Local Shoe Brand Ready to Upgrade and Aim for the Global Stage

The Milan shoe exhibition. (doc. M

JAKARTA - The Indonesian footwear industry has shown significant development in recent years. Not only as a production base, local shoes are starting to be directed to have higher competitiveness through brand strengthening, design innovation, and expansion into global markets.

One of the events that are considered to open up these opportunities is MICAM Milano, an international-scale shoe exhibition that brings together industry players from various countries, ranging from manufacturers, buyers, to distributors.

This event is held twice a year at Fiera Milano Rho, Italy. At the latest event, the exhibition was attended by hundreds of international brands and attracted tens of thousands of visitors from various countries, making it one of the global footwear industry barometers.

More than 1,000 international footwear brands for men, women, and children are showcased in each edition, making this event a global reference for design trends, technology, and the development of the world's footwear industry.

MICAM CEO, Giorgio Possagno, said this event is not only a place for business transactions, but also a space to understand the direction of industry development.

"This is a dynamic platform for business and strategic vision, a place where manufacturing excellence meets new trends, technologies, and future distribution models," he said.

For Indonesia, the opportunity to utilize a global platform like this is quite large. Based on data from the Indonesian Association of Cooperation (APRISINDO), Indonesia is among the largest shoe producers in the world with a production capacity of more than one billion pairs per year.

In addition, Indonesia is also one of the main exporters of footwear products. The export value in 2023 was recorded at around 6.4 billion US dollars with the main markets including the United States, the European Union, Japan, and the Middle East.

"Indonesia has become one of the largest shoe producers in the world. The next challenge is how to increase added value through design innovation, strengthening brands, and global market penetration," said APRISINDO Chairman, Eddy Widjanarko.

Micam Milano exhibition. (doc. Micam Milano)

In addition to footwear, Indonesia also has the potential for leather-based products such as bags and accessories. This industry is supported by various production centers in the region, such as Garut, Magetan, Yogyakarta, to Bali, which are known to produce products with strong craft quality.

However, most of the national footwear industry still plays a role as a manufacturer for foreign brands or original equipment manufacturers (OEM). This means that the value of brands and their position in the global market is still dominated by foreign companies.

This condition is both a challenge and an opportunity. Participation in international events is considered to help industry players understand global trends, build brand identity, and expand local industry networks.

In addition to being a place to promote products, exhibitions such as MICAM also present various programs that discuss the development of the industry, ranging from design trends to sustainability issues.

Through the support of large production capacity and the potential for developing local brands, Indonesian footwear brands are considered to have the opportunity to transform from merely a production base to a player with a brand identity in the global market.