IMM Cologne has always been the event that opens the exhibition year for the furniture industry. Changes in all geographic areas of the trade fair industry in the post-Covid era have not stopped the Koelnmesse organizers in their race to regain their historic leadership in Germany and even extend the positive signal to the Nordic markets.
Under the banner of Connecting Communities, the central theme of the 2025 edition of IMM, the organisers have decided not to invest resources, as they say ‘in a hail of sunshine’, but to take aim and direct their efforts and planning by choosing a super partner, the representative of a world that has been making its mark on design for decades and that – for many if not for all – represents a real school: Denmark.
The deal with Denmark will not only be about products and designers, but there will be an opportunity to learn how the nation that gave birth to Arne Jacobsen and Finn Juhl has faced and is facing change, how a small geographical area looks global changes in the face.
Denmark will have its own pavilion showcasing Danish companies and, thanks to the collaboration with the non-profit organisation Creative Denmark, a full event programme is planned to highlight Denmark’s role in the global creative economy: a themed pavilion on circularity, presentations, interviews and discussion panels on new business strategies and innovative solutions.
Despite the macroeconomic data, Germany, the so-called “locomotive of Europe”, has not stopped producing important figures in the furniture industry: the trade volume generated by the sector is 30 billion euros, and German consumers are the European leaders in spending on furniture purchases. These figures demonstrate the importance of the German interior design market, which is also reflected in the entries for IMM Cologne 2025.
