The eThekwini Footwear Leather Cluster (EFLC) is aimed to empower local manufacturers, and we’ve managed to implement programmes as per our business plan (i.e. export development, market access, world class manufacturing, product design & development and sustainability).EFLC also launched the Retail New Market Project to acceler ...more

Johannesburg, Gauteng, SA – I’ve actually closed my store down.I was situated in Mooi Street, Johannesburg, but the city has degenerated so badly that customers were scared to come to buy high value goods as they could be robbed or stabbed. It’s just not worth it to risk my life in the slum that used to be Johannesburg.& ...more

Adidas is under scrutiny in Mexico over its “Oaxaca Slip-On” sandal, which officials say closely resembles the traditional huaraches of the Zapotec people. Cultural appropriation — taking elements from another culture, often without credit or fair compensation — is at the centre of the dispute. While such appropria ...more

Durban, KZN, SA – Fredisco Dyes and Chemicals (Pty) Ltd is fortunate to be servicing clients in both the leather and textile industries. With a bit of luck, when one industry does poorly, the other does a bit better! Currently our leather customers seem to be doing well. We have seen strong demand for our leather dyes from tanneries ...more

Boksburg, Gauteng, SA – During 2022/23 my wife fell ill with Covid and we decided to get our daughter, Tania Ellis, involved in the business to enable me to spend more time with Alice. Alice eventually passed away 17th January 2024 after 55 years of married life and as we’re all getting older, I decided to keep Tania on, with ...more

Leather users have long joked about how good it would be to have square hides…thanks to the demand for gelatine, maybe that’s not so far away ...more

IntroductionThere are substantial ambiguities and debates about the definition of a “Competent Person” when assigning legal appointments and responsibilities for supervision, oversight, and management of key tasks. These are outlined in the Construction Regulations (2014) of the Occupational Health and Safety Act of (1993). Va ...more

A project to take basic medical care to the most remote communities – developed by the Fraunhofer-Gesellschaft in Germany – is being trialled in South Africa and Namibia by S Mile Solutions (Pty) Ltd, part of Stellenbosch University LaunchLab. ...more

Many people think that Operational Risk Management (ORM) is only relevant to industries with obvious hazards, like mining and construction. However, South Africa's workplace safety law – the Occupational Health and Safety Act (the OHS Act), mandates all employers to keep their workplaces safe, no matter what kind of business they ru ...more