Fimec consolidates itself as one of the largest footwear-leather fairs in the world
Professional trade fair brought together more than 20,000 visitors from 37 different countries
After three intense days of news, business and networking, the 46th Fimec (International Fair of Leather, Chemical Products, Components, Machinery and Equipment for Footwear and Tanneries) ended this Thursday (09), at Fenac, in Novo Hamburgo/RS (Brazil). The largest fair of the sector in Latin America gathered more than 20 thousand professionals in search of trends and innovations in leather and fur, chemical products, components, machinery and technology, being recognized as the only fair that gathers the whole footwear-leather process.
With a high level of foreign participation, the Fimec reaffirmed itself as an international fair, being pointed out as the best edition of the last few years. "For me, this is the best Fimec since I've been at Fenac. As I have been participating in the fair since 1985, this was certainly the best fair for at least 10 years. And this goes along with the reports I've heard from several people who have been here", declared the director-president of Fenac, Marcio Jung. For him, this year's Fimec fulfilled its role. "The purpose of a fair was widely conquered at Fimec 2023, connecting visitors who need suppliers with exhibitors who deliver that to professionals. It was a fair full of decision-makers and, therefore, business was done here", added Jung.
For the CEO, the excitement and enthusiasm of the participants could be perceived in the fair's aisles. "The 2023 edition delivered a lot because of two factors that we worked hard to conquer, but even so they surprised: an incredible visitation of foreign buyers; and the visitation of the great Brazilian tanneries companies", he evaluated. For him, the projection for next year is even better. "The success of this edition makes me believe, with absolute conviction, that the Fimec 2024 will be one of the biggest fairs of all times", projected Jung.
The 2024 Edition – The 47th Fimec (International Fair of Leather, Chemical Products, Components, Machinery and Equipment for Footwear and Tanneries) is settled for March 12 to 14, from 1 pm to 8 pm, at the Fenac pavilions, in Novo Hamburgo / RS.
Exhibitors celebrate results above expectations
In this edition, the Fimec brought together more than 350 exhibitors, totaling 10,000 m² of exhibition area. Among the companies present was Componarte, which celebrated the positive results. "The Fimec is a very good fair, we always come very excited. This 2023 edition completely exceeded our expectations, as we had a lot of visitors, our booth was always full", said Mariane Fumagalli, designer of the brand. With a confirmed presence in the next edition, the brand intends to expand its space. "Being at the Fimec allows us to open new doors, meet new customers, as well as showcase our collection and contribute to the customer having a different look at the company", added Mariane.
Another brand satisfied with the results of this edition was Injeplan. "This edition was much more positive than last year's edition. It seems that the market is heating up again, because the movement was much greater and people were really interested in new products and business", pointed out Marina de Moraes Clemes, commercial manager of the company. She also highlighted the networking that the fair provided. "We made many new export contacts, including countries like Bolivia and Peru. For us, it is essential to expand the market, because as we don't have much representation in other states, here we reach places where we don't have representatives", explained Marina, affirming that the brand has already renewed its participation for 2024. "We are considering a bigger booth, because this one is already too tight for us", she explained.
The exhibitors' satisfaction can also be seen in the renewal rates for the 2024 fair. Fenac projects that 90% of exhibitors should guarantee space for next year. "In addition to this renewal, we are projecting that the Fimec 2024 will grow 20% in sold area," anticipated Jung.
Visitors from abroad marked this edition
This year, in addition to visitors from different Brazilian states, the Fimec attracted professionals from 36 other countries: South Africa, Argentina, Austria, Bangladesh, Benin, Bolivia, Burkina Faso, Cameroon, Chile, China, Colombia, Egypt, Ecuador, Spain, USA, Ethiopia, Ghana, Great Britain, Guatemala, Guinea, India, Iran, Mauritania, Mexico, Nigeria, Palestine, Pakistan, Paraguay, Peru, Kenya, Democratic Republic of Congo, Dominican Republic, Senegal, Somalia, Uruguay and Venezuela.
For Sergio Coti, from the company Procesos Modernos El Sol from Guatemala, who visited the fair on the last day, the search was for innovations. "We work with tanneries and we are interested in knowing some equipment for our company, because we need a lot of technology and here we found this: very modern machines with the latest technology in the market," said the professional, who visited the fair for the third edition. "We will definitely come to Fimec 2024", Coti anticipates.
About the 46th Fimec: a Fenac Experiências Conectam event, which was presented by Sicredi Pioneira and was sponsored by Covestro, Transduarte, Henkel and Formas Kunz. Abicalçados, Abiacav, Abqtic, Abrameq, ACI-NH/CB/EV, Aicsul, Assintecal, CICB, Fiergs, IBTeC, Sebrae/RS and SITERGS also supported the fair. The Fimec 2023 took place from March 7 to 9, at Fenac, in Novo Hamburgo/RS (Brazil).
