The Mill International’s Matthew Fong: popular products include Expoflor REWIND Basics carpet which has sold more than 100,000 sqm in the second half of 2022. Photo Credit: Matthew Fong
Every year, millions of square metres of exhibition and event carpet
land up at landfills - some are used only for a few hours and some are
remnants.
Carpet supplier, The Mill International’s director, Matthew Fong,
shared how the company’s journey of going green has made an impact. The
Mill International is a popular Singapore brand in the MICE industry and
a market leader in sustainable flooring for exhibitions and events in
the region. It has a wide selection of carpets and flooring that are
designed for trade fairs, consumer shows, roadshows, luxury events, mega
events, and VIP walkways.
Its green journey started in 2018/19, when its European factory
introduced their first green product: needle felt carpet that is
produced without the use of latex. After the pandemic, business
restarted in January 2023 in a renewed green direction.
The company went on an inaugural retreat to align their goals to:
· Do more with less – digitalise and update processes, and upgrade skills.
· Adopt Goal 12 of the UN Sustainable Development Goals – responsible consumption and production.
· Practice the 4R’s – reduce waste, re-use carpet, repurpose remnants, and recycle carpet.
As a preferred partner of the brand, REWIND, in Singapore, Malaysia,
and Thailand, it offers event carpets that are produced with 55% less
carbon dioxide. They are Certified Cradle to Cradle Silver and are 100%
recyclable.
Said Fong: “We have stated to replace our existing product range with
REWIND and will recycle our carpets in Singapore. To add, we will
produce chairs from our recycled carpet.”
Among the popular carpets is the Expoflor REWIND Basics carpet. The
Mill International sold more than 100,000 sqm in the second half of
2022. This year, the company collaborated with Kingsmen Exhibits to
deliver this 100% recyclable carpet for FHA-Food & Beverage 2023 in
April. It has supplied carpets to many trade events such as COMEX,
CommunicAsia, BroadcastAsia, among others.
Some of the ways in which it has reduced its carbon footprint:
Reusing
Carpets that are used only for a few hours can be reused multiple
times. They are brought back to the warehouse to clean and store, ready
for the next project.
Repurposing
Unused remnants which are in pristine condition but too short to be
reused and unable to be mixed with another batch of carpet of the same
colour are often disposed in the carpet industry.
The Mill International extends the life of such materials by
repurposing them into bags, wall decorations, door mats, and during
Covid, as safe-distancing tiles.
Said Fong: “With a MICE centric brand, it has differentiated us and
propelled our growth as an innovative flooring solutions provider. There
were several incumbents when we started, but most of them source
locally, and this has given us an opportunity to supply to them. We
import our goods directly from factories all over the world and stock
them in Singapore.”
The company has a twin-engine model of growth:
- Enlarge its territory.
- Deepen its capability.
It has set up offices in Vietnam and Indonesia and Malaysia. To
support its growth, it has a ready stock of 500,000 sqm of flooring and a
staff strength of 46.
It has also bought a state-of-the-art digital carpet printer to
customise carpet in Singapore and a digital cutter to deepen its
capability.