Chamber of Furniture Industries of the Philippines

Nicolaas K. De LangeVice President and Corporate Secretary

As one of the countries’ Creative Industries, how is the Philippine Furniture Industry performing?

15151515----Year Furniture Exports Performance Year Furniture Exports Performance Year Furniture Exports Performance Year Furniture Exports Performance 1995 to 2010 (FOB In USD)1995 to 2010 (FOB In USD)1995 to 2010 (FOB In USD)1995 to 2010 (FOB In USD)

15151515----Year Furniture Imports PerformanceYear Furniture Imports PerformanceYear Furniture Imports PerformanceYear Furniture Imports Performance1995 to 2010 (FOB in Million USD)1995 to 2010 (FOB in Million USD)1995 to 2010 (FOB in Million USD)1995 to 2010 (FOB in Million USD)

2010 FURNITURE EXPORTSCOUNTRIES EXPORTS IN MILLION USD

CHINA 33,723

INDONESIA 1,963

JAPAN 1,470

KOREA 665

MALAYSIA 2,471

PHILIPPINES 170

SINGAPORE 202

TAIWAN 1,220

THAILAND 1,172

TURKEY 1,414

VIETNAM 3,436Source: Council of Asia Pacific Furniture Associations

Kenneth Cobonpue

How do we translate the Philippine Creative Brilliance into products that are not price sensitive?

• Marketing/Branding

• Quality materials

• Craftsmanship + Technology

Homestyle products Strategies and Programs of the government:

Integrate promotional efforts of the gov’t : • YES! Support our INTERNATIONAL

SHOW which we have integrated with CITEM’s show

• Support efforts by the industry to market directly to countries we have identified.

BRANDING IS NOT CHEAP, WE CAN’T DO IT ALONE

Homestyle products Strategies and Programs of the government:

Build brands based on green approach– YES! But lets work on our raw material

situation• Sustainable raw materials not in place +

moratorium on logging (EO 23)• Red tape in importing materials (DAO 99-46) +

dutiesIf we want to save our forests, then why regulate

imports?

Homestyle products Strategies and Programs of the government:

Maximize benefits from free trade agreements:• Yes! We should sell more to our neighbours

rather than our traditional markets that are down (US and Europe)

• But we should also look into Tariffs because we allow our competitors to come into the Philippines duty free when the local industries have to pay duties on raw materials.

Homestyle products Strategies and Programs of the government:

Link up furniture and furnishings/decor industries with the tourism industry

• YES! Include furniture in BOI Incentive package to Hotel and Resort Investors to encourage them to buy local and not to import.

Other suggestions• Get DOST to help add technology to the

industry to complement the craftsmanship• Bring in more Foreign Direct Investors into

our industry• Review Labor laws to address issues of

Productivity and costs

• Address Inter-Island Shipping Rates• Get us involved in effort to stop smuggling

to level the playing field in the domestic market.

• We support the Presidents thrust to hone and mobilize our people’s skills and energies as well as the responsible harnessing of our natural resources

• Please keep us in the loop, hear our voice, we stand ready to do our part.

Chamber of Furniture Industries of the Philippines

Nicolaas K. De LangeVice President and Corporate Secretary