29 Apr FMY 63rd edition is presented in the capital of the Region coinciding with the 1200th anniversary of the founding of Murcia

The FMY has given to José Ballesta a lithograph of the 63rd edition poster hand-signed by Lidó Rico on the occasion of the 12 centuries of the city history.

UNDER THE MOTTO ‘I SIT, COMETIMES I SENSE’ WILL BE HELD FROM 27 ^TH TO 30^TH MAY

The 63^rd edition of the Yecla Furniture Fair (FMY), which this year’s slogan ‘I sit, sometimes I sense’ has been officially presented in the Plaza de La Glorieta de España in Murcia, in front of the municipal government headquarters, coinciding with a very important date for the capital of the region, as the city celebrates this year the 1200^th anniversary of its founding.

It is no coincidence, as in previous editions with Cartagena or Caravaca de la Cruz, that the FMY Executive Committee has chosen Murcia for the event’s official presentation. The city celebrates its 12^th century of history this year, a history that will now also be linked to the longest-running furniture fair in Spain.

The presentation ceremony was attended by the regional minister of Enterprise, Employment and Social Economy of the Region of Murcia, Marisa López Aragón, the mayor of Murcia, José Ballesta Germán, the president of the Executive Committee and mayor of Yecla, María Remedios Lajara Domínguez, and the director of the FMY, Juan Miguel Zornoza Muñoz, among other authorities.

First, Zornoza highlighted the framework and the ‘special’ moment of presenting the 63rd edition of Murcia FMY, ‘because not all cities are 1200 years old, not all fairs have more than 60 years of history, as is the case of the Yecla Furniture Fair, which in just four days will bring together thousands of professionals in a sector that provides jobs and generates wealth for thousands of Murcians’.

For her part, Remedios Lajara wanted, first of all, to thank the hosting mayor of this presentation, José Ballesta, for opening the doors of Murcia to Yecla and its fair. ‘This new edition that we present today in Murcia, as part of its 1200th anniversary, is a way to share with this city and with the whole region that pairing Yecla-Furniture that identifies us so much,’ said the mayoress of Yecla.

Regarding this year’s advertising graphics, by Lidó Rico, she affirmed that furniture ‘is that art that is inhabited. An art that is born from the professionalism of its companies and its workers, and that has been cultivated for decades.’ And, as she added, the world of habitat ‘will again put its focus on Yecla to bring together thousands of professionals interested in upholstery, contract, decoration, rest or furniture, among others’.

‘Our aim is to beat last year’s visitor figures and, to do so, we are counting on our companies’ commitment, commercial agents and the involvement of the administration and other entities, which are fundamental to this project,’ said Lajara.

The FMY, she continued, is once again ‘following the path started with the international contract conferences and specialised training. Initiatives that, together with those promoted by the Regional Government, such as trade missions, help us to position ourselves in international markets.’

Subsequently, the Minister Marisa Lopez Aragon has highlighted that the regional furniture sector exported products worth 25.62 million euros during the first two months of the year, representing a growth of 2.8% over the same period of 2024, and the positioning of Murcia as the seventh largest Spanish autonomous community exporting furniture.

The Minister stressed that ‘behind every piece of furniture exported there are hours of work, ingenuity, innovation, design and a great commitment to constant improvement, so we can firmly say that companies in the furniture sector in the Region are demonstrating that, with daily dedication and vision, you can grow even in contexts of high global competition.’ The countries that have bought more regional products are France, Italy, Portugal and Germany, a country that stands out with an increase of more than 22 percent in purchases of furniture manufactured by companies in the Region of Murcia.

Mayor Ballesta, who closed the event, explained that ‘this year, the Yecla town fair, the oldest in Spain, which is celebrating its 63^rd edition, although it was founded 64 years ago, is going to offer 20,000 square metres of fairgrounds in a sector in which more than 10,000 people work and in which there are 500 companies in just 5 square kilometres, that is, the municipality of Yecla. It is the largest concentration of this sector in Spain.’

At the end of his speech, José Ballesta received a gift from the trade fair institution on the occasion of the 1200^th anniversary of the foundation of Murcia, a lithograph of this 63^rd edition’s poster, created by Lidó Rico, hand-signed and part of a limited series that has been produced.

YECLA FURNITURE CAPITAL FROM 27 TO 30 MAY

The town of Yecla will once again become the furniture capital from 27^th to 30^th May, emerging as a pole of national and international attraction for the sector. In fact, in the 63^rd edition there will be a strong international presence thanks to the trade missions organised by INFO (Institute for Development of the Region of Murcia) in collaboration with Arema (Regional Association of Furniture and Wood Entrepreneurs of the Region of Murcia).

For this year, INFO, which has been in charge of the internationalisation of this event for 20 years, has organised a trade mission in which representatives of the sector from Hungary, Poland, Ukraine, the United Kingdom, Russia, Kazakhstan, Uzbekistan, France, Italy, Morocco, Egypt and Switzerland will participate.

Minister Marisa López Aragón explained that ‘the arrival of international delegations reflects the work being done by the sector and the administrations to position the Region of Murcia as a benchmark in quality and design’. ‘This type of trade missions are essential to generate high-value contacts and move forward in the signing of agreements that boost exports and economic growth,’ she added.

Moreover, during the event, the experience and trajectory of those companies in the sector that have been exhibiting at the fair for years will be recognised. An award will also be presented for the best stand, valuing the concept, product distribution, accessibility, innovation and sustainability, textures, colours, lighting and technological systems, among other criteria.

Finally, the Regional Ministry of Enterprise, Employment and Social Economy, through the INFO, has organised a ‘Contract’ day within the framework of Yecla Furniture Fair. This meeting, which will take place on 28th May at the fairgrounds, will include round table discussions, conferences, visits to industries and designers. The speakers for this day are architects, designers and purchasing advisor who will come from the United Kingdom, Morocco, Portugal and Madrid.