MISAF: Beyond the boundaries of footwear
“Footwear for Everyone”, a message that is anything but exclusive or elitist, open to meeting new realities. This is the claim chosen for the first edition of MISAF, Milan Shoes and Accessories Fair, the footwear show organized in Italy by Asian entrepreneurs to give visibility to their productions and open up to the European and Italian market.
The first edition, held in Milan last June, received unanimous approval, creating a useful network opportunity among buyers, designers, brand operators, distributors and e-commerce platforms. In this sense, the strategic choice of a city with such an international scope, the fulcrum of industrial cooperation between Europe and Asia, has proved to be fundamental.
Cavalier Mario Boselli, introducing the show as President of the Italian-Chinese Institute, expressed his own view: “The key word of this event is complementarity (…). The city of Milan as a base for a strategic alliance between China and Italy also in the footwear sector is certainly the best choice for style and concreteness in business. Milan is Italian Style”.
Thousands of models on display at the 102 booths at the fair, from fashion footwear to sporty styles, and safety footwear; men’s, women’s and children’s collections at the show did not include only footwear, but also headwear and other accessories characterized by an excellent quality-price ratio.
At MISAF, design has met the best of Chinese production, such as Sheme, the first Chinese luxury brand to participate in Fashion Weeks in Paris, London and New York, and Ranch International Limited, one of the youngest companies on the Chinese scene with a green soul and a vocation as an incubator of new local brands, known throughout the world for its collaboration with major brands including Adidas.
The event, held at the East East Studios in Via Mecenate, laid the foundation for becoming the new professional platform for the large-scale footwear industry.
The next appointment with MISAF – Milan Shoes and Accessories Fair is scheduled for January 2020 during the MFFW.