S&V Footwear & Leather Goods Magazine Vol91 No9 September 2025
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IN THIS ISSUE:
03 Interview
- Puma: Holding on to its market gains – just – planning more local production, but a declining independent retail sector – MD Luke Barrett-Smith answers our questions.
07 Footwear Education
- In the first of a series, Richard Kushlick explains the difference between the degradation of crepe rubber and PU soles, and how to prevent both.
11 News
- Malawi: Imports and forex issues stifle local leather sector.
- Shoet3ch opens Pinetown office.
- UK trends: M&S autumn ranges.
15 Insights by Tinashe Mandirahwe
- Asia tightens its grip on global footwear, but risks loom.
- Can India’s Uttar Pradesh become the next global footwear hub?
17 Noticeboard
- The Life of Brian: Back in the day: When overseas travel was a real trip. All work and no play would have made me a dull boy, writes Brian Zyster.
- Obituary: Colin Pedlar, Reflex Footwear – whatever he did, he did calmly, thoroughly, and well, by Rudi le Roux.
Advertisers in this Issue
Arena Trims (12), Bolton Footwear (02, 04), East Asian Import & Export (18), Freestyle Genuine Handcrafted Leather (06), Haesloop Agencies (14), Kaytex Belts (10), Leather Finishing Products (16), Palm Footwear/Trustees (OFC), Saddler Belts (13), SAFLEC (15), S&V Calendar (01), S&V Directory (11), Shotland Packaging (20).
- Puma: Holding on to its market gains – just – planning more local production, but a declining independent retailer sector
Cape Town, W. Cape, SA – Puma – along with Adidas, its arch rival here, globally and in their joint hometown, Herzogenaurach – has a long history in South Africa.Next year marks 25 years of Puma Sports SA (Pty) Ltd as a wholly owned subsidiary of Puma SE, following a decade or more under licensee Jagsports. “It&rsq ...moreA guide for retailers and distributors on how to advise customers to avoid sole degradation
Richard Kushlick runs footwear education and training programmes for all tiers of the industry (https://footweareducation.co.za/).Starting this month, he will write columns on various topical subjects for S&V. In this issue, he covers a complaint which retailers often face from consumers – sole degradation in soles made from cre ...moreShoet3ch opens Pinetown office
Pinetown, KZN, SA – 6 months after the closure of Shoetech Engineering, its successor company, Shoet3ch Consumables (Pty) Ltd, has opened premises back in Pinetown.“This is of course a business decision,” said Shoet3ch director Nicky Hawkins, daughter of the late Shoetech owner, Eckehard Schumann, “but it’s a ...moreThe Life Of Brian: Back in the day, when overseas travel was a real trip: All work and no play would have made me a dull boy…
I'm going to be very discreet with the following article. Some of the persons described here could possibly be alive and still employed in the industry [Almost certainly, Brian. Only the good die young. – Ed.]. However, I'm not trying to embarrass anyone but just having a laugh at what happened during those overseas trips.Some ...moreObituary: Colin Pedlar – Reflex Footwear (Pty) Ltd (08/04/1946-18/07/2025) : Whatever he did, he did calmly, thoroughly, and well
I met Colin Pedlar for the first time when we had the opportunity to take over a production plant in Lesotho.It was quite a daunting prospect starting a new business in a foreign country.Colin was very involved right from the start and tackled every hurdle calmy, from negotiating with the Lesotho Government to moving machinery to Lesotho. ...moreMalawi: Imports, forex stifle local leather sectorThe Malawi Leather Industry Association says it is struggling to meet the annual demand for shoes, producing only 200 000 pairs against demand of 15.5 million, largely due to competition from imports and forex shortages hindering raw material imports.Data from Small and Medium Enterprises Development Institute (Smedi), which is championin ...moreAsia tightens its grip on global footwear, but risks loomAmerican shoemaker New Balance has shipped its first export consignment from its manufacturing hub in Tamil Nadu, marking India’s growing role in global footwear supply chains. At the same time, Japanese giant ASICS is increasing local production in India from 30% to 40% to comply with the country’s new Bur ...moreCan India’s Uttar Pradesh become the next global footwear hub?The state of Uttar Pradesh has approved a new footwear policy aimed at building a smooth chain that goes from design to delivery — covering ideas, production, training, and exports. The plan focuses on traditional hubs like Agra and Kanpur while pushing investment into less-developed regions such as&nbs ...more
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Footwear Industry Articles
- Bova Socks: The PPE layer that works inside the boot
In demanding work environments, safety footwear plays a critical role in helping workers manage workplace risks. However, the sock worn inside the boot also influences comfort, hygiene, fit and overall performance throughout the shift. This makes Bova’s sock range an essential part of a complete PPE solution.Bova high-performance so ...moreWayne's Phambili range: Practical boots from non-safety to full protection
Roodepoort, Gauteng, SA – Wayne's Phambili range combines everyday comfort, dependable durability and clearly defined levels of protection in a practical range of PVC work boots. Developed for demanding working environments, the 3-boot lineup makes it easy to choose the protection best suited to the job while delivering the comfort ...moreSAFLEC AGM 2026: Strengthening of relationships between industry organisations and government a key development
This has been a defining year for the South African Footwear & Leather Export Council (SAFLEC). It has been a year of innovation, collaboration and meaningful progress, where together with our members and strategic partners, we have continued to strengthen the competitiveness of South Africa's footwear and leather industry while creat ...more
Leather Industry Articles
- African leather businesses holding LWG and SLF ratingsAs African leather manufacturers strive to grow their exports, the number which have qualified for ratings by the Leather Working Group (LWG) and the Sustainable Leather Foundation (SLF) is growing.By country, LWG lists the following:Algeria: Sarl Tannerie Ain FakrounBurkina Faso: Mona Industry SARL.Egypt: El Montaza Tannery, Piel Color C ...moreZimbabwe Leather Development Council lobbies for Government contracts
The Zimbabwe Leather Development Council (ZLDC) is lobbying policymakers to open up public procurement contracts to local leather manufacturers, arguing that Government contracts are essential to reviving the country’s struggling leather value chain.Speaking on the sidelines of the Zimbabwe Industrialisation Conference and Expo (ZIC ...moreMobilising Africa’s human resource to reinvigorate the regional leather value chain
In last month’s edition I wrote about mobilising Africa’s livestock to reinvigorate the regional leather value chain, and this article is focussed on mobilising the human resource that is needed to make the most of the abundant livestock populations in the region.On Friday 12th June, newly organised SARLEN (Southern African Re ...more
PPE Industry Articles
- RealPPE Marketplace: Where safety meets smarter procurementRealPPE Marketplace is a 100% black women-owned B2B PPE marketplace built for South African industry. Founded after years of witnessing safety officers and procurement teams lose time to fragmented suppliers, inconsistent pricing, and missing documentation, RealPPE was created to bring structure and reliability to industrial PPE sourcing. ...moreStatistical shape modelling for population-specific respirator design: Addressing fit failure in South African populations
Respirators are widely regarded as the last line of defence against hazardous airborne exposures. Whether protecting healthcare workers from tuberculosis, laboratory personnel from infectious samples, or workers exposed to carcinogenic dusts and fumes, respirators are often relied upon when other controls cannot eliminate exposure. This r ...moreFurther controls over the import of safety footwear are on the wayOn 03 August 2026, the Safety Footwear Working Group, led by SAFLIA, submitted a request to Minister Tau (dtic) for interim import control measures in respect of specified safety footwear. The request was strongly supported by organised labour and other industry stakeholders.The application was further strengthened by contributions f ...more
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