Thursday, March 9, 2023 INTERNATIONAL SOURCING CHOOSES EXPO RIVA SCHUH & GARDABAGS AS A BUSINESS PLATFORM

Estimated reading time: 4 minutes

The range of bags and leather goods at Gardabags will be even wider in June 2023


The staff of Expo Riva Schuh & Gardabags has visited some of the biggest footwear and leather goods producing countries (India, Pakistan and Turkey), met with trade associations and leading companies, in order to consolidate relations and further  expand the offer available to international buyers who will attend the Riva del Garda event from 17 to 20 June 2023.


Riva del Garda, 09th March 2023

We certainly rediscovered how important and rewarding it is to meet people face-to-face, to be able to shake their hands and to find through conversation in-person all the strength of a relationship, both human and commercial.

With this in mind, as soon as the curtain had come down on the January 2023 edition, the staff of Expo Riva Schuh & Gardabags did not stop to bask in the event’s success, but packed their bags and set off again. They headed for India, Pakistan and  Turkey, among the leading shoe and leather goods producing countries for international sourcing today.

They had a clear objective: to further strengthen market coverage and international relations with institutions and leading sector companies, in order to increase the variety of the offer, particularly bags and leather goods, at the very next edition  of Expo Riva Schuh & Gardabags.


INDIA

The first plane lands in India, a key country in international manufacturing, according to the numbers. India’s share of global footwear production by volume soared in 2021 (after being stable for the previous four years), reaching 11.7% with 191 million  pairs produced. Its exports of leather and footwear products totalled USD 4.25 billion from April to December 2022 and are expected to reach USD 5.7 billion by March 2023.

Precisely with a view to expanding Gardabags’ offer of bags and leather goods, during the Chennai Leather Fair and the Designers Fair, Mauro Di Molfetta, Project Leader for Gardabags, and Caterina Bricolo, ERS Sales & Exhibition Executive, met Sanjay  Leekha and Rajendra Kumar Jalan, President and Vice-President of CLE - Council For Leather Exports India, supported by Amit Chopra, CEO of DC International and Delegate of Expo Riva Schuh & Gardabags for India.

The meeting was fruitful: the CLE committed to bringing a strong group of bag manufacturers to the next edition of Gardabags in June.


PAKISTAN

Down the steps and they’re on Pakistani soil. Pakistan produces 260 million pairs of shoes per year and had a market share of 4.9% in 2021, making it one of the fastest growing countries in the sector.

In light of these significant figures, the signing of an important memorandum of understanding between Expo Riva Schuh & Gardabags and PFMA - Pakistan Footwear Manufacturers Association aimed at strengthening the Pakistani presence at the Riva del  Garda trade show over the next three years even more interesting.

The document, signed by Roberto Pellegrini, Chairman of Riva del Garda Fierecongressi and Mansoor Ehsan Sheikh, Director of the PFMA, in the presence of Zubair Motiwala, Chief Executive of the Trade Development Authority of Pakistan and GianPaola Pedretti,  Exhibition Manager of Expo Riva Schuh & Gardabags, consolidates the relationship between Pakistan and the Riva del Garda show.

The visit to Pakistan was also an opportunity for institutional meetings with the Italian representation in Pakistan through the Italian Trade Agency (ITA), with a view to getting to know the exhibiting companies at the Mega Leather Show in Lahore more  closely, making contact with the PTA - Pakistan Tanners Association and the PLGMEA - Pakistan Gloves Manufacturers and Exporters Association and inviting their members to the next Gardabags.

It was also an opportunity to visit a long-standing exhibitor at Expo Riva Schuh & Gardabags. SGF has been presenting its Servis brand in Riva del Garda for 35 years. This market leader, with more than 500 sales outlets of its own in Pakistan, exports  1.5 million pairs of shoes a year to Italy alone, and exports a total of 4.5 million pairs a year.


TURKEY

The signs in the arrivals hall welcome visitors to Turkey. Alessandra Albarelli, General Manager of Riva del Garda Fierecongressi, and Ying Zhang, Sales Exhibition Assistant, attended the Aymod fair to meet Berke İçten and Yavuz Uçan, respectively President  and Vice-President of TASD - Türkiye Ayakkabı Sanayicileri Derneği, the Turkish footwear manufacturers’ association.

The meeting strengthened the already excellent relations with the Turkish manufacturing sector, whose presence and offer at Expo Riva Schuh & Gardabags has grown significantly in recent years, reflecting Turkey’s position as one of the key countries  for the international footwear market: 147 million pairs produced per year, allowing the country to increase its market share from 1.7% in 2017 to 2.5% in 2021.

Mission accomplished. The plane rolls onto the runway, back in Italy. The calculations are done and the results are really positive: Expo Riva Schuh & Gardabags is the business platform for everyone who wants to expand their markets and find the widest  international sourcing offer.

The tickets are already on the desk. Expo Riva Schuh & Gardabags Around the World will leave for Spain, the UK and the US to make that offer even broader, starting from the next event: 17-20 June 2023.