S&V Footwear & Leather Goods Magazine Vol. 92 No. 02 February 2026
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IN THIS ISSUE:
03 Upfront
- ‘If footwear manufacturers want to supply chains, they have to trigger the viable ideas. It’s not retail’s responsibility’, says NCRF director Michael Lawrence.
- An export success story: Weef – the art of taking an extravagance and making it an essential, globally. Dévan Swanepoel explains.
09 Shoe Fairs
- Mipel/Micam attract 20 000 visitors.
11 Sustainability
- Plastics manufacturing: Sustainable PU production without toxic isocyanate.
13 Noticeboard
- Obituary: George Geyser, Dancewell: From ballet pumps to clown shoes, a shoemaker who could make, literally, any shoe.
- Obituary: Rolf Oltmanns, PMC: His philosophy had an impact far beyond the businesses he led.
- Obituary: Edward W. Bailey, CDB Holdings: A good and wise man from a different era.
17 Statistics
- Preliminary trade statistics December 2025.
Advertisers in this Issue
Arena Trims (OFC, 02, 07), East Asian Import & Export (02), Ethekwini Leather (05), Freestyle Genuine Handcrafted Leather (04), Jumbo Footwear (11), Haesloop Agencies (17), iSync Solutions (13), Kaytex Belts (14), Leather Finishing Products (08), Saddler Belts (12), SAFLEC (16), S&V Calendar (01), S&V Directory (18), Shotland Packaging (10).
- ‘If footwear manufacturers want to supply chains, they have to trigger the viable ideas. It’s not retail’s responsibility’
South African clothing manufacturers whose strategy is to supply chain retailers are, by and large, reaching sustainable agreements with their customers. South African footwear manufacturers who have the same business model are yet to make similar inroads.That’s the assessment of National Clothing Retail Federation (NCRF) executive ...moreeThekwini Footwear & Leather Cluster panel discussions and presentations
The EFLC panel discussions and networking dinner on 19 February included chain retail, manufacturing, and union representatives, municipal, provincial and national government officials, a successful exporter, a representative from Amazon South Africa speaking about potential for local suppliers, and the MD of Messe Frankfurt SA speaking a ...moreWeef: The art of taking an extravagance and making it an essential – globally
Dévan Swanepoel of Cape Town manufacturer Weef makes products that no-one actually needs, but which a sizeable percentage of his target market wants – especially after they’ve been exposed to the enthusiasm, energy and visual appeal of Weef’s ‘handmade leather statements’: leather ties, leather bowties ...moreMipel/Micam attract 20 000 visitors
Milan, Italy – Micam and Mipel this month attracted over 20 000 visitors, a little over half of them international, led by France, Spain, Germany, Belgium and Greece in Europe, and Japan and the United States from the rest of the world. A little over half of the 795 exhibitors were also from outside Italy.“This edition of ...moreObituary: George Geyser, Dancewell Footwear (02/02/1941-17/11/2025): From ballet pumps to clown shoes, a shoemaker who could make, literally, any shoe
Durban, KZN, SA – George was born in Pietermaritzburg into a family with deep footwear industry roots – his father, Martin, joined Eddels in 1924 at age 12. His uncle, ‘Kork’ Geyser, worked in the industry in Durban, as did Kork’s sons, Rudolph ‘Rudi’ and Leon. Rudi’s son, Brandon, of EVA In ...moreObituary: Rolf Wilhelm Oltmanns, PMC Group (24/08/1944-13/12/2025) His philosophy had an impact far beyond the businesses he led
Pinetown, KZN, SA – It is with deep sadness that we announce the sudden passing of Rolf Oltmanns on 13 December 2025, at his holiday apartment in Cape Town.Born on 24 August 1944, Rolf was a respected and longstanding figure in South Africa’s footwear and manufacturing industries. He served with distinction as Managing Directo ...moreSustainable polyurethane production without toxic isocyanatePolyurethanes (PUR) are found in many products, such as upholstered furniture, foam or insulation materials, flooring, paints and even medical catheter tubes. The production of these high-demand plastics, however, relies on toxic isocyanate. Fraunhofer researchers have now developed an alternative production process using harmless dicarba ...moreObituary: Edward W. Bailey, CDB Holdings (10/03/c1939-31/01/2026) A good and wise man from a different eraWritten more as a reminder of his participation in the industry than as an obituary.Port Elizabeth, E. Cape, SA – Ed was Managing Director of CDB Holdings Pty Ltd. This entity, over a period, controlled Colin D. Bailey (Pty) Ltd, Fashion Components, Arrow Glove Works and Valhalla Leather Production, all of which would be known to th ...more
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Footwear Industry Articles
- Comrades Expo 2026
Durban, KZN, SA – The exhibitor list at the Comrades Expo, from 11-13 June, has shown an evolution in the types of companies exhibiting. Just 1 running footwear supplier, Ikhambi Distribution, promoting its Hoka brand, was there.Technical sock suppliers, however, were well represented, with Balega, Falke, Sox Footwear and The Hirst ...morePalm Footwear: ‘One family’Palm Footwear was founded in July 1966 by Kasie Pattundeen, with 18 staff, making slippers.60 years later, with over 800 staff, it is among the biggest employers in the SA footwear industry and among the biggest manufacturers by volume.It remains a family business, headed by Rajeev and Kiran Pattundeen, with their children, Srishti and Rt ...more2026 Comrades shoe count: Asics stays top, Adidas up, Nike slides into 4th place
Marathon shoe counts are among the few footwear statistics available in SA. The Sweat Shop’s Jax Snyman has extracted this year’s Comrades Marathon figures for comparison with last year.His assessment: “Asics up. Adidas properly up. New Balance steady although now 3rd largest. Nike down and drop in rankings to 4th. Sauco ...more
Leather Industry Articles
- When communication moves faster than truth: Why credible, evidence-based information matters more than ever.We have never had more information at our fingertips. We have also never had to work quite so hard to determine which information we should trust. Communication today moves at extraordinary speed. Social media platforms, digital news, corporate communications, industry reports and, increasingly, artificial intelligence allow information t ...moreISTT offers free entry level leather course to encourage trainingGrahamstown, E. Cape, SA – The International School of Tanning Technology (ISTT) is offering one of its short online courses, Introduction to the Leather Industry, for free.The course is suitable for entry level tannery staff.It is also suitable for anyone in footwear, leather goods, furniture and upholstery manufacturing, retailing ...moreRwanda’s planned leather park movedRwanda’s planned tannery park has been moved from Bugesera District to Gicumbi District, according to several reports. It’s expected to be completed by 2029. The project was first announced in 2024. ...more
PPE Industry Articles
- CONSIDERING A PPE MATRIX
What Personal Protective Equipment (PPE) do we need to have on site to reduce and manage the workplace and environmental exposure risks to our employees?Safety and mining legislation place the responsibility on employers to ensure that they provide and maintain working environments that are safe and without risk to the health on employees ...moreProtecting the workforce: The critical role of PPE
Personal protective equipment (PPE) is utilised in a work-environment as part of a larger prevention plan, because on its own protection is limited and may even provide a false sense of protection.An occupational disease prevention plan must be an actionable approach that identifies workplace health hazards, evaluates exposure, and i ...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 ...more
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