Terms like “experiential” and “multi-sensory” have been somewhat over-used in the professional hospitality and out-of-home sector in recent years. But they continue to reflect the real expectations of the end customer, who are faced with an increasingly "holistic" approach to design. One that will be exemplified in the Furniture-Tableware and Technology macro-area at Host 2023, at fieramilano in Rho from 13 to 17 October.

The job of this area is to offer a complete overview of furnishings, accessories, tableware and, increasingly, even technology, in a consistent, well-targeted concept. Not least of all because designers can no longer rely on a "trend of the moment": today there are as many contemporary trends as there are lifestyles and consumer habits.

Leading to growing business opportunities. Global demand in the contract furniture market is estimated to reach nearly 250.45 billion dollars by 2030, up from 143.39 billion dollars in 2022, and with a CAGR of 7.22% over the period 2023-2030 (Global Information data).

“People have started going out and travelling again, but needs and expectations have changed”, says Maurizio Montanari, head of international sales hotel & restaurant – Sambonet Paderno Industrie, Arcturus Group. “One of the new parameters is the appeal of the experience itself, one that is now more relaxed, casual and authentic, in a new dimension where luxury is expressed through quality and freedom of choice. This is where the real difference is being felt. For example, if we analyse the so-called 'bleisure' phenomenon (business trips combined with leisure travel), we see how hotels are adapting their services towards comforts that make it extremely easy to switch from work to relaxation or fun. Flexible spaces that host gastronomic experiences in the dining room but also in the bedroom, as part of an itinerary or a longer stay, perhaps with the family."

"At Degrenne, we like to say that our products are made to be 'timeless', with consumer habits based more and more on making fair and reasoned purchases," explains Olivier Perlo-Joncour, head of marketing at Degrenne. “Timeless products, but not necessarily classic in style: also contemporary, but always in iconic collections, as befits a premium brand such as Degrenne. Our two factories in France have a very strong know-how that is also expressed in innovation, such as through bi-materials that are glossy, matt or with particular textures, for both ceramics and cutlery."

A vision where technology is playing an increasingly important part, also in the form of digitisation. “Customers are becoming increasingly demanding, attentive to service and tech-savvy,” explains Domenico Palmisani, CEO of Ipratico. “In fact, today services such as digital menus, the action of ordering from the table or paying from the table without going to the cash desk are now technologies that the customer takes for granted even though they are still relatively new. These new services also include the possibility of receiving food at home and ordering it, being able to skip the queue. It is a convenient, simple and fast way to use the service”.