Design Shanghai reports over 47,000 visitors to its first edition.

As China is rapidly developing as a market for affluent designs, the recent launch of a new exhibition had given the organisers much optimism to the event's future prospects.

Organisers at Design Shanghai has reported that its inaugural event held in Shanghai February 27 to March 2 was an overnight success recording more than  47,000 visitors to the four-day show, 65% of which were architects, interior designers, developers, dealers and affluent design-conscious consumers.   

Design Shanghai was co-organised by Media 10 (organisers of UK fairs:-100% Design, Grand Designs Live, Clerkenwell Design Week and Ideal Home Show), and Shanghai Art Fair Ltd.

Design Shanghai featured some of the UK’s most prestigious design brands exhibiting at the newly renovated Shanghai Exhibition Centre for the first time. The show included more than 50 UK and over 100 international design brands, most of which have never been showcased before in China.

Furthermore, over 600 media representatives from across South East Asia attended the opening day, resulting in 104 television reports on Design Shanghai.

Referring to  Design Shanghai 2014 as the leading trade platform for design professionals in China, with greater numbers of trade visitors than any other design event, Lee Newton, CEO of Media 10 said: “We're absolutely thrilled by the success of Design Shanghai; in particular, by the overall number of visitors.

"We, as Media 10, always wanted to stage a high-end design event in main land China, and when the opportunity arose, we seized it with both hands. China, especially Shanghai, is developing rapidly, but until now, no one has taken major Western design brands to the country.

"We're so pleased with the overall response to Design Shanghai, and we believe that this event is going to grow and become a key global platform for design. We would like to give a special thanks to all the exhibitors who have supported us in achieving this goal, and we look forward to seeing them again in China in 2015.”

Leading design brands including Magis, Flos, Fritz Hansen, Alessi, Boss Design, HAY, Cole & Son and Design Republic (Moooi, Tom Dixon and BD Barcelona Design) were among some of the exhibitors at the show.