news +++ Heimtextil

Growth oriented: Heimtextil opens with more than 2,800
exhibitors and a panel discussion spotlighting artificial
intelligence in design and textile product development
Frankfurt am Main, 9 January 2024. With over 2,800 exhibitors from 60 countries
and a 95-percent level of internationality, this year’s Heimtextil continues to grow.
At a panel discussion during the opening press conference, the leading trade fairfor home and contract textiles put the spotlight on the significance of artificial intelligence (AI). How is AI speeding up the design process? Which tried and tested processes have already been introduced in the home textiles sector? What measures
are necessary to prevent copyright infringements? Experts discussed a variety ofideas and solutions – from tool combinations to integration in corporate guidelines.
With more than 2,800 exhibitors from 60 countries and a 95-percent level ofinternationality, Heimtextil 2024 marks the beginning of the new trade-fair year. And, witha 25-percent increase in the number of exhibitors compared to the last edition, the leading
trade fair for home and contract textiles continues to grow across all product segments
and attract many different nations. “Our trade-fair brands are back and more resilient thanever before. Moreover, they offer small to medium sized companies in particular a highlevel of international stability. Despite a gloomy economic backdrop, Heimtextil continues
to expand and offer a market overview of the latest global trends in the home and contract
textile sector”, said Detlef Braun, Member of the Executive Board of Messe Frankfurt, in
his opening statement.
At the opening press conference, panel participants Anja Bisgaard Gaede, founder of theSpott trends & business agency, Danny Richman, AI consultant and inventor of theAI-based Fabric Genie design app, and Olaf Schmidt, Vice President Textiles & Textile
Technologies of Messe Frankfurt, discussed the potential of artificial intelligence for textile
product design. The discussion was chaired by Alexandra Bohn, Style Content Directorof F.A.Z. Quarterly.

Photo: Messe Frankfurt / Pietro Sutera

Artificial intelligence in textile product design
ChatGPT, Midjourney, Dallee: powerful tools for text, image and design generation havebeen very easily accessible for companies and private individuals since 2023. Today, they
are a fixed part of everyday life and are leading to enduring changes in working
processes. The panel discussion focused on how artificial intelligence is speeding up
creative processes, enabling the rapid production of designs and transcendingtime-consuming drawing processes on computers. Moreover, AI offers recommendations
for material choices – based on specific criteria and the desired properties of the final
product, whether for sustainability or in the contract business.
Heimtextil 2024: trade fairs as aids to transformation
One of the key roles played by Heimtextil is the investment in knowledge and theexchange of information with the aim of bringing transformations to life. Olaf Schmidt
underscored the rapid growth of AI and explained why Messe Frankfurt is actively
focusing on AI and bringing together international experts in this edition of Heimtextil, witha panel discussion and workshops in the Heimtextil Trend Space: “AI is fundamentally
redefining the economy, markets and industries. As trade-fair experts, we know how to aidtransformation efforts and reduce levels of complexity. With the global home textiles
industry at Heimtextil in Frankfurt, now is the optimum time to spotlight the potential ofartificial intelligence”, said Olaf Schmidt. The strength of the global Texpertise Network isalso evident in this context: the Network embraces over 50 textile trade fairs in 12
countries and aids the exchange of information about artificial intelligence between manydifferent markets along the textile value chain.
Increasing the potential of AI in textile design: easy and inexpensive
In his keynote address, Danny Richman presented a tried and tested aid: Fabric Genie,
an AI design application for online shops. Users upload images of their room and describe
their design requirements. The AI then generates proposals from which users can choose
the design wanted. In his address, Richman also referred to the public’s reaction to theability of AI to produce unique textile designs. “AI is superior to humans in terms of its
ability to spot patterns in data. At the same time, this potential is easy and inexpensive forcompanies to take advantage of. Thanks to AI, it is not difficult to generate backend codes
or to integrate custom-made applications via APIs”, said Danny Richman.
Artificial intelligence at the Heimtextil Trend Space
Anja Bisgaard Gaede looked at how companies can get started with AI and which aspects
they should take account of during implementation. In this connection, she discussed not
only technical questions but also the composition of corporate guidelines and protection
against copyright infringements. Attention was also paid to ways in which AI is being used
for textile design, as well as its limits. Gaede explained the importance of suitable prompts
and distinguished between effective and less effective commands. Another focus was oncombining the AI tools currently available. “It is time to forge ahead with KI. But withcaution and with an eye to what is required to be successful in this. Hybrid machine andhuman interaction as well as collective intelligence are component parts of tomorrow’sworkflows”, said Anja Bisgaard Gaede.
She also offered a preview of the AI applications and workshops in the Heimtextil Trend
Space where visitors can experience and test artificial intelligence and augmented reality
up close. Thanks to the AI-Image-Creator, they have the opportunity to generate unique
textile works of art using a variety of prompts. Parallel to this, another tool offers valuable
factual knowledge in the field of text-based learning.

Heimtextil 2024: even more textile innovations, materials and design
Worldwide business contacts and the place-to-be for the international textile interiordesign sector – this year, Heimtextil brings textile innovations, materials, interior design
and trends to life more intensively and in an even greater variety than ever before.
On a total of 17 levels, retailers, wholesalers, designers, furniture and bedding specialists,
interior designers, interior decorators, architects, hotel designers and many otherdecision-makers can be sure of finding the broadest and deepest range of home,
household and contract textiles: from decorative furniture fabrics to bedrooms andbathroom textiles, not to mention functional textiles, wallpapers, carpets, curtains and sunprotection systems.
The leading international trade fair for home and contract textiles has added two new halls
for 2024. The first is Hall 5.1 for the new Carpets & Rugs product segment where 100
global suppliers have rolled out their latest products and design highlights for their firstjoint presentation in Frankfurt am Main. The broad spectrum to be seen stretches fromhand and machine woven carpets to dirt-absorbing runners. The second supplementaryhall has been opened this year for the global sourcing segment where private label
excellence meets volume products – with a great range of high-quality industrial andartisan household textiles (Halls: 10.0 to 10.4) and home textiles (Halls 6.0, 5.0 and 6.1).
Beyond a range of products unparalleled worldwide, the global meeting place for thesector is once again distinguished by an indispensable visitor and content programme,
which includes the Heimtextil Trends 24/25. Under the headline theme of New Sensitivity,
they reveal a new sensitivity for the future via three compelling categories ‘plant-based’‘technological’ and ‘bio-engineered’.
The Interior.Architecture.Hospitality programme stands for the latest developments in thecontract sector while the FINDER lists exhibitors with corresponding products.
Additionally, experts guide visitors to selected exhibitors and present highlights on ‘Health& Care’, ‘Outdoor’, ‘Sustainability & Climate’ and ‘New Work’ within the framework of theHeimtextil TALKS & TOURS. In the LIBRARY, visitors will find a presentation of functional
textiles curated by an expert jury.
For the first time in 2024, all relevant knowledge and product offerings on the main topic ofsustainability can be found under the heading Econogy – from Econogy Talks to theEconogy Finder, an expert-checked overview of certified exhibitors with sustainableproducts. Other components of the Econogy offering include the Econogy Hub, theplatform for seal providers and certifiers, and the one-hour Econogy Tours.
This year, the focus is once again on high-grade knowledge content for the specialist bed
trade and the hotel industry: at the Heimtextil Sleep & More Conference in Hall 11.0,
international sleep experts share their insights and best practices - from bedroom design
and the expectations of Generation Z on hotel accommodation to the use of artificial
intelligence for professional sleep analysis.
Heimtextil
International trade fair for home and contract textiles
Heimtextil will be held from 9 to 12 January 2024.
Press information and photographic material:
https://heimtextil.messefrankfurt.com/press

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Newsroom:
Information about the international textile industry andMesse Frankfurt’s global textile trade fairs can be found at
www.texpertise-network.com

Contact:
Ivonne Seifert
Tel.: +49 69 75 75-6157
ivonne.seifert@messefrankfurt.com
Messe Frankfurt Exhibition GmbH
Ludwig-Erhard-Anlage 160327 Frankfurt am Main
www.messefrankfurt.com
Background information Messe Frankfurt
www.messefrankfurt.com/backgroundinformationSustainability at Messe Frankfurt
www.messefrankfurt.com/sustainability-information