November has come and gone and with it the 61st remarkable edition of Italy’s internationally recognised hospitality exhibition, SIA Guest. Officially partnered with the Society of British Interior Design (SBID), the exhibition once again offered a hub for top-tier manufacturers, service providers and designers, both Italian and foreign, operating in the hospitality market.

SIA Guest, organized by Rimini Fiera S.P.A. at the Rimini Expo Centre fair ground in Italy, took place on 26-29 November 2011 and focused on business and excellence in innovation, attracting 600 exhibiting firms and more than 37,000 professional trade visitors from 30 different countries. A stand was provided for the Society in the TREND hall to promote its hard work towards better standards in the industry, and the benefits of membership for international manufacturers and designers. Fittingly, SIA Trend is a new hall in which a business area and cultural exhibition are combined, under the banner of experimentation for hotels and collective venues.

The Society took this opportunity to officially announce that it will be hosting the SBID International Design Awards wp-content/2012 at SIA Guest next year, with a focus on contract interior design. The competition will be open from December.

A hand-picked delegation of SBID’s top interior designers and architects was invited to attend the exhibition, meet the best international manufacturers on a one-to-one basis and participate in broader networking events, with a complementary 5-star hotel stay at i-Suite.

The British delegation was impressed by the unique mix of innovation and trends showcased: alongside the products of leading firms in the sectors of contract furnishings (china, glassware, silverware, table linens, bed linens), interdeco’ (fabrics, flooring, carpets and interior décor accessories), food service equipment, technology and illumination, safety, bathroom, wellness and fitness.

The 60,000m² of exhibit space offered a series of special displays, workshops, demos and conferences which completed the agenda. Exhibitors were given a chance to meet a qualified, select public thanks to b2b meetings and new formats that attracted buyers from major markets. The setting made for stimulating and fruitful encounters between supply and demand.

With a unique mix of innovation, trends, atmosphere, and conferences, the hospitality trade show is a not-to-be missed annual date for hospitality sector professionals – book early or become an SBID member to join the free annual delegation.

This year the continuing importance of London on the world design stage was very much brought to the fore at 100% Design, and SBID was pleased to partner in its promotion of innovation and quality showcased by so many of its members.

It was the first time SBID had exhibited (stand A50) at the show taking full opportunity to educate stakeholders (designers, architects, manufacturers, students and consumers) on what the organisation does: our plans for the future as well as our achievements over our first two years of existence.

We also displayed some of our members’ latest products; including a Villiers Console table, a Lasvit lamp, a DecoFlame Ellipse fireplace, flooring from KarndeanDesign Flooring from Van Gogh range, and a pair of Natuzzi Vani vases.

Over 500 visitors registered for membership information to join SBID at the four day event.

Our stand was also the venue for a breakfast talk on Saturday by The Times’s Style Editor, Dr Richard Dixon, to a group of American interiors bloggers (pictured below).

Vanessa Brady, SBID President, opened the seminar session on Thursday 22 September with a talk on ‘Design Law and Order,’ addressing issues such as designer fee rates, intellectual property and qualification criteria.

SBID also organised a networking event in conjunction with Prato Chamber of Commerce and the Italian Chamber of Commerce and Industry for the UK – over 170 guests attended the Made in Italy evening, supported by MP Mike Weatherley.

As the UK’s first and leading contemporary design show, 100% Design outdid itself this time round and remains a hub of creative talent from the UK and around the world and a key event in the international design calendar. It brought together three inspiring exhibitions under one roof: world-class interiors show 100% Design, innovative surfaces at 100% Materials plus emerging talent showcase 100% Futures.