Durban, KZN, SA – The industry is very quiet at the moment. Customers tell me that the chains are holding back until after the elections, and that come June and July, there will be good orders. I certainly hope so.

Something which disturbs me, and I’m not a shopper, is that the shoe areas in most apparel chains seem to be much smaller than they were. I don’t know whether that’s my imagination or not. 

The Tanning wage negotiation took place on 14 and 15 May. “The parties were unable to reach agreement after 2 rounds of wage negotiations,” Gerald Naidoo, general secretary of the National Bargaining Council of the Leather Industry of SA, said on Friday. “The parties agreed to meet again on 10 June as an attempt to reach agreement and should no agreement be reached then the matter will be a conciliation by a CCMA commissioner.”

Footwear negotiations resume this week. 

East London, E. Cape, SA – Glen Puttergill, formerly of Glen’s Shoes, died on 01 March 2024, aged 79. An obituary will follow in the May issue of S&V Footwear & Leather Goods.

Pinetown, KZN, SA – Leo Vandenheede, formerly of last maker Fanci-Form, died last Wednesday, 15 May, aged 55, of multiple organ failure, after a long illness. An obituary will follow.

Pretoria, Gauteng, SA – The International Labour Organization (ILO) has partnered with the Department of Trade, Industry & Competition (DTIC) and the Companies & Intellectual Property Commission (CIPC) to research illicit and illegal trade in counterfeit footwear and leather goods with a view to reducing them and bring relief to the sector in South Africa, Nii Moi Thompson, chief technical advisor of the ILO’s Productivity Ecosystems Project South Africa said in Durban last week during the ARSUTORIA Leather & Footwear workshop, which the ILO sponsored.

“The aim of the study is to help strengthen the local leather, footwear and leather goods value chain,” he said. “We got involved following a request from the DTIC as part of our collaboration in the project.

“The findings from the study will inform further interventions by the government, in collaboration with the ILO, to create a level playing field for South African manufacturers while plugging tax loopholes from illicit trade.”

He said the study is being spearheaded by Dr Jaywant Irkhede, director, leather & footwear, at the DTIC. 

Cape Town, W. Cape, SA – Trade union NULAW accepted the employer's offer of a 7% increase on wages and an increase on the holiday bonus from 6 days’ pay to 7 days’ pay, Gerald Naidoo, general secretary of the National Bargaining Council of the Leather Industry of SA, said on Friday. Rival union SACTWU “will consult with their members and revert by Tuesday, 14 May, to indicate if the offer is accepted or not”, he said.