Isaura Daniel*
São Paulo – Leather and shoe components made in Brazil are going to be showcased in Egypt in late November. The Brazilian Association of Shoe and Leather Components Industries (Assintecal) is going to participate in the Meet in Africa fair, from November 25th until November 27th, in Cairo, capital city of the Arab country. The association will have a 36-square-metre institutional stand, showcasing products by 13 Brazilian companies. The participation was organized by Assintecal with support from the Brazilian Export and Investment Promotion Agency (Apex).
Two of these companies, Recouro, a manufacturer of reconstituted leather, and Boxflex, which makes shoe parts, such as inner soles, are sending their professionals to the fair. The remaining companies are going to be represented by Link World Wide, which represents these companies on the African continent and which will take samples to the fair. These companies are Formas Kunz, Fibracouro, Termotextil, Inbrape, Amapá, A Tonal, Matrizaria Polako, Uniflex, Escowal, Cipatex, and DT Pregos. Assintecal will be represented at the fair by its president, Luís Claudio Amaral, and the manager for the city of São Paulo, Juliana Dilly.
This is the fifth participation of Assintecal at Meet in Africa. The fair is biennial and travelling. It takes place in a different country every two years. The first Brazilian participation was in the edition of the fair in South Africa, 1998, the second one was in Morocco, 2000, the third one in Tunisia, 2002, and the fourth one in Ethiopia, 2004. With their participation at Meet in Africa, the companies intend to enter the African market, according to the Assintecal international business consultant, Chris Haddad.
The Egyptian edition of the fair will include an even larger number of markets. "Egypt is strategically located, near Europe. The participation in the fair is going to reach Europe and the Middle East as well, and not just Africa," says Haddad. In Africa, according to the consultant, one of the markets that Brazilian companies started to enter is Nigeria. "Deals have been closed with Nigeria," says Haddad. This is not the first participation of Assintecal in an Egyptian fair. In 2005, the Association attended the Cairo Leather Fair.
Suppliers of shoe parts, leather and leather products in Brazil are increasing in number and revenues. This year, 300 companies in the industry exported, according to Assintecal figures. In 2002, exporting companies were 168. Revenue from the foreign market went up from US$ 574.7 million, during the first nine months of 2005, to US$ 664.3 million, during the same months this year. The growth was 15.6%. The rate surpasses the projection for increase made by the Association for the year, which was 14%. In September alone, exports grew 23.44%, reaching US$ 84.98 million. Last year, sales increased 6.8%.
*Translated by Gabriel Pomerancblum
