16 December 2005 – Philippine Ambassador to Germany Delia Albert has cited the creative partnership of Filipino skills, materials and German technology in the manufacture and export of unique world class Philippine furniture.

During a visit to DEDON GmbH in the industrial suburb of Luneburg, a picturesque city in Northern Germany, Ambassador Albert said “Philippine craftsmanship plus German technology equals an ideal creative partnership” that has benefited the province of Cebu in terms of investment and employment opportunities.

In the summer of 2001, DEDON GrnbH established its aluminum furniture manufacturing facilities in Cebu with an initial capital investment of PHP14.3 million.   "Without Cebu, DEDON is nothing," says Mr. Bobby Dekeyser, the once admired soccer goalkeeper of Bayern Munchen who is now CEO of the company, during his discussions with Ambassador Albert  in the course of the meeting with the DEDON team in Luneburg.

"Sir Bobby," as the Cebu team calls him, travels around the world with his award-winning international designers to realize new ideas and flies to Cebu regularly, which he cited as the "Mecca" of the traditional art of basket weaving.

Mr. Dekeyser informed Ambassador Albert that the DEDON design begins with the material, the Hularo fiber, developed and produced by the DEDON Luneburg Team. Hularo is a synthetic material.   It is extremely tear-proof, colorfast, weatherproof, resistant to UV light, and environmentally friendly, while tremendously versatile in color and shape. The Hularo fibers are then hand-woven into a unique furniture by a creative team in Cebu. DEDON furniture is always greeted with enthusiasm and sets international standards. The company has been awarded prizes by trade associations and today employs more than 2,800 people in over 16 countries with showrooms in Austria, Spain and Germany,   Over 2,000 creative Filipinos work on the production and weave each piece of furniture by hand, Mr. Dekeyser said.

Barely two weeks in Berlin, Ambassador Albert informed the Department that she has started opening new windows of trade and investment opportunities in the Philippines to German companies like that of DEDON.   The Ambassador said she aims to showcase Filipino ingenuity and innovative products in an ultra-modern city like Berlin. She is convincing Mr. Dekeyser to look at what other places in the Philippines can offer.

“A rare collection of unique baskets from all over the Philippines is waiting to be explored, where ethnic designed ancient baskets and excellent German ultra modern technology can once more be merged to produce a unique product,” Ambassador Alberto said. END