Fifth largest shoe producer in the world, the largest outside Asia, with an industrial park that brings together more than 4,000 factories of all sizes and which has a preponderant economic strength in at least ten Brazilian states. It is this industry that, starting in November, will achieve another historic landmark. This is because, between the 21st and 23rd of that month, the Brazilian Association of Footwear Industries (Abicalçados), in partnership with NürnbergMesse Brasil, will hold the debut edition of the Brazilian Footwear Show (BFSHOW), at the Federation of Industries of the State of Rio Grande do Sul (Fiergs), in Porto Alegre/RS. According to Abicalçados, nine months after its first edition, the footwear fair already has 85% of its spaces occupied, with companies of all sizes and Brazilian production centers.

With logistical advantages - as it takes place geographically close to the Salgado Filho international airport, in a city with a wide and qualified hotel network -, cost optimization for exhibitors, focus on business and excellent infrastructure, the first edition of the BFSHOW confirms the presence of players from all segments and sizes of the Brazilian footwear sector.

Another factor that has been attracting the attention of the sector, not only in Brazil, but internationally, is the fact that the BFSHOW is led by a national entity representing the activity, such as Micam Milano, an international reference in the segment of footwear exhibitions promoted by the association of Italian shoemakers, Assocalzaturifici. “Companies, of all sizes and segments, as well as large retailers, understood that it is an event demanded by the market. It is a fair held by the industry for retail, with no other interest than to meet the desires of the sector and provide one more tool for its development”, evaluates the executive president of Abicalçados, Haroldo Ferreira.

The CEO of NürnbergMesse Brasil, João Paulo Picolo, projects a thriving fair with business effectiveness. “We are excited! The seal of Abicalçados, by itself, points to the strength of the fair, optimizing resources and generating more expressive returns for exhibitors. The expectation for the first edition of the BFSHOW is very good, mainly due to what we can feel in the footwear centers that we visited over the past year”, he highlights.

Sector sees an opportunity to increase sales
With an expected growth of 1.6% in production, reaching more than 860 million pairs produced in 2023, the Brazilian footwear industry sees in the event an opportunity to expand sales both in the domestic and international markets.

In the first month of 2023, positive news encouraged the activity. In January, the Brazilian footwear industry exported 14.63 million pairs, which generated US$ 117.9 million. The results are superior both in volume (+4.5%) and in revenue (+16.6%) compared to the first month of 2022. The great highlight was due to the United States, Latin American countries and Europe markets.

Para a BFSHOW, Paludetto destaca que a expectativa é bastante positiva, especialmente pela recuperação da representatividade e pujança de uma feira “do tamanho que o setor merece”. “Sabemos que a BFSHOW será uma construção, mas temos a expectativa de que se torne a principal feira nacional de calçados, para o mercado brasileiro e mundial”. Segundo o diretor, o fato de ter à frente uma entidade representativa, como a Abicalçados, facilita na interlocução com os players do mercado, tanto expositores quanto varejistas. “O mercado deve ter o comando. Ter a Abicalçados na promoção garante uma maior flexibilidade para atender às demandas do setor”, acrescenta, ressaltando, ainda, que são diferenciais desta primeira edição, em Porto Alegre/RS, a infraestrutura e as facilidades logísticas, já que a Fiergs fica localizada muito próxima ao aeroporto da capital gaúcha.

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About the organizers
NürnbergMesse Brasil is a subsidiary of the NürnbergMesse Group, one of the 15 largest fair organizers in the world. The group’s portfolio includes more than 120 international fairs and congresses (14 of them in Brazil) and more than 40 pavilions. Every year, more than 30,000 expositors and more than 1,5 million visitors meet in events hosted by NürnbergMesse, which also has subsidiaries in China, United States, Brazil, Greece, Italy, and India, The group also established a network with sone 50 representatives operating in more than 116 countries.

About Abicalçados
Abicalçados represents the Brazilian footwear industry, fifth largest in the world and the largest in the Western Hemisphere. Founded in 1983, Abicalçados is based in Novo Hamburgo, state of Rio Grande do Sul, and its members are companies of all sizes accounting for more than 65 percent of the footwear produced in the country. The entity represents an industry that employs more than 300,000 people. Its mission is to represent, defend, develop, and promote Brazil’s footwear industry with respect, excellency, and results.

The executive president and Project Manager of the Brazilian Footwear Industries Association (Abicalçados), Haroldo Ferreira and Letícia Sperb Masselli, were, on the 5th, in Brasília/DF. On the agenda was the signing of an official partnership agreement of the Brazilian Export and Investment Promotion Agency (ApexBrasil) with the president and Business Director of the Agency, Jorge Viana and Ana Repezza. The goal is to reinforce the Agency's support in initiatives that have a direct impact on exports, such as the Brazilian Footwear Show (BFSHOW) and the Sustainable Origin - ESG certification program of the sector. 

The official partnership will boost footwear exports, at first bringing international buyers from all continents to the BFSHOW, which will have its first edition between November 21st and 23rd, at the Event Center of the Federation of Industries of the State of Rio Grande do Sul (FIERGS). Headquartered in Brasilia, ApexBrasil has international offices in the United States (Miami and San Francisco), the United Arab Emirates (Dubai), Israel (Jerusalem), Colombia (Bogotá), China (Beijing and Shanghai), Belgium (Brussels) and Russia (Moscow). 

Ferreira highlights that the partnership is an important step to enhance the promotion of Brazilian footwear abroad. "ApexBrasil's support demonstrates the economic and social importance of the Brazilian footwear sector and takes our footwear to an international benchmark level. The participation of the agency as an official supporter of BFSHOW will certainly provide the coming to Brazil of some of the main players in footwear retail in the world”, evaluates the executive. 

The president of ApexBrasil, Jorge Viana, highlights the partnership of more than two decades with Abicalçados, through Brazilian Footwear, and the objective of the current management to further enhance support for national footwear. “Our partnership has always been a source of pride for the agency. We need to increasingly value this important segment of the national industry, which in addition to working strongly on sustainability, contributes with more than US$ 1.3 billion to the Brazilian trade balance and directly generates more than 300 thousand jobs in the country”, comments the leader. 

Last year, Brazilian footwear industries exported 142 million pairs, which generated US$ 1.3 billion, the best result in 12 years and 45.5% higher than that recorded in 2021. According to a report by Abicalçados, companies associated with Brazilian Footwear, a program to support exports in the sector maintained by Abicalçados in partnership with ApexBrasil, accounted for more than 80% of the value generated by shipments. 

About Brazilian Footwear:
Brazilian Footwear is an export incentive program developed by Abicalçados in partnership with ApexBrasil. This program aims to increase the presence of the Brazilian industry and its brands in the international market through development actions, commercial promotion and image. Read more: www.brazilianfootwear.com.br | www.abicalcados.com.br/brazilianfootwear.

About ApexBrasil:
The Brazilian Export and Investment Promotion Agency (ApexBrasil) acts to promote Brazilian products and services abroad and attract foreign investment to strategic sectors of the Brazilian economy. To achieve the objectives, ApexBrasil carries out diversified commercial promotion actions aimed at promoting exports and valuing Brazilian products and services abroad, such as prospective and commercial missions, Business rounds, support to the participation of Brazilian companies in major international fairs, visits by foreign buyers and opinion makers to get to know the Brazilian production structure among other business platforms that also aim to strengthen the Brazil brand. The agency also works in coordination with public and private actors to attract foreign direct investment (FDI) to Brazil with a focus on strategic sectors for the development of the competitiveness of Brazilian companies and the country. See More: https://apexbrasil.com.br.

BFSHOW, the fair that democratizes the trade event industry for the local footwear industry, announces that representatives from more than 70 percent of Brazil’s footwear clusters, from all segments and sizes in industry, have confirmed participation. Hosted by the Brazilian Footwear Industry Association in partnership with NürnbergMesse Brasil, the first edition of the Brazilian Footwear Show - BFSHOW – will take place in November 21-23 at the Event Center of the Federation of Industries of the Rio Grande do Sul State (Fiergs).

BFSHOW has segmented its floor plan by product type to improve the visitor experience and has confirmed the participation of children footwear manufacturers accounting for more than 80 percent of Brazil’s total production. Male footwear manufacturers are represented by 73 percent and female footwear manufacturers, 43 percent. “We are living a historic moment for Brazilian footwear industry when the industry’s association is hosting its own fair. For this reason, it is no surprise that the fair brings together representatives from almost all clusters, sizes and segments of an industry that last year produced almost 850 million items and is considered the Western Hemisphere’s largest. BFSHOW changes an important paradigm and by focusing on nosiness and transparency, has become the most democratic fair in Brazil”, says Haroldo Ferreira, chairman, Brazilian Footwear Industry Association.

Focus on business
The BFSHOW’s first edition will invite local buyers appointed through a Buying Program by the fair participants themselves and will feature projects promoting trade and enhancing brands for exportation. “Our Association, with Market Intelligence know-how and our sales team, is selecting local and foreign buyers according to interest levels of participating companies that are receiving forms for their nominations”, explains Mr. Ferreira. According to him, since its inception BFSHOW has considered market wishes from retail to manufacturing, all pursuing an event that is effectively business oriented. “It is only fair that we develop this fair together with the industry by listening to market wishes”, he says.

International markets
Calçados Bottero, a manufacturer of women footwear from the city of Parobé, state of Rio Grande do Sul, is one of the companies participating in the fair. The company produces more than 3 million pairs of footwear every year, of which 34 percent are exported, and the company has a positive outlook for 2023. “For us, 2022 was a year of recovery and growth with a 45 percent increase in revenue. We expect a 12 percent growth for this year”, says the company CEO, Paulo Victor Kauer. According to Mr. Kauer, although growth this year may come from the domestic market, there is expectation for an increase in exports. “We believe in Abicalçados efforts to bring more clients from other countries to BFSHOW, which should improve our sales overseas”, he says.

New horizons for the industry
Straight from Brazil’s Men Footwear Capital, Franca, in the state of São Paulo, PG4 Galleria manufactures men footwear with high added value for a client’s brand – the so-called private label. Producing 800 pairs daily, most of the company’s clients are overseas. “We currently export more than 60 percent of our footwear to 19 countries, and our main clients are based in the US, Colombia, Chile, Panama, Bolivia, and Guatemala”, says the company CEO Giuliano Gera. The company achieved a 54 percent growth last year but sees the beginning of 2023 as difficult. According to Mr. Gera, the outlook for the coming years will be largely determined by the BFSHOW, which opens a new horizon for the industry. “BFSHOW brings several Brazilian clusters together and is a remarkably disrupting event as it focuses on business and hopefully brings back the essence of a business fair, which is to connect companies and retail”, he adds.

Focus on business
The Sugar Shoes Group from Picada Café, state of Rio Grande do Sul, produces more than 36,000 pairs daily for their own brands and the likes of Coca-Cola, Aramis, and Hurley, among others, will join BFSHOW first edition. José Paulo Boelter, CEO, points out that 2022 was the year when the industry recovered, with a slight increase in revenue. For 2023, Mr. Boelter says the outlook is cloudy since sales did not take off in the first two months. “We want to keep production levels. BFSHOW will open a space to support the industry at this moment. We have high hopes as Brazil’s footwear industry deserves a fair of its own focused on business”, says Mr. Boelter, also pointing out the logistical benefits for retailers from other states and importers, as the fair will take place near Porto Alegre Airport in Rio Grande do Sul.

About the organizers
NürnbergMesse Brasil is a subsidiary of the NürnbergMesse Group, one of the 15 largest fair organizers in the world. The group’s portfolio includes more than 120 international fairs and congresses (14 of them in Brazil) and more than 40 pavilions. Every year, more than 30,000 expositors and more than 1,5 million visitors meet in events hosted by NürnbergMesse, which also has subsidiaries in China, United States, Brazil, Greece, Italy, and India, The group also established a network with sone 50 representatives operating in more than 116 countries.

About Abicalçados
Abicalçados represents the Brazilian footwear industry, fifth largest in the world and the largest in the Western Hemisphere. Founded in 1983, Abicalçados is based in Novo Hamburgo, state of Rio Grande do Sul, and its members are companies of all sizes accounting for more than 65 percent of the footwear produced in the country. The entity represents an industry that employs more than 300,000 people. Its mission is to represent, defend, develop, and promote Brazil’s footwear industry with respect, excellency, and results.