The 3rd edition of BFSHOW, footwear fair that brought together more than 330 brands between November 11 and 13, in the Anhembi District, in São Paulo/SP, registered record visitation and business. According to the organization, over the three days more than 10.4 thousand buyers passed through the pavilions of the event, which is twice as many as in November 2023. According to the Brazilian Footwear Industries Association (Abicalçados), the deals took place in important volumes, which will be tabulated in the coming days.
The CEO of Abicalçados, Haroldo Ferreira, points out that BFSHOW will be decisive for the positive expectations of the sector. For 2024, the forecast for growth in production exceeds 3%, to more than 890 million pairs. By 2025, growth will be around 2%, causing the sector to recover losses from the pandemic and reach more than 900 million pairs produced. “We have here a great showcase of Brazilian footwear for the world. We gathered, in these three days, the main brands of the country and buyers from more than 60 countries”, evaluates the director, stressing that at the fair, significant business took place both in the domestic and international markets. "To attract buyers from abroad, BFSHOW worked together with the Brazilian Export and Investment Promotion Agency (ApexBrasil). With these projects alone, 160 importers and five international journalists were invited to promote our product abroad”, Ferreira lists.
According to the CEO of NürnbergMesse Brasil, João Paulo Picolo, with each edition, BFSHOW demonstrates its growth and, therefore, has consolidated itself so quickly as the main event of the Brazilian footwear sector. “The fair is already an indispensable meeting point for professionals and the partnership of NürnbergMesse Brasil with Abicalçados has been fundamental to this success”, he comments. The CEO also says that the results of the third edition exceeded all expectations. “We are confident that BFSHOW will continue to evolve and strengthen the national footwear market. No wonder it is already among the main events in the company's portfolio. For the next edition, in May 2025, we expect a growth of 20% when compared to the number of exhibitors and visitors”, he evaluates.
"Right place and right time”
For Marcos Huff, director of Killana, from Três Coroas / RS, BFSHOW is a consolidated fair as the main one in the Brazilian calendar. According to him, during the three days, the exhibition received national and international clients focused on business. “BFSHOW is in the right place and at the right time, with logistical facilities and a very clear positioning aimed at the business. It is very similar to the main fairs in Europe”, he evaluates. Huff also points out that the company, in addition to receiving traditional customers, has opened new markets in Latin America, North America and Europe. “We had much better results than the fair held in May. For the May 2025 edition, we are even more optimistic, " he adds. Currently, Killana has a production of about 13 thousand pairs per month, of which it exports 60%.
The fair was also very positive for Crep, children's footwear industry of São José dos Campos / SP. The company's financial director, Carla Crepaldi, says the company opened its first international client at BFSHOW. "Since the second edition, we've been talking to a large wholesaler from Peru, but we had not yet formalized the export. In this edition, we made our first international sale, a market that we will work harder on from now on”, she celebrates. With a production of 600 pairs per day, the company sees BFSHOW as an important sales and relationship platform with the national and international markets and has confirmed their presence for the May 2025 edition.
With a visitation “much higher than last May”, Di Valentini, from São João Batista/SC, was quite satisfied with BFSHOW. According to the director of the company, José Osterno Filho, the fair had customers focused on business. “We have acquired new clients both domestically and internationally – in Algeria, Argentina, Bolivia, Ecuador, England and Guatemala,” he says. Producing 6.5 thousand pairs per day, Di Valentini exports about 12% of its production, mainly to South American markets.
Fidelis Ferreira, from the sales department at Calçados Maria Isabel, from Conceição do Coité/BA, says that he did good business at the event and left some others agreed upon for the post-fair. “I believe that we will have a growth between 20% and 30% in the business carried out here, in relation to the November 2023 fair, contact domestic and international market, from where we had visits from Canada and Argentina”, projects the shoemaker.
International
For the first time at BFSHOW, Arise buyer from Mozambique, Thembumenzi Souto, said that she has been buying premium Brazilian shoes since 2009, when she decided to exchange suppliers from Bulgaria for suppliers from Brazil. “When I met the Brazilian products, I realized that they had a much higher quality and variety. Currently, we work with seven brands from Brazil and BFSHOW is giving us the opportunity to expand our product mix here”, says the importer, stressing that the partnership of her network with the Brazilian footwear industry is very important for the company's growth.
National
Brazilian buyers were also positively surprised by the structure of the pavilions that hosted BFSHOW in the Anhembi District. Nostalgic for a time when large trade fairs took place on the site, before the renovation opened this year, shopkeepers stressed the quality of the renovation and the organization of the event. “I really liked the structure, with easy access and good distribution by segments”, evaluates the shopkeeper Vinícius Liessi dos Santos, from Calçado Franca, from Maringá/PR. According to him, the network closed deals and left many others agreed upon for the coming months.
The next edition of the BFSHOW will also take place in the Anhembi District, in São Paulo/SP, between May 19th and 21st, 2025.
