Salone del Mobile 2025: The World Came to Milan

Over 302,000 visitors made their way to the massive Rho fairgrounds, weaving through thousands of exhibits from 2,103 brands representing 37 countries. About two-thirds of them came from outside Italy, which tells you something – Milan is still the place to be when it comes to design.

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Salone del Mobile isn’t a modest furniture fair – it’s more like fashion week for interiors. Think sleek sofas, wild lighting installations, and the occasional conceptual chair that looks like it might bite back. But it’s also a barometer for the mood of the design world. This year? Cautious but curious. With international tensions and economic shakeups in the background, it was a show that balanced ambition with realism.

The crowd wasn’t just your average design nerds. China once again led in attendance, followed by Germany, Spain, and Poland. The UAE doubled its presence this year – perhaps a sign that the Gulf is growing not just vertically, but with a sharper design sensibility. Saudi Arabia, Japan, and South Korea also made strong showings. And students? More than 15,000 came to soak it all in – proving that Gen Z is ready to sketch, build, and quite possibly, judge your living room choices.

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This year’s Salone wasn’t confined to the fairgrounds. Milan itself turned into a giant gallery, with crowds flocking to The Library of Light, a dreamy installation by Es Devlin at the Brera Art Gallery, and Mother, a theatrical experience by Robert Wilson that sold out fast.

At the fair, Oscar-winning director Paolo Sorrentino’s piece La Dolce Attesa played with the idea of waiting – timely, perhaps, in an industry that thrives on anticipation. Meanwhile, French architect Pierre-Yves Rochon transformed one space into Villa Héritage – a poetic blend of old-world craft and new-world wow.

Between April 10 and 11, Salone hosted its first International Lighting Forum. Think TED Talks, but with more talk about plants and light. From a neuroscientist who studies how trees react to stress, to the lighting designer behind Notre Dame’s glow-up, it was a reminder that design today is more than pretty surfaces – it’s also science, storytelling, and social commentary.

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The Salone team is already looking toward 2026. There’s talk of an even more inclusive format and support for small brands and emerging markets. Also on the agenda: greener practices and figuring out what to do with furniture when it reaches the end of its stylish life.

For now, Milan returns to its usual pace – slightly less hectic, but still buzzing. As for the rest of us? We’ll be dreaming of sculptural lamps, terrazzo tables, and that elusive balance between form and function until next spring.

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