With Poland about to join the European Union in 2004, the country's furniture producers are gearing up to face stiff competition.

This year has seen a shortage of new ideas in the Polish market, with Polish producers and Western distributors holding their breath on the eve EU accession. Barely two years ago, there was a widespread discussion concerning Polish design and Polish brands. Most producers would commission new designs with Polish and Western design studios. There was plenty of furniture carrying the producer's trademark and the designer's name. Still, the economic slowdown proved fatal and this year most furniture factories shelved their new products, waiting for better times. Financial difficulties affect promotion rather than production, particularly evident last May at the fair in Poznań, which is normally the place for new products. This year they could be counted on the fingers of one hand.

Sofas
The majority of new items were upholstered furniture, a sector where Poland has been very strong for years. The Com 40 furniture factory presented a set called Mono, interesting in terms of design and functionality. The producer is relatively new to the Polish market, but over the past two years it has introduced over a dozen sofa models. The Mono chaise lounge, designed by renowned Polish furniture designer Tomasz Augustyniak, won acclaim on the first day of the fair in Poznań.

Two new designs were shown by Iker. One is a sofa called Bora, a modern classic featuring a simple form and clearly accentuated racks. Willy is a sofa with a sleep function, useful in small apartments, but functional in larger ones as well. A new collection of sofas and chairs was also presented by Eljot. Its Tutti set, designed by Jerzy Langier, features simple, light and ergonomic furniture which suits offices rather than houses. You can use the set to arrange places to relax, increasingly popular in companies and offices. In the international Prodeco design competition, held in Poland for the past two years, Tutti won the main prize in the category of work/producer.

Kler, which owns a large chain of stores across Poland, introduced a new series of products this fall. The collection is addressed to younger customers looking for bolder and more modern designs. Kler will promote two lines: a calm, traditional one labeled Classic and a dynamic, refined line called Avantgarde. Both are targeted primarily at the Polish market.

Office furniture
The last year hasn't brought anything special in this area. There were more "facelifts" than new proposals. At the fair in Poznań, many producers showed familiar furniture sets in new updated colors of veneer. At the Biuro (Office) exhibition accompanying the fair, the Austrian furniture producer Svoboda presented a set called Enjoy. It is quite an innovative proposal, designed to help arrange and customize offices, prepared by Walther Hosel. The set features lockers where employees can store their personal belongings and dividing walls with hangers and mirrors that are handy for both women and men. Enjoy won the Prodeco 2003 award in the category work/distributor.

Rather more controversial was a meeting place called Spare. It is a curtain hanging from the ceiling on a round rail, with a table and chairs placed inside. From the outside, you can only see the legs of those who are inside. You can mount and dismount it anywhere in your office.

Swedish office furniture producer Kinnarps presented its new Arimi set at Prodeco. Arimi is a simple, modest and yet elegant set of manager's furniture. Designers Sture Eng and Dan Ihreborn made clear references to the design of the 1960s in the shapes of the lockers and legs.

When it came to Polish producers, a brand system was presented by the MDD factory of office furniture. Its Areo set, designed by Barbara Witek, is a multi-element system of manager's furniture employing wood, glass and aluminum.

A number of producers have announced new products for early next year. Mikomax is preparing a proposal for study rooms called Mirage. Balma and Mebelux are working on similar products as well. Time will tell whether 2004-the year of Poland's accession to the EU-will bring new designs and products.

Chairs
Office chairs are the order of the day. In this category, Poland can boast products from Nowy Styl and Profim. The Active chair, designed by Grzegorz Olech for Profim, is a high-end chair for offices. In the lux version, you can lower the back to a horizontal position. In the Fast chair, Augustyniak has put a special flexible netting over the inner structure of the back.

Nowy Styl has the Exclamation, a new-generation swivel chair. Equipped with a special synchro system, the Exclamation responds to weight and movement. The chair's comfortable armrests are adjustable in three directions. Additionally, the chair can have a headrest and a cushion supporting the spine. The chair was designed by Jerzy Buchacz.

Polish producers, who for the better part of the year have been waiting for the market situation to improve, say they have some aces up their sleeves. Let's hope they will play these next year. If Polish products remain on the shelves, it will be hard to compete with new designs from the West, even in the Polish market.