Milanese furniture fair Salone del Mobile has named Maria Porro as its new president. Porro was most recently the president of Assarredo, an Italian trade association for furniture manufacturing.

Porro’s appointment comes during a notable period for the international design event, which was canceled in 2020 due to the coronavirus pandemic and postponed until September this year. Additionally, her arrival follows the departure of former Salone del Mobile president Claudito Lutti, who resigned in April. 

“I grew up with the Salone del Mobile,” said Porro. “When I was a kid, my grandfather Carlo used to take me along to the pavilions at the old venue. I followed when the Fair moved to its new site in Rho, and I was thrilled to be able to attend the Shanghai Furniture Fair.”

Porro, along with the board members of Federlegno Arredo Eventi, the trade entity that owns the Salone del Mobile, will lead the event as it prepares for its special Supersalone edition in September, a condensed version of the fair curated by architect and urban planner Stefano Boeri. The leadership team will also outline “new strategies to respond to the upheavals of the present day,” and “reconcile exhibitors’, the general public’s and international stakeholders’ needs,” as noted in a statement. 

“The decision to invest in a young, driven president is part of a strategy to consolidate the event’s leading international role during a period of profound change,” says Gianfranco Marinelli, President of Federlegno Arredo Eventi.

Maria Porro was formerly the marketing and communications director at her family’s historic Italian design brand Porro S.p.A. Her engagement with her family’s practice, working with her father Lorenzo Porro and architect Piero Lissoni on research and developing new products, has put her in close proximity to the Salone del Mobile.