From the 13th to the 15th of March, all roads lead to Milan, the biggest footwear fair in the world. MICAM, which was initially scheduled to take place between the 20th and the 22nd of February, was postponed to March due to security reasons, being held at Fiera Milano.

In an edition whose motto was #Better Together, Portugal was represented by 48 brands (represented by 25 companies) at MICAM. "MICAM is the main trade fair of the sector and is very relevant for the Portuguese footwear and leather companies, as it brings together the biggest players of the sector worldwide”, says Luís Onofre. For the President of APICCAPS, the Portuguese presence in the fair is "of the utmost importance to resume business, in addition to being a sign of hope towards the much-desired normality”.

The Portuguese Government was, once again, on the side of the footwear industry. João Neves, Deputy Minister for the Economy, visited the national delegation at MICAM. "The beginning of the year is in line with the last quarter of 2021, with the external trade data being very interesting”, said João Neves. The Deputy Minister admits "an extension of a recovery trend for our exports. The sign that we are having just from these first visits to the companies present at MICAM, which is a significant fair from the viewpoint of market trends, is that the indicators continue to be very positive”.

"This fair follows the path of recovery of our industry. Last year was very positive, namely the last quarter, with a big recovery, exemplifying everything we can offer to the market: good product, design, fair price, adjusted to the needs of consumers”. João Neves guarantees that these good results reflect "the adaptability and flexibility of our companies”.

MICAM maintained its current three-day duration and introduced the proposals for the next Fall-Winter 2022-2023. In the September edition, the fair will go back to its four-day duration, being scheduled to take place from the 18th to the 21st of September 2022.

The presence at MICAM is part of the promotional strategy defined by APICCAPS and AICEP, with the support of the Compete 2020 Programme, to consolidate the relative position of the Portuguese footwear in foreign markets, as the sector exports more than 95% of its production.

30 thousand visitors
The edition of MICAM, as usual, brought together at Fiera Milano, the MIPEL edition, The One Milano and Homi Fashion & Jewels Exhibition. In total, the events welcomed 30 thousand visitors.
"Thanks also to a packed programme of seminars and events, the fairs also confirmed that they provide an increasingly important opportunity for exploring subjects of topical interest for their respective business sectors. These included digitalization, the metaverse and new ways of doing retail”, said the organization in a statement. "Particular attention was also paid to sustainability and slow fashion, both on the exhibition level and as subjects for discussion”.

Through the hallways of MICAM
Portugal was represented at MICAM by 48 brands, owned by 35 companies. In the delegation followed regular attendees, rookies and companies that returned after the break caused by the pandemic.

It is the case of Plumex. Following an absence of 15 years, the company is now looking for new ways to reach markets. "The first contacts were encouraging, but it is important to come back for more editions to feel the pulse of the fair”, highlights Pedro Carlos. For the responsible of Plumex, "MICAM is the most important fair of all; it is the fair”, he concluded.

Suave has participated in MICAM for two years and a half. The participation did not get suspended during the pandemic and the fair emerged "as a way of reaching new markets, in addition to the 25 countries with which we already worked”. The fruits are being harvested, and the company has raised to 31 the number of destination markets. "We found usual customers, but also new ones”.

Barko, Kuru and Urban fill in the list of newcomers to the event, seeing MICAM as a launching pad in international markets.