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Colombia-Panama Alter two petitions presented by Panama, the World Trade Organization (WTO) has set up a panel to examine the restrictions which Colombia has imposed on imports from Panama. Nevertheless, Colombia is accusing Panama of having no control over Chinese products which arrive in Colombia relabeled as Panamanian. Footwear is in first place! Italy-India An organization of small and medium sized companies from the Italian province of Urbino announced that it plans to invest €3 million euros in the leather and footwear industry in India. This cooperation project is being worked together with the Association of Leather Producers of Chennai. Both institutions signed letters of intent to improve bilateral trade with their respective leather and footwear industries.
South Korea - South Africa A letter of intent was signed between the South Korean government and the South African province of KwaZulu-Natal (KZN) with the aim of establishing a leather and furniture factory in this region. The agreement was signed during a visit made by South African Prime Minister, Sbu Ndebele, to South Korea. “KZN is the largest province in the country and very rich in natural resources and can also count on two major ports”, declared Ndebele. Brazil-Macau Brazil’s Trade Minister informed that bilateral trade between his country and Macau increased on average by 76.8% in the first nine months of 2007. Exports from Macau to Brazil increased by 84% reaching US$ 6.6 million, while products shipped in the opposite direction rose by 16.7% to total US$ 554 million. Macau is a small territory and is a former Portuguese colony and is currently under China’s jurisdiction. It is being investigated by the European Community for the suspected triangulation of Chinese footwear to Europe. Kenya Kenyan Trade Minister, Mukhisa Kituvi, announced that his government has decided to increase the duty payable for the export of raw hides in the hope that this will stimulate work in local tanneries. He maintained that these businesses already have enough investments to start to develop their activities at a faster pace. Bosnia-Herzegovina Bosnia-Herzegovina announced that the production of leather and leather products grew by 13.3% in the first nine months of 2007, compared to the same period of 2006 which reached 11.6%.
Tanning machinery Davide Poletto (ex Polletto tanning machinery company) has established a new company called S.T.A. SRL. The company will deal in the buying and selling of used tannery machines. STA sells all types of tannery machines which have been completely rebuilt as well as spare parts. Technicians from the company travel the world over to give assistance and consulting services to international tanneries. Silvateam gains vital access to China Silvateam Guangzhou, a subsidiary of Silvateam China, obtained the legal permission it required to be able to carry out business freely in this country. The company stated that it is the first Italian group which has obtained authorization to import and trade directly with its complete product range in China. Van Heusen reaches agreement with Randa Phillips – Van Heusen (PVH), a US company and owner of the Calvin Klein and Kenneth Cole New York brands, signed a concession with Randa Accessories. The agreement stipulates that Randa will design clothes for men and children using the Van Heusen label in the US and Mexico. The collection includes belts, wallets and small leather goods. Metric Thunder produces attire Metric Thunder a company producing parts for motorcycles and accessories has launched its first collection of clothes, in association with Torian Chopper Leathers. The line made from bovine leather of very high quality includes leather jackets, shirts and gloves in 1960’s styles. The jackets have pockets designed to keep personal belongings while the user is traveling by motorcycle.
Successful collection Víctor Horsting and Rolf Snoeren, two designers based in Amsterdam, have developed their first collection of handbags with Gibò, an Italian accessory and women’s clothes designer. The line, which is exotic and of high quality, includes handbags in lizard skins and other attractive materials. Richemont invests The Swiss company known for its luxury items, Richemont (Chloé, Dunhill, Montblanc, Montegrappa and Lancel) has made a heavy investment in Azzedina Alaia, a designer of clothes, leather goods and footwear based in France. The last financial statement by Azzedine Alaia shows total sales of US$ 13.2 million, which is a 30% increase compared to the previous year. Richemont also has several well recognized brands. New product from BASF One of BASF’s plants has started to produce its new finisher Steron which can be used on a wide variety of surfaces to obtain a high quality finish. The company plans to continue developing this new technology and work directly with clients and so adapt it to their production requirements. Luggage from Salatore Feragamo Salvatore Ferragamo designed a luggage collection to accompany Maserati’s GranTurismo model. The company explained that all the articles were designed thinking of the elegant style of this sports coupé and have been designed so that they fit perfectly into the trunk of this vehicle. Good profits for LVMH LVMH Moet Hennessy Louis Vuitton, the important French company making luxury goods, announced that profits reached €11.4 million in the first nine moths of 2007 – a figure which shows a 13% improvement when compared to the same period last year. The company explained that growth accelerated in the third quarter due to the extraordinary results obtained by its Louis Vuitton brand.
Award for TFL Ledertechnik TFL Ledertechnik, a company based in Switzerland, was one of the four winners of the ICIS Innovation Award, thanks to its sun resistant leather. This leather was designed so as not to generate so much heat when exposed to the direct rays of the sun, since it contains dyes and pigments which do not absorb the sun’s rays in the infrared spectrum. Better sales at BASF BASF AG announced that its sales increased in the third quarter of 2007, a trend which has been noticeable for the whole year. The company stated that sales in this last quarter grew by 5% to reach €14 million. Stella McCartney designs travelwear Thee well-known English designer, Stella McCartney, is going to produce a line of travelwear exclusively for the US firm Le Sportsac. This “union” will result in suitcases, bags, notebook cases, camera cases and accessories which should arrive in the shops in mid July 2008, in the spring/summer season. Entrepreneurship for safety footwear Lemaitre Securité and India’s Rahman Export Group, both important companies in the manufacture of safety footwear, have formed a new association aimed at expanding production and the profile of both companies. Rahman’s original specialty was in leather tanning by has expanded in recent years and has now begun to manufacture shoe components.
Payless in Colombia Payless Shoe Source, a US company retailing footwear, has decided to increase its international presence by entering the Colombian market in a joint venture with locall businessman Samuel Azout. The agreement stipulates that Payless with open 10 new shops in the country from summer onwards and the start of 2008. Ethan Allen buys Mexican factory Ethan Allen Interiors, a manufacturer and retailer of home furnishings, has purchased a leather factory in the Mexican state of Guanajuato, using its subsidiary Ethen Allen Operations. This factory employs 165 people and covers 40,000 square feet.
New Company The company MIA Automotive is an initiative of Mario Levi, an automotive leather producer, and Allied Trim Components (ATC), a supplier of vehicle components based in South Africa. The company was chosen by FIAT South Africa to produce leather upholstery for the seats of the Alfa 159. First class leather For flights in first class from Tokyo to Osaka, Japan Airlines has incorporated seats covered in luxury leather. In addition, it has added sofas covered in leather in some of its departure lounges in Narita International Airport.
Argos pulls a line of furniture from sale Argos, a retail chain in the UK and Ireland with 680 shops, has pulled from sale a collection of leather furniture as many clients developed rashes and burns when coming into contact with these products. The company stated that the cause could be related with the leather finishing of some products since all came from the same tannery. Argos also stated that it could be a case of allergic reaction. Caring for the environment DeCoro, a manufacturer of furniture using Italian leather, has chosen a protective system for its Blox leather which is environmentally friendly, for its 2008 product line. Luca Ricci, the company president, explained that this non toxic technology protects the leather from damage by humidity, dirt and stains. New president of Leather Italia Mark Parris has joined the supplier of leather upholstery Leather Italia USA as President of Sales, a post created specifically for him. Management changes at Italiana Salotti Gary Carmel was named Sales Manager for North America at Italiana Salotti, a well-known upholstery producer. Teddy and Arthur Edleman sold The upholstery manufacturer Teddy and Arthur Edelman was bought by Knoll, a furniture company. Both companies are based in the US. Edeleman has been a long time supplier to companies such as Herman Miller.
Puma and winter tennis shoes Puma has launched a line of sports shoes into the European and US markets which are pure style. The shoes which are part of the autumn/winter collection have a rubber Velcro strip and are lined in synthetic leather. The model is available in different versions, all in leather and with details in suede and stitching. New Balance comes with “chicken’s feet”! A sports shoe with a vintage look was launched by the US brand New Balance. This limited edition is an authentic “winter boot” based on the traditional company designs and has a type of “covering” which goes over part of the upper. The material used is made from wool with a “chickens foot” stamped on it and is the result of the association the company has with the Japanese shop chain, Another Edition.
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International Conference on Falsification “Copying products is the crime of the 21st Century”
Michel Danet
The General Secretary of the World Customs Organization (WCO), Michel Danet, called copying and falsification of products as the “crime of the 21st century and an industry which kills off economic activity”. He also emphasized that an association could be set up with the private sector with the aim of educating society to combat this scourge.
The Secretary was participating in the International Conference on “The struggle against falsification and copying”, which took place in Buenos Aires, Argentina, on 8th/9th November and was presided over by Ricardo Echegaray, General Director of the Argentine Customs Service.
Ricardo Echegaray
“Copying and falsification is an unbearable reality, the crime of the 21st century, a monster which is integrated into globalization, an industry which kills people and officials”, declared Danet when explaining the state of illegal trade on a global level.
Within the context of the conference measures to combat copying were analyzed, as well as political initiatives of international organizations and the cooperation between public and private sectors.
Danet asked for progress to be made by forming an “association with the private sector interested in preserving the right to intellectual property in the face of falsification which destroys companies and economic activity.”
The Secretary of the World Customs Organization (WCO) argued that it was “scandalous” to laud the increase in economic activity in countries where children are used to produce falsified products. He also commented on practices detected such as the existence of submarines loaded with CD’s which surface to load boats, or products associated with the next Soccer World Cup in South Africa. He added that “pitches in South Africa have not yet been constructed and we have already seized handkerchiefs with logos and other material in Europe”.
Danet remarked that “governments did not show much political will” even if within the World Trade Organization (WTO) advances are being made in the fight against falsification and copying since “it will not be any good when there are 60 countries which do not have any legislation against copying.”
“To find a solution is very difficult to envisage. We have taken some measures and we estimate that falsification is worth €200 million per year, but even this figure is not reliable because it does not take into account the copies are produced locally, for local consumption,” he added.
The director of the WCO also remarked that “90% of falsified products are seized in Europe” and emphasized that measures have to be taken against this illegal market which “before was a small business and now has become an industry in which organized crime and narcotics traffickers invest.”
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Máxima Duda Fusion from the rainforest The Venezuelan design company Máxima Duda, based in Caracas, capital of Venezuela, is headed up by María Antonia Godigna. María has been working for over three years with some of Venezuela's indigenous peoples, the Warao and the Wayúu who live in the Delta Amacouro region in East Venezuela, and the Guajira peninsula in the west of the country respectively.
Máxima Duda specializes in unique designs and craftsmanship for bags and handbags using native materials of the indigenous Warao and Wayúu peoples, combined with other natural materials such as textiles from the Andean highlands. The designer fuses together various elements of Venezuelan indigenous culture creating a useful, urban product while respecting the original vision of the indigenous peoples.
The final result is a unique product that integrates and redefines original craftsmanship to create original design concepts which can be marketed to modern buyers ….and it all comes from a collective effort which ultimately benefits the indigenous peoples and their craft cooperatives.
The materials used include fiber from the moriche palm tree, bora reeds from the marshy areas near the tropical rivers, the husk of the fruit from the taparo tree which is carved with floral patterns reflecting the environment where the indigenous peoples live. All bags are original designs and are a joint effort of the indigenous cooperatives active in Venezuela and the design vision and expertise of Máxima Duda.
The company's mission is to help preserve the millennium cultures which still survive in the tropical rainforests and highlands of Venezuela. Fusion of concepts while respecting the original vision of the indigenous designer is the key to bring these wonderful products to a wider audience in developed countries.
Eco-friendly and environmental preservation is always uppermost in mind. Thus, all materials are made from naturally occurring reeds and plants with dyes extracted from tree bark with no chemical products.
You can contact Maria Antonia of Máxima Duda by email mgodigna@gmail.com or go to the site www.maximaduda. blogspot.com
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