becoming straighter and were shown horizontally as well as vertically, and that darker woods – including the light and dark stripe zebrano style and wenge – were prominent. The company showed four ‘pearlesence’ colours plus aluminium look foils.
For worktops, high gloss surfaces and butchers block designs – complete with finger-jointing – are making a comeback.
New from Süddekor was pear, again with horizontal grains, mirror grain effects and oak, which is predicted as an ‘up and coming’ finish alongside darker woods – zebrano, papyrus and teak.
Dölken highlighted aluminium finish materials at the show alongside, and in some cases combining with, translucent ideas to complement trends in panel design.
Richter launched a paintable edgebanding made from recycled wood, promoted as having the same properties as the chipboard panels with which it would be used.
Solid timber featured strongly, with French company Ducerf showing its patchwood with strips of natural timber combining with strips of stained coloured timber to give a modern look for worktops and panels.
CNC Components used ZOW, its first European show, to launch a completely new product from its factory – vacuum membrane pressed tops for office furniture.
The company also showed its new collection of frame front solid wood doors. Interestingly, frame fronted styling for kitchen doors was also shown on full panel doors, notably from Italian supplier Santarossa.
The use of aluminium frame doors and aluminium-look finishes – created with foils and plastics – were seen on panels and doors from many suppliers. Another take on this look was the use of stripes of aluminium or metal-look materials inset into door panels. Among suppliers showing this look were Artwood, Reichert and Nenplas.
Heitmann showed solid wood doors with simple, modern inlays.
Neimann came up with a new idea for an economy version of aluminium frame kitchen doors, manufactured with a specially adapted IMA edging machine. Solid aluminium is bent around an MFC frame to create a metal frame-look – for glass as well as wood based panels doors – in one pass through the machine. The company has been granted a patent for the process.
Some of the brightest plain colour doors were shown by VAM in high gloss or matt finishes, sparkle or translucence. The company showed its frontage designs with square edges.
