Malaysia External Trade Development Corporation

MISSION TO PROMOTE MALAYSIAN FURNITURE IN MUMBAI PROVED FRUITFUL

MONDAY, DECEMBER 14, 2015, KUALA LUMPUR: The Malaysia External Trade Development Corporation (MATRADE) has recently organised a Specialised Marketing Mission (SMM) on furniture to Mumbai from 1 – 5 December 2015. The mission, which involved eight Malaysia’s furniture suppliers, has registered sales of RM 44 million.

The event was organised as part of MATRADE’s quick-win measures to boost exports of Malaysian furniture products globally especially in India. The event has also provided Malaysian companies an opportunity to meet with India’s largest retailers as well as project owners in India.

India has been identified as a high-potential market for Malaysian furniture players as there is a growing middle class and an increasing amount of expendable income contributing to a rapid growth in India’s furniture retail. In 2014, India was the 8th largest consumer of furniture and among the top-5 retail markets in the world.

New retail channels such as e-retail have further increased the penetration into the market and offered greater exposure especially among the young consumers. The online furniture retail in India accounted for USD 115 million in 2014. However, it is expected to grow swiftly to USD 2.3 billion by 2018. Increased internet penetration and growth in smart-phone usage, especially in India’s Tier-II and Tier-III cities, are also driving the growth. More than 50 per cent of the online buyers hail from these cities.

In the first ten months of 2015, India’s imports of furniture from Malaysia have grown 37.5 per cent to RM270.1 million. Malaysia was the second largest furniture exporter to India during this period after China. This huge jump in imports was due to competitiveness of Malaysian products in India along with the increased growth of organised furniture retail.

Free Trade Agreements such as ASEAN India Free Trade Agreement (AIFTA) and Malaysia India Comprehensive Economic Cooperation Agreement (MICECA) have also led to the reduction of import duties for furniture products in India giving an additional age for Malaysian products.

MATRADE Mumbai Trade Commissioner, Mr. Mazlan Harun said “In order to maximise the delegation’s visit to India, a series of meetings were organised with four of the largest furniture retail chains in India. As part of the strategies to promote Malaysian furniture in the fast growing e-commerce sector in India, various meetings were also organised with the top three Indian general e-marketplaces and an Indian top furniture e-retailer. In addition, 148 business meetings were coordinated between the Malaysian companies and selected Indian importers.”

Major Indian real estate developers too, participated in the business meetings to source for furniture for their real estate projects across India. Complementing this was the participation of interior fit out and design companies who came to understand the latest trends in Malaysian furniture to directly source these products for their various commercial projects in India.

“The Indian companies were interested in products like upholstered sofa, dining and living sets, and bedroom furniture, bedding, DIY furniture and office furniture,” Mazlan said.