Liu Chunjie, brand and public relations director for Markor Furnishing, said cooperation with US partners helped his company implement a "green" strategy from the designing stage to the end products.

According to Zuo Jianhua, chairman of Zhihao Furniture Co, the latest round of the European Union's environmental enhancements kicked off at the end of last year. It demands all wood furniture imported to the region should have a Forest Stewardship Council certificate from March 3. The FSC is an international nonprofit, multi-stakeholder organization promoting responsible management of the world's forests.

"In China, FSC standards have not been popularized. Few timber providers have the certificate. Even in the US and EU markets, not all furniture sold is made from timber with an FSC certificate," he said. The company, based in Foshan, Guangdong, sells its self-designed brands - Kamina and K.Gdf - in the overseas market. Zuo expects sales to drop this year.

Eric Thomas, a dealer for Zhihao in the United Kingdom, said his store in Birmingham opened three years ago and is now starting to make a profit. "I am not sure whether the barrier will hurt us greatly or not, but I don't think it's fair," he said.

China's furniture industry experienced a chilly winter last year, especially in overseas markets, because of the economic slowdown in developed countries.

Statistics from the Wind Information Co show China's export volume of furniture and related components amounted to $48.82 billion last year, increasing 28.7 percent from $37.94 billion a year earlier. However, a large part of the increase came from the export of components.

"Although our exports declined in terms of the number of units, a rise in unit prices indicated increased added value," said Gao from Forward Business Intelligence Co.

Shirley Wang, Camerich's brand and marketing director, said although her company experienced robust development in overseas markets - currently 40 to 60 percent of the company's revenue is from abroad - it still faces market uncertainty.

"The uncertainty is the result of the gloomy global economy and the slowdown in growth of China's furniture industry chain. I believe it's a common challenge facing all Chinese furniture producers," she said.

Zhu from China National Furniture Association said the overseas expansion of Chinese furniture companies is still in its infancy. "It cannot boom overnight. All of us should adopt a down-to-earth attitude to enhance our capabilities in terms of design, manufacturing and management. At the same time, we should learn the rules of local markets and use the law to protect ourselves," said Zhu, adding there was still a long way to go.

liujie@chinadaily.com.cn

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