The physical return of Expo Riva Schuh & Gardabags launched an important restart signal also for the Rivano area. As part of the international reference fair for volume footwear, leather goods and accessories, the beautiful location of Spiaggia Olivi has, in fact, hosted its first event after many missed months, and has become the magnificent theater of a gala dinner with lights and colours.
Roberto Pellegrini, President of Riva del Garda Fierecongressi, highlighted its importance as follows: “If the key word of this physical edition of Expo Riva Schuh was restart, the same goes for this magical location, which we started to manage just before the pandemic and which actually opens its doors today”.
A happening with an international flair which welcomed institutions, the press and representatives of the footwear sector, who were able to participate in the inauguration of this historic jewel of great value for the Riva del Garda community.
The architectural structure of Spiaggia Olivi was animated by ambient lighting and light shows that flooded the lighthouse tower, symbol of the location, with colours and the sailboats moored on the lake. A scenario made even more evocative by the light and sound installation of the work Scherzo for Chorus of Light by the artist Stefano Mazzanti. A floral arrangement and an impressive mise en place made the guests’ experience even more immersive and evocative.
“Spiaggia Olivi is the ideal place for exclusive national and international events – adds Alessandra Albarelli, General Manager of Riva del Garda Fierecongressi – and that is why we are preparing a calendar of initiatives aimed at the congress, corporate and wedding market, while enhancing the bond of the location with the territory through its opening on the occasion of events dedicated to the city”.
The choice of Spiaggia Olivi as the venue for the Expo Riva Schuh & Gardabags gala dinner was anything but casual: its spaces, together with other wonderful locations in the area, will in fact be at the centre of the Food & Shoes offer, a project promoted by Expo Riva Schuh & Gardabags, in collaboration with the ONTHEGO agency, designed to reinterpret the footwear business in a more contemporary key, also enhancing the unique urban and landscape context that has always characterised this fair.
The first ones to take advantage of this precious opportunity were the ASSOPROV associates who organised their dinner at the Spiaggia Olivi. “An enchanting atmosphere and an excellent dinner that allowed us to meet face to face again – says Lino Mattiozzi, president of the Footwear Sales Promoters Association. It was a way to restart the engines, to warm them up, just like returning physically to the fair. Expectations for the event were obviously low, given the difficult historical moment, yet the associates who exhibited at Expo Riva Schuh said they were moderately satisfied. This new period seems to be the start of a slight recovery: shopkeepers have bought little, but are starting to sell again and data that customers provide us are encouraging. Making long-range predictions is hard at the moment, as the situation is still uncertain and difficult”.
