New York — Koelnmesse GmbH, organizer of imm cologne held annually at the Cologne Exhibition Center in Germany, offered a preview of the upcoming international furnishings trade show, set for Jan. 19-25, 2009, during a recent press luncheon in New York.

The trade show organizer also unveiled the interior design trends that the show’s “Trendboard” predicted for 2009 and beyond, following a two-day meeting of its five members this summer in Barcelona, Spain.

The trends the board predicted, event organizers said, will be seen at the show, which, in 2008, attracted 107,000 attendees, including kitchen designers, members of the international furniture and furnishing retail trade, interior designers, architects and other trade professionals from 130 countries.

The four trend niches explored included “Extra Much,” which encompassed designs that have a natural composition, feature a blue-grey base and are richly detailed, noted Burks. “Near and Far,” explained Burks, is about taking familiar looks and experimenting with them, using natural materials such as sea grass and bamboo and warm, light and natural tones. “Tepee Culture,” said Burks, features geometric forms, recyclable materials and rich, muted colors of red, orange, green and brown. And the basic premise of “Re-Run Time,” added Burks, is that everything old is new again, borrowing ideas from the past and updating them.

Koelnmesse officials also revealed that a portion of the 2009 show will be dedicated specifically to kitchens products.
Information about imm cologne can be obtained by visiting www.imm-cologne.com.