U.S. – Steelcase was recognized as one of the “Best Places to Work for LGBT Equality” by the Human Rights Campaign Foundation. The recognition came after Steelcase earned a perfect score of 100 percent on the annual Corporate Equality Index (CEI). 

GERMANY – 2016 was a record year for Häcker Kitchens. With a turnover of 512 million euros, a 9.9% increase in sales compared to last year (2015: 466 million euros), the company has for the first time exceeded the sales mark of 500 million euros. 

SWEDEN – Total revenue for the IKEA Group (Ingka Holding B.V. and its controlled entities) during financial year 2016 reached EUR 35.1 billion, up 7.4% from last year. 

GERMANY – Snaidero has walked away with a prestigious award in the category “Excellent Product Design Kitchen” with its Loft model designed by Michele Marcon.

U.S. – Herman Miller, Inc. announced the opening of a Herman Miller-branded retail store anchoring the company’s New York City flagship. Open to the public as of Tuesday, November 22, 2016, the store occupies 6,000 SF. 

COLOMBIA – Exports of Colombian modular wooden furniture totaled USD 8,167,565 in the first nine months (9M) of 2016, down 2.9% compared with the same period 2015 (USD 8,413,422).

SPAIN – IKEA arrived in Spain 20 years ago and to celebrate it, the company open for the first time in the country two pop up shops in the center of Madrid and Barcelona, the two cities where it first settled in the peninsula in 1996.

DOMINICAN REPUBLIC – The Ministry of Industry and Commerce (MIC) in coordination with the Dominican National Lottery, presented the ASONAINCO Exporter project, which seeks to improve production processes, financing and quality of the goods of fifty companies that are part of the National Association of Furniture, Mattresses and Allied Industries.

BRAZIL – While August furniture exports increased by around 13%, this year has been tough for furniture manufacturers in Brazil. 

COLOMBIA – Increased sales, particularly in the export markets, created the need for RTA Design to make significant investments to improve efficiency and expand production capacity by about 70%.

ITALY – According to an article by Mauro Spinelli issued in the World Furniture  #70/September 2016, the office furniture market in Europe recorded a positive growth for the second year in a row (+4.7% in 2015). 

GERMANY – The ALNO Group will be presenting trends and innovations from its product lines from 17 to 23 September in an exclusive design tour as part of the annual “Küchenmeile A30” exhibition.