Inspirations and business. The 28th edition of INSPIRAMAIS, the trade fair for innovative materials in the footwear, furniture, clothing, and jewelry industries, which took place from July 11th to 12th at FIERGS in Porto Alegre/RS, Brazil, stirred up the productive chain of the involved sectors. As the stylist and coordinator of the Design and Research Center of the Brazilian Association of Companies for Leather, Footwear, and Artifacts (Assintecal), Walter Rodrigues, rightly stated, the fair was 50% inspiration and 50% business, just as fashion should be.
Silvana Dilly, the superintendent of Assintecal, highlights the increasingly comprehensive nature of the fair. During the two-day event, buyers from Brazilian production centers and some of the main footwear groups from Mexico and Colombia were present, attending the fair through the Buyer Project. This internationalization initiative was carried out by the By Brasil Components, Machinery, and Chemicals program, maintained by Assintecal in partnership with the Brazilian Trade and Investment Promotion Agency (ApexBrasil). "Through the Buyer Project alone, more than US＄ 14 million in immediate sales were generated, adding up to an expectation of more than US＄ 28 million in deals lined up for the next year. This is more than double what was generated in the January edition of this year," the superintendent celebrates.
ESG
According to Silvana, besides promoting and prospecting new businesses, mobilizing the entire productive chain, the fair fulfilled its role of fostering Brazilian fashion and its diversity of products and people. "The presence of renowned designer João Maraschin, a London-based Brazilian, with his sustainable and stylish products, brought an international perspective to INSPIRAMAIS and showed that fashion can - and should - be transversal, always with a keen eye on ESG practices," comments the manager, emphasizing that the productive chain, after years of being seen as an environmental villain, is moving rapidly towards genuinely sustainable production.
Exhibitors
Guilherme Vitório, the commercial manager of Polisola, evaluates that despite not receiving as many visitors as in other editions, possibly due to the weather in Rio Grande do Sul - with the threat of an extratropical cyclone - the fair welcomed buyers who were genuinely focused on business. "Those who had to be here were here. It was the best INSPIRAMAIS in the last three years. We delivered many samples, and the expectations for future business are quite high," he says. According to him, the company from Santa Catarina received visitors from the main Brazilian footwear production centers and buyers from South America. "We received a potential new client from Bolivia and another who has a shoe production plant in China and will manufacture in Rio Grande do Sul," he concludes. Polisola produces 30,000 pairs of polyurethane and expanded PVC soles daily.
JR Soluções, a group that brings together companies specialized in laminates, films, and coatings, as well as a polymer recycling center in Birigui/SP, was also pleased with the business prospects. "We received buyers from important groups in Mexico and Colombia, as well as entrepreneurs from all the main footwear production centers in Brazil. The format of INSPIRAMAIS, with its clean and open booth, is always very effective for our company because it communicates the sustainable essence of our brand well," evaluates Aécio Rosaboni Júnior, the company's director. JR Soluções highlighted at the fair the CLEX ND coating, produced from recycled and recyclable raw materials (polypropylene or polyester TNT and EVA polymers).
The Event
The 28th edition of INSPIRAMAIS brought together over 150 exhibitors of inputs and materials, attracting approximately 7,000 visitors from Brazil and some parts of the world over the two-day event. The fair was promoted by Assintecal in partnership with the Brazilian Tanning Industries Center (CICB), the Brazilian Textile and Clothing Industry Association (Abit), and the Brazilian Furniture Industry Association (Abimóvel). The event was organized by the By Brasil Components, Machinery, and Chemicals program, with collaboration from the National Service of Micro and Small Enterprises (Sebrae Nacional).