Hannitan opening second plant, not moving to W. Cape

Cape Town, W. Cape, SA – Elan-Polo SA MD Stuart Worrall has launched a sneaker range made largely from recycled materials.The Green T range – currently 5 styles selling online for R1400 – have uppers and linings made entirely from recycled polyester/PET, insoles with 85% recycled PU content, and outsoles with 35% recycle ...more

On 29 April 2025, more than 70 major footwear companies — including Nike, Adidas, Skechers, Puma, and Crocs — signed a joint letter to President Donald Trump, urgently requesting that footwear be removed from the list of products subject to new reciprocal tariffs. These companies warned that the added tariff burden poses a ser ...more

Under the headline “Boat shoes sales up for first time in 10 years — one year after fashion declared the style’s comeback”, Footwear News this month reported that boat shoe sales finally seeing an increase, “albeit a fraction of where the category once was in the 2010s”. ...more

Bronkhorstspruit, Gauteng, SA – Wool-on sheepskin tannery African Merino Trading is playing catch-up following 30 consecutive days without water, and 75 days since January during which they either had no water and/or no electricity, preventing production.“Since we stopped exporting and downsized 8 years ago, we’ve been p ...more

Changes in the global leather market have impacted most on the bottom rung of the leather value chain – ‘country’ hides and skins. This was starkly illustrated when S&V African Leather received a call from someone in the Eastern Cape who had previously made a living collecting them for sale to agents acting on behalf of hide and skin collectors. The agents were still there, he said, but they weren’t interested in buying what he had to offer. Where should he look?rnrn A call to trader Gareth Diesel in East London, who works for and with Elliott Brothers and its subsidiary, East London Abattoir, confirmed that market had died in the province.rnrn He suggested we ask Greg Feinberg, MD of SA’s biggest hide and skin trader, pickler and wet blue tannery, Cape Produce Company, for ‘the bigger picture’. ...more

The Leather & Hide Council of America (LHCA) has selected Taipei, Taiwan, as the host city for the 5th annual Real Leather. Stay Different. (RLSD) international student design competition final, scheduled for 27-28 October 2025.Following events in London and Milan, the competition now underscores Asia's rising prominence as a hub for ...more

W. Conshohocken, Pa., U.S. (07 January 2025) – A new ASTM International standard will provide users with a road map for planning and executing assessments of per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS) in consumer products and articles. The new standard, which will be published as F3700, was developed by ASTM&rsqu ...more

Pinetown, KZN, SA – The Beier Group, which includes the BBF Safety Group, in December hosted the Department of Higher Education & Training (DHET) and the FP&M SETA for an oversight visit to ensure that state funds are being used in accordance with the Sectoral Skills Plan.DHET deputy minister Dr Mimmy Martha Gondwe and SETA ...more

Geneva, Switzerland – Testing, inspection and certification company SGS is hosting a complimentary webinar, ‘Discovering PPE softlines solutions’, on 27 March 2025.The global market for personal protective equipment (PPE) is expanding, but it is also becoming more regulated. Businesses looking to ensure product complianc ...more