23.01.2023 İstanbul
The Union of Chambers and Commodity Exchanges of Türkiye (TOBB) President M. Rifat Hisarcıklıoğlu attended the gala dinner held at the İstanbul Zorlu Center on the occasion of the opening of İstanbul Furniture Fair 2023, which is the largest furniture fair in Europe with the cooperation of Tüyap Expo Co. Inc. and Mos Fuarcılık Co. Inc. and the support of the Federation of Furniture Associations (MOSFED).
In this meeting, to be
held between 24-29 January 2023 and will be held simultaneously in two
exhibition centers, the most important actors of world furniture will come
together. TOBB President M. Rifat Hisarcıklıoğlu drew attention to the
importance of the furniture sector in his speech here.Pointing out that the fair will bring together
the important actors of the furniture sector with over 1,000 participants for 6
days, Hisarcıklıoğlu said, “We all know the importance of the furniture sector
in our country's economy. We have nearly 40,000 producers in almost every
region of Türkiye. In terms of product diversity and number of countries to
which exports are made, our sector proudly represents our country in the world.
In 2022, we reached an export figure of approximately 5 billion dollars. Last
term, despite the pandemic, the furniture industry achieved success. I would
like to express my gratitude to our companies and entrepreneurs, who are the
architects of this great success and breakthrough. However, we shouldn't stop
there. Our goal is to become one of the top 5 exporters in the world. For this, we should be able to follow the
developments in the world closely.”Referring to the importance of the US market in terms of
achieving this goal, Hisarcıklıoğlu said, “Goods are sold to those who have
money and are buying. The U.S. both buys and has money, and it's a $100 billion
market. If we want to be among the top 5, it is not possible without entering
the US market. For this purpose, we opened the Turkish Trade Center in the USA.
It provides you with service in the USA in every subject.”
- E-commerce emphasis
Emphasizing the
necessity and importance of e-commerce in his speech, the TOBB President said:
“Look, the volume of e-commerce in the world is expected to exceed 5 trillion
dollars by 2026. However, Türkiye's share of cross-border e-commerce is very
low. Last year, our Minister of Trade Mr. Mehmet Muş published a program called
New Generation Export Supports, which will be much needed by the sectors. This
support program will give our cross-border e-commerce a breather at a time when
access to finance is becoming so difficult.I find it useful for our furniture sector to
examine this support program implemented by our Ministry and to focus on
customers across borders. As TOBB, we carry out many studies to increase
cross-border e-commerce. We develop projects for you with the leading
marketplaces of our country and the world. Finally, we have created an e-export
portal within the scope of the BiTıkİhracat program, which includes our
Ministry. Our SMEs who benefit from this portal can receive one-to-one
consultancy and mentoring services free of charge in many areas from customs
clearance to billing, from tax to storage. In addition, we are preparing a guide
help our entrepreneurs better understand cross-border e-commerce supports.In short, as TOBB, I want you to know that we
will always support our sector moving forward as it we have in the past. I also
congratulate the work of my Furniture Sector Council and Mr. President.”