Tubod: The Philippines' Ultimate Domestic Furniture Trade Show

Right after our Saturday afternoon activities last June 8th, I was invited by Tesa, an Interior Designer and one of those living with me here in Banilad Study Center, to accompany her in checking how her staff is managing the 'packing-up' activity i.e. egress, of their domestic furniture items at Waterfront Hotel's Atlantic Hall where “TUBOD”, The Ultimate Furniture and Furnishings Show for the Domestic Market, was being held since June 6th. This domestic furniture trade exhibition is part of the 4th PhilConstruct Visayas 2013 Expo, Cebu's biggest construction show to date. 

The Cebu Furniture Industries Foundation, Inc. (CFIF) conceptualized and spearheaded this event. Aptly called “TUBOD” (or in English, “Source”), the word is used as a noun to refer to spring and water fountain. TUBOD as an event takes on this objective: to set an industry in motion to serve a dynamic and booming domestic furniture and furnishings market. It is envisioned to be the source and the wellspring of the flow of ideas, talents and resources between and among designers, contractors, manufacturers and other players of the interior design and construction industry with the furniture and furnishing manufacturing industry in Cebu.


It was an enriching afternoon seeing so many beautiful and creative designs of various furniture pieces --- living room and dining room furniture, bed, bathroom, lamps and lighting fixtures, kitchen and tableware, and a lot more --- perfect for those who would like to improve their home decorations or maybe to simply learn how to reconstruct the interiors of their homes in a more 'artful' way. Tesa told me that an exhibitor from Bacolod joined the event. I told her that I only know of one who could possibly be in an activity like this, and that is Mrs. Ina Gaston, a cooperator of ours in Kasanag. Ina Gaston is the former president, and currently one of the board of directors, of the Association of Negros Producers (ANP), with the trade name "The Negros Showroom." So we  decided to walk around the trade hall, and to my surprise, I did see Ina from afar, supervising her staff in fixing the furniture items in their booth! We approached Ina, who came with her son and husband, since they were actually representing their company, Hacienda Crafts. She was happy to see me again, the last time being in the airport when I transferred here from Bacolod. We were together in the plane and, I must say I was so fortunate to get helpful tips from her on how to adjust well here in Cebu, she being a Cebuana who happens to be married to a Negrense. Ina gave us beautiful postcards with photos featuring their crafts from their hacienda back in Manapla, Negros Occidental.    

Leaving the exhibit hall and down to Waterfront's lobby, Tesa and I looked at some more art decorations along the hallway --- huge, abstract paintings and fossilized shell art in frames made from fiberglass. It was an afternoon of art appreciation. As we were walking back to the center, we appreciated seeing more of the well-maintained and well-pruned garden of Waterfront Hotel, as the afternoon gave us a drizzle of rain, a welcome treat for us, as we get a quick break from Cebu's summer heat. 

For more information about the furniture trade show, please visit: www.tubod.furniturecebu.com.