The Association of Myanmar Interior Designers (AMID) will hold the first locally-sourced design competition next month, according to AMID secretary, U Thant Soe Oo.

“The furniture design competition will help develop the market for local furniture products,” said U Thant Soe Oo. “The market for Myanmar furniture is not growing. We need to support younger designers to produce more innovative and valuable furniture designs for local companies.”

The top three winners of the competition will implement their designs and manufacture products through a partnership with local companies.

“We will tender the best designs to the local companies and our association will establish a relationship between the designers and companies who will negotiate the prices between themselves,” he said.

“Some interior designers only create designs on the computer. They don’t know the real difficulties when translating the design to an actual product,” U Thant Soe Oo said, adding that young designers lack the practical experience in producing furniture. It is important for the young designers to be more connected with the other divisions of the industries such as manufacturing. AMID plans to bring the contest participants to meet and talk to business owners so they can receive hands-on learning.

The current furniture market is not buoyant, partly because the country cannot export valuable furniture products. Illegal timber and teak export, however, is still on the rise, unchecked by institutional efforts to clamp down on the activities.