On October 22 through 25 Russia hosts the international exhibition for shoes and leather products in one of the most important markets for Italian exports This essential appointment for footwear companies with an interest in Russia and the CIS area offers an opportunity to consolidate established business relationships and contact new prospects on these markets. Obuv’ Mir Koži International Exhibition for Shoes and Leather Products is scheduled for October 22 through 25, 2018 at Expocentre in Moscow. The event is once again the most important exhibition for medium to high-end footwear in the CIS, and it will showcase 130 Italian brands in 3,000 square metres of display space. The exhibition is part of Assocalzaturifici’s calendar of international events promoting Italian footwear, the biggest sales opportunity after MICAM in Milan for an area considered highly strategic for Italian exports. Italy exported more than 6 million pairs of shoes to Russia in 2017, worth a total of 379 million euros. Footwear exports to Moscow in the first six months of 2018 were worth 161 million euros, down 8% over the first half of last year. Italian footwear exports throughout the CIS totalled more than 483 million euros in 2017, while exports of Italian footwear to the CIS in the first six months of the current year totalled 212 million euros, down 5.3% in value compared to the first half of 2017.
“Obuv’ Mir Koži remains an essential appointment for our member companies. It is the ideal place for showcasing Italian footwear companies’ quality, creativity and research,” says Assocalzaturifici Chair Annarita Pilotti. “It is unfortunate that the continuing uncertainty of political dialogue with the European Union and stagnant domestic consumption due to ongoing currency tension still characterise the economy in the area. In a climate exasperated by the continuation of sanctions preventing Russian banks from accessing financial capital, it is inevitable that our exports will be penalised significantly. Fortunately, the Italian government is working to resolve this continuing problem. And despite all this, Russia continues to prefer quality Italian footwear, and Assocalzaturifici is still investing in the market and developing concrete projects to support the many enterprises that have been serving this market for many years. In this regard," concludes Pilotti, “it is important for the Ministry of Economic Development to continue to work with us in this area, strategically financing projects that focus on the needs of enterprises”. The event is in fact still the focus of a strategic partnership between Assocalzaturifici and ITA Agency, the agency for international promotion of Italian companies, involving study, profiling and selection of qualified dealers throughout all the regions of the Russian Federation. Assocalzaturifici and ITA Agency’s strategy for the market includes the important task of mapping the new retail world that has evolved in Russia since the upheaval of the recent years, dividing up distribution in the footwear and apparel market and applying increasingly targeted actions to the buyers with the greatest potential for growth. “The Russian Federation imported Italian shoes and leather products worth more than 850,000 euros every day in the first 7 months of the year, confirming a position that, though second to Chinese products, puts us first in the high end of the market in terms of manufacture and quality, with our competitors trailing far behind. We can expect to see further growth in sales as the Russians’ purchasing power grows. We have great expectations for the buyers invited by ITA Agency, carefully selected on the basis of the growth dynamics of their retail outlets,” reports Pier Paolo Celeste, Head of ITA Agency in Moscow, with optimism.
“Obuv’ Mir koži offers the best opportunity to intercept dealers on a market that is still suffering, but continues to demonstrate awareness of the quality of Italian products and the excellence of Italian footwear, says Arturo Venanzi, Director and Coordinator of Assocalzaturifici’s Russian Committee. “Despite the continued attitude of prudence, we must be confident about the outlook for the seasons to come, when we trust there will be greater stability on the Russian market. In this sense, it is very important to continue working with ITA Agency, with which Assocalzaturifici has been implementing actions specifically aimed at intercepting growing demand for Italianmade shoes among buyers”. See you at Expocentre in Moscow October 22 through 25, 2018 for Obuv’ Mir koži!
Press release
Assocalzaturifici
Milan, 18 October 2018