As all familiar with the annual cycle of the European furniture industry know, the first half of January is IMM Cologne, one of Europe's largest furniture trade fairs.
It's an established, and inalienable, fact.
January ≣ IMM Cologne
There is no IMM Cologne in January 2025.
News that came as a bit of a shock.
Not least to a Cologne hotel industry that has long laboured under the impression that its rooms were a lot, lot, lot, more expensive to maintain and run in the first two weeks of January than at most other times of the year. Turns out they aren't. Turns out you can rent hotel rooms in Cologne at normal prices in early January. And also came as a shock for the growing horde of Influencers who increasingly... no, we'll return to them in a couple of minutes.
And, and cynicism aside, apologies, it also came as a shock for those great many furniture manufacturers whose year's are timed to the European furniture industry's annual cycle, much like a tree's year is timed to, in harmony, with the annual cycle of nature: a natural annual cycle that runs from spring to autumn, and rests in winter; a European furniture industry annual cycle that runs from IMM Cologne in January to Maison et Objet Paris in September, and rests in winter.
Yet for all that we appreciate the problems the cancellation of IMM Cologne 2025 brings and brought manufactures and designers, and hotels and Influencers, we can't pretend we're sad.
For far too long it's been clear that the focus of the international furniture industry in all its hues on a few major fairs, primarily IMM Cologne and Salone Milano, was not only unsustainable and irresponsible but harmful.
On the one hand, shipping untold tonnes of furniture, the greater majority of which no one needs, which will never be bought, if ever enter production, untold thousands of kilometres there and back before, in a great many cases, disposing of it, never was economically, ecologically or morally justifiable, but for decades we couldn't see that through the fog of society. Today we can see it. And must see it.
And on the other hand, the popular and medial focus on a small number of major events, a popular and medial focus that by extrapolation tends to place other events in a sound-insulted shade, is and was detrimental to the development of furniture as a cultural good, not least through meaning as it does the need to ensure that at those few events of popular and medial focus your products are heard above the noise of everyone else trying to be heard. Something that, invariably, works best through taking as few risks as possible, through publishing a designer everyone has heard of, whether living or dead, and through a corruption of the word 'new', an alienation of the word 'new' from its previously, apparently, fixed, intransigent, definition, that all tends to not only a homogenisation of the furniture market but impedes and stalls the development of furniture and thereby of society. The two existing as they do in state of continual interplay; homogenisation, an artificial limitation and pre-selection in and of the number of voices contributing, a reliance on the past, and a marketing led confusing of 'different' for 'new', in both spheres, being dangerous for not only oneself, but onesother. And a homogenisation, a reduction in the number of designers being given a fair chance, and a taking of appalling liberties with 'new', that although, arguably, has been a problem for a while, has become exponentially amplified of late in the selfish echo chamber of social media, not least on account of the aforementioned growing horde of Influencers who increasingly are to be found in the Cologne and Milan halls, explaining furniture visually, generically, stereotypically, for a fee, unhelpfully, etc, etc, etc.
We do appreciate, and fully accept, the need for and necessity of manufacturers to present their products, to engage with customers of all hues, that platforms of exchange and communication are needed, but vast international annual trade fairs have ceased, practically and conceptually and socially, to be that platform; have become part of the problem. A great many important international manufacturers have realised nothing of the even vaguest interest for years, for us a telling symptom of the contemporary malaise.
Which is one of the reasons we stopped attending IMM Cologne and Salone Milano. We couldn’t continue to support what they represent, couldn't continue encouraging them, couldn't continue pretending it was all OK. Because it ain't.
That and because we've had some of our deepest existential crises at IMM Cologne and Salone Milano, moments where in the middle of an exhibition hall we've come to a physical and mental standstill, asked ourselves what is the point of caring about furniture, caring about furniture design, in a world obsessed with monetising a formalistic interpretation of a romanticised tourist gaze. Or of a formalistic rehash of the past, or a formalistic rehash of a competitor's new best seller, or someone’s 'signature', or presenting an existing product in a new colour scheme. ¿Why are we doing this?
But then, as we noted a couple of years ago from Stockholm, furniture trade fairs aren't for the likes of us. Much as we want them to be for the likes of us, because they can be meaningful and rewarding experiences.
Not that it's all about us. Obviously. Never was, never should be.
Outwith those who promote, and profit from staging, vast international furniture trade fairs, you will find other voices pining for change. For alternatives to the few vast, monopolising fairs.
The question is how can, should, must, the hows and wheres the international furniture industry presents its new projects and communicates with retailers, architects, interior designers, designers, consumers et al be reformed so that one has events where success isn't a question of how deep your pockets are, how loud you can shout and how wide your (social) media penetration is, but rather where those doing the most interesting, meaningful, responsive work rise naturally to the top. Thereby supporting and stimulating the development of a cultural good we all rely on, physically and metaphysically.
Yes, such does also require fundamental changes in how furniture is viewed and consumed; changes, we'd argue, that come with real change in how and where furniture projects are presented and discussed.
And so, for us, for all the cancellation of IMM Cologne 2025 came as a shock, it was also a welcome, and important, opportunity for all to reflect in more detail about the past, present and future. An urgently needed reflective moment.
We've long argued for a greater focus on a network of smaller regional fairs where, primarily, local manufacturers are present, alongside manufacturers from elsewhere via their sales agents with stock they in any case have, thereby not only reducing the myriad negative impacts of the current system, but bringing a lot more voices into the discourse, while spreading the fringe profits from accommodation, gastronomy , stand construction et al a little wider. If that is the answer, we no know, but we have long argued for it and stand by those arguments. Yes, there is therein an implied necessity for a wide variety of industry professionals to travel more in order to visit the variety of events their position demands; but, much like a Hein Köster, the former editor of the design magazine Form+Zweck, reminds us that "distributing plans is cheaper than transporting finished products"1, so to does distributing industry professionals have less of an impact than transporting finished products, if that is we all take responsibility for where we travel, how we travel, what we do once we're there and occasionally decide not to travel but to delegate. That taking responsibility that we all find so hard, but which is one of the keys to moving global human society forward.
Kölnmesse, and those with whom they co-organise IMM Cologne, have made their decision and have decoupled the more design orientated manufacturers from the mass market manufactures, if one so will, have removed those halls that hosted the more design orientated manufactures from IMM and given them their own platform: interior design days cologne, idd cologne.2 A new, potentially just different, time will tell, event due to launch in October 2025 and which pleasingly, for us, will be every two years, alternating, one assumes, with the Orgatec office furniture trade fair, with IMM continuing from January 2026 as an annual event for those more mass market orientated manufacturers.
A biennial idd cologne concept that not only recalls IMM's very pleasing origins as a biennial rather than an annual event, but one which will, hopefully, take some of the pressure from the manufactures, will give them the space and time they require in which to develop projects, their portfolios and their positions. Trees need an annual cycle, furniture doesn't, it was given one for commercial reasons. In many regards the longer the European furniture industry cycle the better. (While not forgetting that in furniture culture and commerce are intricately linked which means that the commercial aspects must always be considered. But a trade fair every two years, or a network which alternates every two years, is, for us, preferable to a calender of annual events.)
If the European furniture industry agree with us, is another question. As is the one if Kölnmesse's concept is taken up by the industry, certainly the German industry who, one assumes, will be central to idd cologne: there are other German cities looking to challenge Cologne's long held primacy in terms of furniture trade fairs in the lands of the contemporary Germany, others who will no doubt feel emboldened by events on the Rhein and be hopeful of persuading design orientated brands to exhibit at their events. How the various manufacturers respond to the various offers that will be made to them will be decisive. Watch this space.
¿And will we visit idd cologne 2025? Possibly. We'll have to wait and see.
Not least because the staging of idd in the autumn decouples it from another event: Passagen Interior Design Week Cologne.
A Passagen Interior Design Week Cologne established in 1990 as an accompaniment to IMM Cologne, and which is taking place in January 2025.
A Passagen Interior Design Week that for all at times it can be a little too sickly sweet corporate for our likings, indeed in the past some of its offerings have left us feeling nauseous — "nauseous", "existential crises", one could be forgiven for thinking we don't like Cologne, far from it, we're very partial to Cologne, and have had some mighty good times there over the years, including in context of furniture, and at IMM — however, such unpalatable moments are rare, and on the whole Passagen provides a platform, a relatively democratic platform, not only for established brands of all sizes but also new brands seeking to become established, for independent designers presenting their positions, for students feeling their way forward, and all who feel they have something of value to add to the discourse.
And also stands as reminder that while a design week can be a banal location market concept to stand alongside any and every city's marathon, film festival, or, and as the newest global location market hit, a wintery 'City of Lights' programme, Think of the social media posts we'll get!!!, Some of them might even go viral!!!, a design week can also be a very effective manner in which to mediate design, advance social and cultural discourses and support the local economy. And to have some actual fun. To get out and about, to get to know the host city a bit better.
Thus Passagen Interior Design Week Cologne implies that decentralised design weeks could, possibly, provide an alternative to the centralised trade fair. And there is an established European annual design week cycle, one that kicks of in January in Cologne.
If Passagen Interior Design Week Cologne will feel itself forced to move to October to accompany idd, and to become biennial rather than annual, or stick fast as an annual event in January. We no know.
Alone we know that Passagen Interior Design Week Cologne was staged in January 2025, that we were there, that we regularly walked the wrong way, got lost, misread showcase opening times, found ourselves in front of closed doors that should have been open, and all the other elements that constitute visiting any and every design week, and that in the coming days and weeks we will bring you some of our reflections on some of the works and projects and positions experienced at, and some of our reflections on, Passagen Interior Design Week Cologne 2025.
Cologne Passagen Interior Design Week 2025 has now finished, for reasons far beyond our control we were very late in Cologne this year, much, much later than planned, apologies.
Full details on what you have missed can be found at www.voggenreiter.com/passagen2025
[Here will stand a listing of our posts from Passagen Interior Design Week Cologne 2025, but first we need some...]
1Hein Köster, Die Erste Jahre, Form+Zweck, Vol. 11, Nr. 5, 1979 page 19
2We have always written 'IMM' in uppercase, possibly incorrectly, for having checked Kölnmesse appear to always have written it in lowercase. 'idd cologne' is lowercase. As we've always written 'IMM' in uppercase we've keeping that here, but using lower case for 'idd'. Even though we strongly disapprove of using lowercase in event names. It's an unhelpful affectation.
