S&V Footwear & Leather Goods Magazine Vol80 No4 April 2017
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IN THIS ISSUE:
Industry Barometer
Topline Manufacturers: Very slow first half, but confidence up as orders to hold stock come in.
Kadisco Paint and Adhesive Industry: All sectors of Ethiopian footwear industry doing well.
CG Shoes: Waiting for retailers to clear old stock.
CC Leather: Feeling positive as sales improve.
Bolton Footwear: Learning from hard lessons.
C.Y. Lin: Feedback shows where to concentrate.
American Shop: Counterfeits an added problem.
Beggio’s Clothing: Where have all the foreigners gone?
Opinion: Phillip Nutt
Can you teach creativity?.
Chain Profile: Studio 88 Group
The unspoken aim is to dominate men’s branded apparel.
The Innovators: Grandt Mason
From vegan dabbler to global aspirant.
Advertisers in this Issue
Apeco (2), BBF Safety Group (OFC), Crep Protect (4), C.Y. Lin/Zäh Petite (13), Katz Footwear/Willow (6), Neptun Boot (8), Tuftex (10).
- Grandt Mason: From vegan dabbler to global aspirant
Cape Town, SA – Both as a footwear designer and as an entrepreneur, Grandt Mason has been genuinely creative in the development of his business.The company he has spent 15 years building – Grandt Mason – is a successful artisanal manufacturer of men’s and women’s comfortable fashion footwear with 3 retail out ...moreLearning from hard lessons
Jacques Pretorius, head of group sales, Bolton Footwear Cape Town, SA – Despite a tough trading period in South Africa for all fashion manufacturers and retailers, we are very optimistic about the future. We learned some hard lessons in 2016 and are now capitalizing on the growth opportunities that we have created with our newl ...moreAll sectors of Ethiopian footwear industry doing well
Saifudin Khalifa, Deputy G/M, Kadisco Paint and Adhesive Industry S.C.Addis Ababa, Ethiopia – Generally the industry is developing well, particularly for the exporters. There is a forex shortage which is affecting all business in general but those companies involved in exports are faring better. What I found interesting at the ...moreFeedback shows where to concentrate
Peter Lin, proprietor, C.Y. LinCape Town, SA – We only began testing the market late last year, and the first containers only arrived in April. The feedback from customers so far is that they are selling well.Because we’re a new label, a lot of independents are on a testing stage. Customers are happy with the price points and ...moreFeeling positive as sales improve
Tom Bassage, member, CC LeatherPietermaritzburg, SA – Our turnover is up on last year – I estimate by between 10% and 15% – but I think our profitability is much the same.I think the reason for the increase has simply been that we’ve introduced some cheaper lines. Essentially, we’ve added some synthetic upper ...moreThe Studio 88 Group - The unspoken aim is to dominate men\'s branded apparelJohannesburg, SA – This article differs from all preceding articles in this series in that it was submitted to us without an interview, and with the proviso that there would be no photos of personnel. It was written in September last year. From Laurence Wernars, chairman of the Studio 88 group of companiesI thank you for your i ...moreVery slow first half, but confidence up as orders to hold stock come inCollin Pillay, member, Topline ManufacturersDurban, SA – Our turnover for the first 4 months is definitely down – by as much as 20%, and we just hope and pray that it will pick up.Some of our customers have work, but the independents are very quiet and it seems many of the chains aren’t placing orders at the moment eithe ...moreWaiting for retailers to clear old stockGerald Jason, member, CG ShoesDurban, SA – Our turnover is down compared to the same period last year.The situation is that independent retailers just don’t want to place orders at the moment because they’re sitting with stock after a poorer-than-expected Christmas season and a disastrous Easter.Most of them have told us ...moreCounterfeits an added problemMuhammad Ismail, director, American ShopPretoria, SA – I’d say our turnover is on par with last year. We service the lower end of the market and the main factors affecting our consumers are unemployment and inflation. We sell mostly brands, and we are also very badly affected by counterfeits – they sell ‘Nike&rsquo ...moreWhere have all the foreigners gone?Arvin Govind, proprietor, Beggio’s ClothingJohannesburg, SA – Turnover is down about 30%.People haven’t got money at the moment, and unemployment is a big factor.There has also been a big drop in the number of foreigners shopping here – from Botswana, Mozambique and other neighbouring states. Previously they came t ...moreFootwear Industry Articles
- A perspective: Perhaps it was an eye-opener for industry players to hear each otherLooking back over the workshop, BMA consultant Justin Snelling wrote: “In terms of our reflections of the workshop, we covered a lot of territory. Perhaps though what was most encouraging was the breadth of participation from different segments of the sector and their willingness, or even excitement, to contribute. We don’t ta ...moreObituary: Vic Jablowski, BUSM, Protech V (03/09/1953-11/12/2025): One of those who survived BU’s closure
Durban, KZN, SA – My dad – was AMAZING.Born in 1953, he married Evelyn in 1979. My sister, Luanne Hough, was born in 1980, and I followed in 1983.A family man who made sure he supported his family in the most wonderful ways; he was also a loyal company man who worked most of his life for British United Shoe Machinery.But when ...more‘Growth in online gambling may be big factor in siphoning off disposable income’East London, E. Cape, SA – Trading conditions are constrained and steady. We need to focus on good quality products at reasonable prices / value. We are optimistic about the direction of the overall economy in RSA.As a wise man once said regarding growing a business: “Sometimes you have to move slowly to be able to move fast.& ...more
Leather Industry Articles
- Sam Setter's 'Pills': Over and AgainThe EU announced that hides and skins could be removed from the EUDR directive's deforestation commodities. Could! Last month, like many others, I thought that the decision had been taken, but that doesn’t seem to be correct. The final decision will be taken after public feedback. Yeah, you read this right: after public feedback. As ...moreSARLEN aims for business and regulatory advocacy for the leather value chain across SADC
The formation of the Southern African Regional Leather Network (SARLEN) is a process to formalise a voice for commercial, entrepreneurial and developmental associations in the leather value chain (LVC) for the region.The leather value chain has been recognised in SADC as a key entrepreneurial opportunity that can adjust to the scale of th ...moreSam Setter's 'Pills': TraceabilityThe EU Commission is very much engaged in bringing traceability of our raw materials to the forefront of tannery management. But let’s reflect on this for a moment. In the industrial world traceability is a fact, and particularly where food is involved, traceability is a standard requirement for trading. This is firstly to ensure fo ...more
PPE Industry Articles
- The PPE Conference – PPE isn’t optional, it’s essential: A review
Leighton Bennett, the Safety First Association chairperson and a SHE and risk management consultantThe hosts of this first PPE Conference held in South Africa, were the Safety First Association and SAPEMA, on the 10 and 11 March 2026, at the Emperor’s Palace, in Kempton Park.This conference objectives were to provide a unique opport ...moreNew OHS regulations coming into force later this year mean PPE needs to be reviewed, too
In March 2025, the Physical Agents Regulations (and their guidelines) and the Noise Exposure Regulations (and their guidelines) of the OHSAct were published, with an 18-month time-period promulgation date to September 2026, allowing employers time to upgrade their Health & Safety requirements to comply with the new published regulatio ...moreThe legal ramifications: PPE and the law: Ignore at your peril?
There’s no shortage of legislation covering employee safety in South Africa, but as in so much else, the enforcement is poor.In terms of our laws, the death of an employee (or anyone else) in a work situation, caused by negligence, is treated as culpable homicide. An injury caused by negligence is also a criminal act – that, b ...more
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