(SINGAPORE) Quietly, but with much polish, Singapore's furniture trade is bringing some serious money to the table.

Last year, the furniture sector here crossed the billion-dollar mark in value, as manufacturers, designers and traders made their presence felt on the world stage with higher exports to the crucial and high-spending markets of the United States, Europe and Japan.

At this year's International Furniture Fair Singapore (IFFS), spot orders reached US$240 million, followed by US$2.1 billion in potential follow-on sales.

The sales figures were up from US$230 million in spot orders and US$2 billion in follow-on sales two years ago.

Industry players told BT that the booming property market, stronger brand positioning and expected spin-offs from the integrated resorts (IRs) had helped bring in the orders.

Joseph Goy, general manager of the Furniture Mall, said: 'The wave of en-bloc sales has definitely generated spin-offs for the home furnishing business. This is especially so for the high-end items, where we are talking about $200,000 to $300,000 in furnishing costs per apartment.'

Executive chairman of Lorenzo International James Goh said that the supply of units in a location can increase by as much as five-fold with every en-bloc deal. 'This will stimulate demand for home furnishing,' he said.

To cash in on this opportunity, Lorenzo is launching a new bedroom and bed linen product series, which the company believes will be well received by its customers.

And it helps that the importance of brand-building and being associated with quality furniture with strong designs has already dawned on many Singapore furniture firms, said IFFS CEO Quek Chin Tuan.

'In fact, buyers from Italy - known for their up-market taste - are increasingly looking to satisfy their demand by sourcing for furniture made in Asia,' he said.

Besides Lorenzo, other local firms that have made it to the international stage include Koda Ltd and HTL International.

Koda's strongholds are in Europe and North America, from which it drew 78.3 per cent of its sales in FY07.

'We have been selling to the mid to upper-end customers in those markets as they are willing to pay a premium for good designs and reliable quality,' said Koda managing director James Koh.

Sofa-maker HTL also has a presence in those markets. HTL was recognised by Forbes Asia as one of the Asia-Pacific's '200 Best Under a Billion' list of top small companies in 2005.

The increases in both the number of exhibitors and floor area at the trade show is testimony to the fact that the furniture industry in Singapore is booming.

IFFS said its show's net exhibition space jumped 26 per cent this year to 39,300 sq m - from 31,168 sq m four years ago - while exhibitors numbered some 510 - a rise from 450 exhibitors in 2004.

Mr Quek said that more than 80 per cent of the 44,000 sq m space in next year's fair has already been booked.

South-east Asia now holds more than 10 furniture exhibitions every year and IFFS estimates put the size of the global furniture exhibition market at about US$20 billion a year.

The furniture companies are also upbeat about the industry prospects in Singapore once the two Integrated Resorts open their doors in 2009.

'The resorts house F&B, entertainment outlets and hotels all under one roof. So there will definitely be a high demand for different furniture and furnishing options of the highest quality,' said Andrew Ng, president of the Singapore Furniture Industries Council (SFIC).

IFFS said that the visitors at its trade shows are usually from developed markets such as United States and Europe, and Singapore's vibrant entertainment and nightlife scene is a big draw for them.

Others added that the supply of rooms at the new resorts will ease the shortage of hotel rooms here, and the IRs' future expansion also spells new opportunities for the sector.

Still, companies foresee various challenges in growing their businesses.

These include the keen competition posed by low-cost manufacturers in China and the lack of intellectual property protection in many Asian countries.

Responding to these concerns, some firms have suggested generating a continuous flow of new designs with a shelf-life as short as six months, or 'developing full series of wood-based furniture under the same theme', said Mr Goh of Lorenzo. 'This makes it more difficult for anyone to copy as it entails heavy investment like sophisticated and expensive machineries.'

The SFIC said that it hopes to raise awareness of intellectual property rights among local players while encouraging innovation and the creation of unique designs.

As for price competition, Mr Quek said firms can relocate production to other low-cost centres such as Vietnam and Indonesia where there is a ready supply of raw materials and cheap labour.

He said: 'This gives them an advantage over their Chinese counterparts since raw materials still have to be imported in China.'

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