S&V Footwear & Leather Goods Magazine Vol83 No5 May 2020
This Magazine is sponsored by SAFLIA
IN THIS ISSUE:
3 The Virus
- Comment: The idiocy of Level 4 and 'winter footwear'.
- Dick Whittington Shoes: SAPS raid 'a lack of understanding'.
- World Footwear: Global footwear consumption 'to decline by 22.5% in 2020'.
6 Edcon Business Rescue
- Despite everything, suppliers hope Edcon will survive.
- Bolton's Alan Fleetwood: 'It's fairly simple.'
- Caprini's Sanjay Pattundeen: 'Hoping for more business'.
- Eddels' John Comley: 'Its fate will affect the entire industry.'
- Blue Jean Traders' Ronald Sassoon: 'No hard feelings.'
- Bounty Brands' Stefan Rabe: Wait and see.
- Anonymous: 'More risk averse.'
9 Restarting Production
- Saflia's Jirka Vymetal: What we need is clarity.
- Angel Footwear's Ashley Ramlakan: So far, in a small way.
- The Courteney Boot Co.'s Gale Rice: Most in Bulawayo have reopened despite lockdown.
- AFD Industries' Fiona Dale: 'If there are orders, we can start.'
- Palm Footwear's Rajeev Pattundeen: Order book has depleted by 50%.
10 Importers
- Dangee Carken's Robby Stoller: Perhaps this will be the catalyst for change.
- Dale Footwear's Laurence Lotzoff: Everyone will be affected.
- Crown Footwear's Jeremy Nel: Local manufacturing may become more attractive.
11 CTFL Masterplan
- FLIC seeks accurate capacity stats from SA factories, writes Richard Starmer.
12 Recovering From The Lockdown
- Business recovery and cost reduction in a post Covid-19 lockdown economy, by JJ Oosthuysen, turnaround practitioner.
14 Fairs
- A+A: No price increases for 2021 edition.
- Micam prepares for September edition.
15 E-Commerce
- DA: WTO report on e-commerce 'should jolt Patel into action'.
15 Making PPE
- Masks and face shields help keep factories ticking over.
- Sourcing fabric for face masks, by Richard Starmer, FLIC.
16 Trends & Fashion
- Forecasts from Rowan Dorset and Madelein Kearns of Dangee Carken.
17 Notice Board
- Appointment: Charles Atala, secretary of the General Goods, Bags & Leather Employers' Association.
- Obituary: Malcolm Hill, an old school Bata man.
16 Trade
- SARS statistics for March 2020.
Advertisers in this Issue
Creative Leathergoods (7), Dangee Carken (OFC), Florsheim (8), Freestyle (2), OR Leathers (4), Paris Belts (3 and 5), Shoepack (6).
In The Next Issue:
- Insights into street trading in Durban's CBD.
Out on Wednesday, June 3
The Directory is evolving to meet changing circumstances. Watch out for details shortly.
- SAPS raid \\\'a lack of understanding\\\'
Dick Whittington Shoes, deemed an essential supplier because it makes government tender footwear, was raided by the police during 'Level 5' of the lockdown, for a suspected violation of lockdown rules. The rumour mills suggested MD Arveen Boodhoo and production manager Herman Alheit were arrested. Here the MD explains what happened. ...moreDespite everything, suppliers hope Edcon will survive
Edcon, once the biggest fashion retailer in SA, went into business rescue at the end of April. CEO Grant Pattison, in charge for the past 2 years, blamed the lockdown as the final straw in the long slide which began in 2007 when it was acquired by US private equity firm Bain Capital for a - with hindsight - unsustainable R25 billion and d ...moreBusiness recovery and cost reduction in a post Covid-19 lockdown economy
Most companies' disaster recovery plans didn't make provision for a virus-inspired national lockdown. Many companies, across all industries, have a business continuity plan of some sort, but this time they got punched in the face and caught with their pants down. Protection of profits and defending the bottom line is now more imperative t ...moreQ&A: Stocks, the exchange rate and future orders
Dangee Carken: Perhaps this will be the catalyst for changeRobby Stoller, MD. Johannesburg, Gauteng, SA- Retailing is restricted to winter footwear. Do you have stock which you believe would qualify?Of course we qualify. We have brought in boots and closed footwear for the winter season. Most of our stock has been delivered to the trade a ...moreFilling big boots - Appointment: Charles Atala, secretary of the General Goods, Bags & Leather Employers' Association
Appointment: Charles Atala, secretary of the General Goods, Bags & Leather Employers' AssociationJohannesburg, Gauteng, SA - Charles Atala was appointed secretary of the General Goods, Bags & Leather Employers Association of SA in June last year following the death of long-serving secretary Theo Hefer. His background includes clie ...moreA+A: No price increases for 2021 edition
Düsseldorf, Germany - The organisers of the biennial A+A safety, security and health at work fair have announced that the rates and hall planning for the 2021 edition will remain the same as the 2019 edition. "In order to provide our exhibitors with the best possible support during this period, A+A 2021 will not increase the pri ...moreComment: The idiocy of Level 4 and 'winter footwear'As of Monday, there has been no further clarification of what constitutes 'winter footwear' in terms of lockdown regulations. Last week saw a flurry of communication between the various associations and organisations in the leather value chain seeking to define categories of footwear which will be acceptable to the National Coronavirus Co ...moreGlobal footwear consumption 'to decline 22.5% in 2020'World footwear consumption is expected to decline more than 22% this year, according to the Business Conditions Survey conducted amongst the international Panel of Experts from the World Footwear, a project launched by APICCAPS 11 years ago and dedicated to evaluating the trends in the footwear sector. The impact of the Covid-19 pan ...moreSAFLIA: What we need is clarityCape Town, W Cape, SA - The rules imposed on most footwear manufacturers wishing to restart manufacturing under the government's 'Level 4' lockdown "will discourage most from re-opening", SAFLIA executive director Jirka Vymetal said last week. "There are a lot of rules and requests that make it difficult," he said. &qu ...moreFLIC seeks accurate capacity stats from SA factoriesPietermaritzburg, KZN, SA - FLIC would like to assist the footwear industry and retail by collating the total available capacity of footwear manufacturers by the various fashion categories. This information will then be distributed amongst the large retailers to give them a good idea of what is available to them from the local industry. A ...moreMicam prepares for September editionMilan, Italy (May 06, 2020) - MICAM Milano starts to prepare for the coming edition to be held at the Rho trade-fair centre from 20 to 23 September, with the aim of providing an opportunity for the industry to get restarted after a difficult period for the world’s economy. While the fair organisers work to prepare a prestigious even ...moreFootwear Industry Articles
- AI is putting an end to counterfeit sneakers
Osmo’s AI-powered scent authentication machine in action, revolutionizing the fight against counterfeit sneakers by detecting unique chemical profiles with remarkable precision.As the sneaker resale market continues to boom, counterfeit goods remain a persistent concern for both luxury and mass-market brands. Counterfeiters have bec ...moreGlobal footwear trends and the impact of evolving consumer behaviour on exportsSponsored by the SA Footwear & Leather Export Council (SAFLEC).The worldwide footwear sector is experiencing notable changes driven by technology advancements, evolving fashion trends, and shifting consumer preferences. Below are the significant trends and shifts in consumer purchasing habits.Current Trends in Footwear1. Emphasis on s ...moreSAFLIA: Hopefully the slide will be reversed
Durban, KZN, SA – My forecast for 2024 is that production will be 12.5% down on last year. Meaning 41,690,000 pairs.The last time we saw such low volumes was in 2007.My forecast for next year is that production will be stabilised at the same level as this year – let’s say 42,000,000 pairs. However, with some serious inte ...more
Leather Industry Articles
- LULUC: Explaining the link between deforestation and the leather industry
Land use and land use change (LULUC) refers to the study area in general – that is the study of how global land use change (commonly through human intervention) results in increased atmospheric emissions. The obvious emission is that if the forest is burnt, the emissions are directly released into the atmosphere. However, the change ...moreHide demand steady amid growing global supply, gelatine plants absorbing higher number of lower grades
The picture I get of the leather industry globally is that it is losing share in all its markets for a variety of reasons. In South Africa, the situation is compounded by cash-strapped consumers choosing cheaper alternatives. Cape Produce Company is at the beginning of the leather process, and it supplies all leather markets in SA and internationally. I asked CEO Benjy Lapiner if the picture is as bleak as I’m told. No, he said, but… ...moreThe power of partnership…
This month we are delighted to announce the beginning of a new programme, being funded by the Leather & Hide Council of America as part of the US Regional Agricultural Programme. ...more
PPE Industry Articles
- MBA North members place in top 4 of every category in MBSA National Safety Competition – again
Master Builders Association North (MBA North) members have continued their multi-year winning streak by being placed in the top four of every category in the 2024 Master Builders South Africa (MBSA) National Safety Competition (NSC) – the flagship event for health and safety in the building industry.Gerhard Roets, Health and Safety ...moreArtificial intelligence for Clinical Pathology: Data-efficient foundation model for biomarker detection
Bremen, Germany (02 September 2024) – The use of Artificial Intelligence (AI) systems shows promise in medicine, where they can be used to detect diseases earlier, improve treatments, and ease staff workloads. But their performance depends on how well the AI is trained. A new multi-task approach to training AI makes it possible to t ...moreThe importance of supporting local manufacturing to preserve South Africa’s footwear industry
Pinetown, KZN, SA – At Neptun Safety Footwear, our commitment to local manufacturing goes beyond producing quality footwear—it’s about building a sustainable, self-reliant economy in South Africa. We are passionate about growing local industries, not just for the jobs they create today but for the future they secure for ...more
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