Salone del Mobile.Milano
Fiera di Milano, Rho
April 08, 2025 – April 13, 2025

More than 2,000 exhibitors from 37 countries. The 2025 edition of the Salone, at Fiera Milano, Rho, from 8th to 13th April, is reinforcing its role as a strategic accelerator of sectoral excellence driving change. Inspired by the visionary approach of Pierre-Yves Rochon, Paolo Sorrentino and Robert Wilson. The first International Forum on Light. Five days of Talks and Round Tables. The countdown to the 63rd edition of the Salone del Mobile.Milano (8th-13th April, Fiera Milano, Rho) has begun. Once again it promises to be the industry’s leading international event with more than 2,000 exhibitors (38% from abroad), 148 brands including first timers and returnees, ranged over 169,000 square metres of totally sold out net exhibition space, including over 32,000 square metres given over to the eagerly awaited return – following the success of the 2023 edition The City of Lights – of the Euroluce Biennial (more than 300 brands, from 25 countries). Not to mention SaloneSatellite, with 700 designers under 35 and 20 international schools and universities. These figures summarise the result of intense scouting and promotional activity for an event that, every year, gains the trust of a national and international supply chain that recognises the role of the Salone as a strategic platform for business, sustainable innovation and internationalisation, thanks to its ongoing commitment to intercepting an increasingly broad and profiled audience of professionals from all over the world (more than 370,000 from 146 countries in 2024).

Once again, new visions will fuel a Cultural Programme of the highest level with 3 site-specific installations, at the Salone and in the city: Pierre-Yves Rochon. Villa Héritage (Pavs. 13-15), Paolo Sorrentino. La dolce attesa (Pavs. 22-24), Robert Wilson. Mother (Museo Pietà Rondanini – Castello Sforzesco). A multidisciplinary focus on lighting design, the absolute protagonist of the first edition of The Euroluce International Lighting Forum (10th -11th April, The Forest of Space Arena by Sou Fujimoto, Pav. 2); the Drafting Futures Talks and Round Tables that will bring together some of the brightest minds on the contemporary scene; and lastly a communication campaign – Thought for Humans. – reminding us how every project must respond, in the name of emotional intelligence, to the needs of human beings.

Maria Porro, President of Salone del Mobile.Milano had this to say: “We closed the 2024 edition with record numbers: over 370,000 professionals from 146 countries. This year, the Salone will yet again open in April with a totally sold-out exhibition area, despite the uncertainties of the global scenarios. A result that illustrates our constant commitment to improving the visitor experience, services to the public and exhibitors, promotional activities abroad, and the creation of new formats that have enabled us to forge new strategic alliances over the past year in the United States, China, and – not least – to sign a Memorandum this January with Saudi Arabia, which will open up new opportunities for Made in Italy in a market in which sectoral exports are up 22.8%. Our mission has always been to turn the international spotlight on the sector’s excellence. In Milan and throughout the world.

The percentage of Italian and foreign exhibitors attending the last 10 editions of the annual exhibitions is 59.4%. A figure that, in the overall context of international exhibitions, is a testament to the success of the Salone in its dual role as a business accelerator and content producer. As always, every year, the Salone reinvests heavily not only in the trade fair but also in a leading Cultural Programme. In an ever-changing world, we are all called upon to become part of a broader vision that enables us to interpret environmental, cultural, social, and technological transformations. For the Salone, investing in culture means investing in the future of companies, strengthening their competitiveness in the long term. Taking part in the Salone means exhibiting, connecting and producing value, as well as actively contributing to the evolution of the sector, as part of a platform that fuels debate on scenarios and visions for the future.”

Maria Porro continued: “In terms of competitiveness, our commitment to sustainability is also fundamental, seeing us once again pursuing new goals as part of the ISO 20121 sustainable events management certification process, and furthering our commitment to raising exhibitors’ awareness through the adoption of the Salone‘s Green Guidelines for installations. Lastly, the Salone also means SaloneSatellite: talents under 35. A creative reservoir, the only one of its kind in the world, that allows us to discuss the future every year in an intergenerational dialogue. It is a huge opportunity: the Salone is industrial manufacturing, creative capital and working capital; it is Milan, it is a bridge that takes us into the world, it is young people. In 2024, the number of student visitors rose by 28.6%. This year, we are ready to renew the invitation with specially discounted tickets for those who are about to enter the world of our sector’s infinite manufacturing professions. It is together with the companies, with the ‘thinkers’ taking part in the 2025 Cultural Programme, and with young people, that we want to build worlds fit for the future.”

Claudio Feltrin, President of FederlegnoArredo, said: “It is the highest expression of our industrial manufacturing and an indispensable asset for companies in search of new markets and new audiences; it is the international showcase at which a year’s work on research and innovation allows brands to ‘explode’ in all their magnitude. And it is thanks to the strength of exhibitors and products that the Salone del Mobile.Milano continues to set trends and lead markets across the world, like the Oscars for film production. Over the years, the event has evolved and renewed itself, but it has never lost its natural centre of gravity as the most attractive and important business fair for the design industry. There is no more powerful tool than the Salone del Mobile.Milano for tackling the industrial challenges facing the sector, and indeed it becomes even more so in tough economic times such as the present, in which the Salone becomes an instrument of industrial policy.

More than 60 years ago, a group of wood-furniture entrepreneurs came up with the brilliant idea of organising the fair in Milan, allowing potential customers from distant markets to come and purchase their products. Well, despite the fact that distances have become shorter and the world has changed, their idea continues to be a winner, because the Salone unleashes a contagious energy capable of bringing the world of design to Milan. It is from the pavilions at Rho Fiera that a long wave starts to break, taking in the city and involving the world of design in its broadest sense. Thanks to all the companies that have continued to believe in the Salone del Mobile over the years, because only together can we continue to build the strength of the sector and maintain our leadership.”

Accompanied by the new communication campaign Thought for Humans., devised by Dentsu Creative Italy, which entrusted the American photographer Bill Durgin with the task of making tangible the subtle relationship between human beings and material, the April 2025 edition of the Salone will feature four annual exhibitions: the Salone Internazionale del Mobile, the International Furnishing Accessories Exhibition, Workplace3.0, S.Project for a total of over 1,000 brands, including 73 first timers or returnees. In line with the evolutionary path we have been on since 2023, visitors will be at the centre of an increasingly fluid and integrated experience again this year. In terms of layout, the latest innovation is the loop-shaped redesign of four pavilions (13-15 and 22-24).

The entire exhibition will be accessible via new themed routes, allowing visitors to take in the distinctive features of an unrivalled offering. A new focus will be devoted to the all-Italian ability to create timeless objects, which the Salone 2025 is naming A Luxury Way (Pavilions 13-15). SaloneSatellite, with 700 designers from 36 countries and 20 international design schools and universities, will once again hedge its bets on talented youngsters under 35. The theme of the 26th edition is New Craftsmanship: a New World, an invitation to reimagine the universe of handmade products beyond the vernacular.

The aim is to activate a bridge between heritage and the future, starting from the idea that craftsmanship is capable of generating new interactions with contemporary design in the name of sustainability and the value of local cultural identities. A powerfully stimulating reflection for a sector that, in its multiple product declinations, must respond to the needs of constantly evolving demand and new export geographies. Once again this year, ITA – Italian Trade Agency has provided important support for the Salone del Mobile.Milano in creating new exhibition formats in the United States and China, two key markets., The Salone continued its journey around Europe, Canada and India with its international promotional tour Salone, Milano and beyond, finally accepting an invitation to take part in the 2025 edition of Italian Design Day, promoted by the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and International Cooperation, representing the best of Made in Italy in the capitals of Mexico, Indonesia and Saudi Arabia. In April, ITA will reaffirm its commitment to the event, bringing the largest number of qualified foreign professionals from 35 different countries to Milan.

The IBL-International Business Lounge (Pavs. 13 and 15) will be there to welcome them. The European delegations will hail from France, Germany, Spain, and the United Kingdom, while professionals from further afield, such as Saudi Arabia, Australia, Azerbaijan, Canada, Chile, China, South Korea, the United Arab Emirates, Japan, India, Mexico, Qatar, Singapore, the United States, and South Africa are also expected.

In the year of Euroluce, the Salone del Mobile.Milano will open with Robert Wilson’s Mother, at the Museo Pietà Rondanini – Castello Sforzesco, where on 6th April, in an ideal bridge with Milano Art Week, the famous American artist will dialogue with Michelangelo’s unfinished last masterpiece to music by Arvo Pärt (in collaboration with the Municipality of Milan- Culture, until 18th May). At the Salone, visitors will be greeted by a project of strong emotional impact: La dolce attesa, a site-specific installation by Oscar winner Paolo Sorrentino (Pavilions 22-24) followed by a chance to examine Villa Héritage in Pavilions 13-15, a visionary interior design project by Pierre-Yves Rochon, the French architect who has designed some of the most exclusive “addresses” in international hospitality, not least the Waldorf Astoria in New York. Also, at the Salone, for the third year running, the Formafantasma Arena will host Drafting Futures. Conversations about Next Perspectives (Pav. 14): 5 days of talks and round tables curated by Annalisa Rosso, Editorial Director & Cultural Events Advisor of the Salone, featuring, among others, thinkers and architects such as Lesley Lokko, founder of the Africa Futures Institute and curator of the 18th International Architecture Exhibition of Biennale di Venezia, Valeria Segovia, Director and Design Director of Gensler in London, the world’s largest architecture firm in terms of turnover and number of architects with clients in over 100 countries. While concluding the lecture series will be the filmmaker Paolo Sorrentino.

The Corraini Mobile Bookshop, curated by Corraini Edizioni, will provide an opportunity to discover an international selection of more than 110 publishers, including many independents from all over the world. In addition to these, there will be the two-day first edition of The Euroluce International Lighting Forum. Under the headings Light for Life and Light for Spaces, the forum will be held in the new Forest of Space Arena by Sou Fujimoto, hosting 6 masterclasses, 2 round tables, 2 workshops with 20 international speakers. An event that will make Euroluce 2025 a hub of knowledge and innovation for the future of lighting design. The guests will include Stefano Mancuso, pioneer of plant neurobiology, the solar designer Marjan van Aubel, and the Japanese lighting designer Kaoru Mende, who will explore the present and future of lighting design from three different perspectives: innovation, sustainability and well-being.

Once again this year, the Salone will be taking in Milan as part of the Milano Design Week with an international cultural programme – not just Robert Wilson. Mother, at the Museo Pietà Rondanini – Castello Sforzesco, in collaboration with the Municipality of Milan | Culture. For the fifth consecutive year, the Salone is renewing its ties with the Teatro alla Scala Foundation. Robert Wilson will be curating the official opening evening at La Scala with The Night Before. Object Chairs Opera, a journey through some of the most famous pieces of operatic repertoire that he has directed over the years. They will be performed by the Teatro alla Scala Orchestra, conducted by Michele Spotti, with the participation of the soprano Marina Rebeka. On stage will be a selection of “objects” and “chairs” from Wilson’s historic sets.

The Design Kiosk, the Salone del Mobile landmark entrusted to Corraini Edizioni (a DWADesign Studio project), will also be back, again in Piazza della Scala (1st-13th April), providing a venue for a series of presentations (6 pm). Next to the Design Kiosk, the three-dimensional Salone del Mobile.Milano calligraphic sign, renewed, in line with the event’s new coordinated image. Last but not least, the Salone will take over the city to an even greater extent than last year: more than 100 showrooms belonging to brands exhibiting at the Annual Exhibitions and Euroluce will join in the great design festival, featuring in the fuorisalone.it guide, and throwing open their doors to design lovers. With the aim of involving citizens and visitors, facilitating the flow of information during the Design Week, this year too Salone will be promoting the Welcome Project, in collaboration with the Municipality of Milan, Fondazione Fiera Milano, NABA, Nuova Accademia delle Belle Arti, IED Istituto Europeo di Design, Design School – Politecnico di Milano, and Domus Academy.

More than 100 students will be involved, providing the public with information on the Salone and the main events in the city. Giuseppe Sala, Mayor of Milan, had this to say: ”Milan and the Salone del Mobile are undoubtedly part of each other’s history: they are united by a relationship that grows stronger and stronger every year. Our city is proud to share with the Salone del Mobile the ability to grasp the challenges of the present and the commitment to study, carry out and come up with solutions that can have a positive impact on the future of the sector and in the life of the community. For this reason, I see the theme chosen for the 63rd edition of the Salone del Mobile.Milano – enlightened humanism – as both a powerful creative stimulus for all those who work in the field of design and an interesting opportunity to reflect on current events for the many enthusiasts, tourists and buyers who will take part in the events organised in the exhibition spaces and those in the city.

Even in 2025, the Salone will be an unmissable event.” Attilio Fontana, President of the Lombard Region, commented: “We are ready to enthusiastically welcome the 63rd edition of the Salone del Mobile, a landmark for Milan, Lombardy and Made in Italy. The Lombard Region stands with this extraordinary platform of creativity and innovation, capable of evolving without ever betraying its essence as a cultural, economic and social driving force. The Salone del Mobile is a springboard for the entire region, boosting the skills, businesses and professionals that contribute to Lombardy’s excellence. We are confident that once again this year expectations will be amply repaid and that the event will be confirmed as a symbol of growth and development.”

more. www.salonemilano.it