Here we are. The Italian stock exchange will present at Mipel the collections for Autumn Winter 2020/2021. It get strong to this appointment (Fieramilano Rho, February 16-19) with more than positive 2019 preliminary results. In the first 10 months of the year, according to the analyses of Centro Studi di Confindustria Moda for Assopellettieri, exports grew by 25.8% in value on an annual basis. Well, but the data knows some shadow cones. Meanwhile, the international scenario that stands out for the leather sector is all to be deciphered.
The trade fair appointment
First of all, the appointment at the fair. After the exploit in September, when the presences were 18% more than the same month edition of 2018, Mipel restarts with the proposal of over 300 brands. Consolidated presences are confirmed, such as Athison, Braccialiani and Caterina Lucchi. There are some returns, such as Ynot and Valigeria Roncato. New appearances stand out, such as RefrigiWear, Romeo Gigli and Spalding. “I grew up in a leather goods family, and I have been attending Mipel since I was 16 years old – said Franco Gabbrielli, founder of Gabs and president of Assopellettieri, at a press conference (pictured) -. Since then, the sense of the trade show has changed, as has the context in which companies operate. Today the show is not just an opportunity to collect orders for the following semester. It’s time to get to know and to do some networking, to promote news and to update yourself. As an association, we are working to help Mipel have a different allure, and help convey even a more modern image in the sector”.
The Italian stock exchange at Mipel
Talk, promotional campaigns, collaborations, trend previews. Mipel confirms and relaunches the commitment, already manifested in recent editions, to be a multi-level platform. There will be spaces for the promotion of emerging brands and designers, as well as, together with Lineapelle, the Trend Area will be set up for material previews. Sustainability, craftsmanship and Italian spirit are the keywords of the sector in the present and in the future. And then, if through the partnership with Camera Buyer Italia the aim is to bring producers closer to retailers, the confirmation of that with San Patrignano Leather Lab Design is one of the ways to talk about the opportunities offered by the sector.
Shadow cones
In such a bright context, we said, there are shadow cones. The first concerns the dynamics of exports. The boom in foreign sales depends on the surge in average prices (+24.7%) and not on a symmetrical growth in volumes, only slightly in the positive area (+0.8%). This is a trend imposed by international brands, as is also shown by the export figure to Switzerland, which doubled in value (+102.6%): “Net of flows to this market – recalls the economic note -, the sectoral export would result in a modest growth of +2.5%, and a slight decrease in volume (-0.3%)”.
Dual market
Danny D’Alessandro, general manager of Assopellettieri, defines it as a dual market, where luxury brands companies are experiencing a certain performance, while “small and medium-sized companies, which work under their own brand, are suffering a lot”. They are leather goods themselves that pay the most for uncertainties of the international scenario, “from the decline in Russian demand to the repercussions of the US-China trade war”, continues D’Alessandro. And they will now have to face the consequences of Coronavirus epidemic on a global scale. However, also something good could come out of it: “It could prove to be a driving force – concludes the general manager -. In China, factories are closed until next week, perhaps even the following week. However, brands cannot stop, because the market does not allow it. Some of our companies have already received requests. The Italian platform is able to respond to production needs”.
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