After various initiatives abroad, which brought Italian companies into contact with the leading markets for footwear, Micam returns to Italy for a new edition in the trade fair complex of Milano Rho.
Protagonists of the 87th edition of the Show will be the new collections for Fall/Winter 2019-20 presented against the backdrop of the new chapter inspiring the ad and image campaign based on Dante’s allegorical journey: after the sins set in the circles of Hell and the glimpses into Purgatory, it is now time to dive into the bliss of celestial atmospheres and enter the gates of Paradise. Art, the creativity characterising MICAM87, moves the focus from the conflicting sentiments and “sinfulness” resulting from the burning desire to own a quality pair of shoes, to the object itself. The claim “Be inspired by Art, ye who enter” highlights the discovery of the shoe as a work of art, matrix of joy and element that offers a sense of completeness for those who know how to appreciate it, while giving life to all that surrounds it.
By taking a look at the numbers of the past edition, it’s easy to imagine how the new edition will be even more international in its vocation. Out of 45,424 visitors registered during the September edition, 27,272 were in fact foreign (+1.6%) and 18,152 were Italian (+4.3%). A net increase instead characterised the number of Asian visitors, with not only the duo of China and Hong Kong growing together at a rate of +68.6%, but also an uptrend in visitor numbers from North America (+43.2%) and, for Europe, from Spain (+9.6%), Portugal (+4.5%) and Switzerland (+7.8%). Instead, buyer numbers from France and Germany and from Russia and the CIS were down.
Going beyond the numbers, Micam has undertaken a reorganization of its selection, while also opening new image areas, which have become driving forces for integration and an inspiration to visitors. In the Luxury area, the Fashion Square has renewed the glam of the collections with fashion shows, events, and trend seminars. At the same time, the Man Square has extended the invitation to visit the stands of designer men’s footwear lining its perimeter, while the Style Square, with its futuristic bar and performances, has captured the attention of visitors in Hall 3. In the Contemporary area, the Fun Square now proposes Adorn’s hairstyling and makeup stations, LED walls, and virtual reality stations, while the iKidsquare – with its colourful area inspired by the playground – has invited visitors to discover its collections dedicated to the littlest set with a smile. Moreover, the Micam Square has seen its seminars dedicated to fashion trends and retail alternated with a meeting point in the Cosmopolitan area dedicated to footwear and products for leisure time. Finally, the Active area now features sports and leisure collections.
In preparation for the new February 2019 edition, Micam has decided to focus not only on creativity and quality, but also on a greater understanding of the market’s demands. For this reason, with the aim of better intercepting the demands of businesses and professional operators, it decided to undertake an in-depth analysis of its exhibitor database (just like it did with the visitor database), confronting the data from the last six editions (from February 2016 to September 2018).
From this analysis, it has emerged that 37% of all exhibitors participated in all 6 of the last editions of the event (with 43% represented by Italians). At the same time, 67% of Italian exhibitors at the 86th edition of Micam have been classified as part of the event’s “extremely loyal” cluster, since they also participated in all of the previous editions, while 11% of the total participated for the first time.
At the last edition, in particular, the origin of exhibitors was divided up as follows: Europe 91%, Asia 4%, South America 4% and North America 1%. In Europe, the first two countries with the highest rate of participation, after Italy at 61%, were Spain and Portugal (respectively 15.2% and 7.5% of European exhibitors). Taking a closer look at Italy, 25.5% of the exhibitors were from Marches, while 21.6% were from Campania and 16.2% from Tuscany.
Instead, in terms of specific business activities, more than 70% of all exhibitors produce footwear and almost 10% sell footwear (distributors + retailers).
Over the years, the division of the Stands according to size in metres has remains more or less unchanged, with Stands of small dimensions remaining in the majority. At the last edition, around 60% of the Stands were of dimensions inferior to 32 square metres, while 18% of the exhibition areas were made up by stands of dimensions superior to 72 square metres.
