Wet Blue: Contract tanning only

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

Tony Jelinski – who was also known as Mighty Mouse and whose personality, friendships and business acumen were a lot bigger than the biggest mouse you have ever seen.Due to my age of 84, I am the dinosaur of the partners of the PMC Group, of which Everflex, Tony’s sphere, was such a big part.I was responsible for getting Tony ...more

Back in the day, the 1980s and 90s, before the time of cell phones and the internet, all design and marketing teams in the South African footwear industry had to visit the fairs and shop windows in Paris, Frankfurt, Bologna and Alicante in person to see the various new product releases from the design houses.This happened over a 3-week pe ...more

The annual Conference, AGM and Dinner Dance of the Society of Leather Technologists and Chemists took place on 25-26th April in Glasgow.This year, there was a 2-day programme that included a field trip to Scottish Leather Group on the afternoon of Day 1, when 30 delegates had the opportunity to learn about SLG’s heritage and world l ...more

Kigali, Rwanda – According to an article in The New Times on 08 April, Rwanda is to establish a tannery park, including a centralised effluent treatment plant, to service more than 1 tannery.The planned tannery park is to be in the Bugesera Industrial Zone, about 50 kilometres from Kigali.The Times reported that the Leather Value Ch ...more

As global markets adopt stricter environmental, human rights and ethical regulations—particularly in the European Union—the African leather industry faces a pivotal moment. While new legislation around sustainability, traceability, and labour rights introduces compliance challenges, it also opens doors for African producers to access higher-value international markets. ...more

A project is underway to eradicate ‘neglected tropical diseases’ (NTDs) in Africa.Among them is sleeping sickness, also known as nagana in domestic and wild animals.Sleeping sickness, known medically as human African trypanosomiasis, is caused by protozoan parasites transmitted by infected tsetse flies, and is endemic in sub-S ...more

Cape Town, W. Cape, SA (24 February 2025) – South African employers are grappling with significant new responsibilities introduced by the Compensation for Occupational Injuries and Diseases Act (COIDA) and the draft Rehabilitation, Reintegration, and Return to Work Regulations. Published on 15 June 2023, these regulations are poised ...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