amid growing concerns over the coronavirus outbreak in italy, salone del mobile — the world’s biggest design fair — has been postponed, given the continuing health emergency. the monumental event, which was originally scheduled for april 21 – 26 as the headline to milan design week, will now take place from june 16 – 21, 2020. the announcement was made by the mayor of milan, giuseppe sala, along with the salone del mobile president claudio luti and emanuele orsini, president of federlegno arredo eventi. statement from salone del mobile below:

 

‘following an extraordinary meeting today of the board of federlegno arredo eventi, and in view of the ongoing public health emergency, the decision has been taken to postpone the upcoming edition of the salone del mobile.milan to 16th – 21st june. confirmation of the change of date for the trade fair – strongly supported by the mayor of milan giuseppe sala – means that the manufacturers, in a major show of responsibility, will be able to present their finalised work to an international public that sees the annual appointment with the salone del mobile.milano as a benchmark for creativity and design.’

 

 

 

video transcript in english: good evening to you all from the offices of the salone del mobile, where we have had to discuss a very live and much debated issue. the salone was due to open on 21st april, but we have decided to postpone it by a couple of months. the new date is therefore 16th june. I am calling on our colleagues in the furnishing sector and the salone del mobile to pull together to make sure milan doesn’t grind to a halt. we need to work objectively to stop this virus spreading, but we must also take care not to spread the virus of distrust. milan has to carry on. so I would like to thank them all for this proof of confidence, because it’s not easy right now to try and appeal to visitors and convince professionals from all over the world, but I believe this is the right decision. nevertheless, as I am fond of saying, it is crucial for everyone to do their bit. therefore I call on the government to intervene and provide some help for a fundamental sector for our economy. I am also making a special appeal to our hoteliers. this year we need to be especially careful about how we pitch the price of hotel rooms, because this year will be no ordinary one. thank you, milan will be by your side, so it will be a very particular salone, a salone in a different month but a great salone to all!