India has been growing rapidly and we have all the technologies available in India which is currently imported from other countries. This move will give a great push to start local manufacturing in India.
FDT: What is your view on the customs duty hike on imported furniture and parts? How do you think it will impact the furniture industry in general?
Dhruvin Patel: The new development announcement done by the finance minister of India will be very positive for the furniture industry so Indian manufacturers and allied industries are beneficial and will also result in generating large scale job opportunities as furniture industry is a labor intensive segment.
FDT: How will the hike impact the buying pattern of Indian consumers?
Dhruvin Patel: India has been growing rapidly and we have all the technologies available in India which is currently imported from other countries. This move will give a great push to start local manufacturing in India and will be more beneficial to India and give a big push to our Honourbale Prime Minister’s vision for 5 trillion economy.
FDT: How do you foresee the status of Indian furniture industry in 2020-21?
Dhruvin Patel: India has good resources available and a tremendous energetic young force with a good design thinking which will revolutionize the Indian furniture industry. The inflow of international designers coming to India will also create a great combination of designs,and such products will be available in Indian markets at Indian rates.
FDT: Tell us about your latest collection.
Dhruvin Patel: Our latest collection is a new addition in the M.ann Singh collection who is an NID alumni and design director of HOF Furniture. Our team gave a good time of 8 months to research and prototyping, and got these products ready for the Indian market. Another of our latest products is ‘Valeria’ seating systems designed by ‘Miki Astoria,’ an Italian designer on board as a mentor to HOF. He is based in Milan, Italy and has worked with top Italian brands and other international brands across the world.