Industry seek local footwear designers
22 March 2012The leather and footwear industry earned an export revenue of about US$2 billion in the first quarter this year as part of a $7.3 billion annual target, up 21.7% compared with 2011.
Nguyen Thi Tong, Deputy Chairwoman and General Secretary of the Vietnam Leather and Footwear Association (Lefaso), made the statement at a seminar jointly held with the Vietnam Leather and Shoe Research Institute in Hanoi, March 21.
The event was aimed at launching a campaign to encourage Vietnamese creative designers to take part in the 4th International Footwear Design Competition 2012 in the Asia region. The competition will take place in Guangzhou, China, from May 30 to June 1 and will be organised by the Asia Footwear Association and regional industrial associations.
‘The initiative targets improving design capacity and production in Asian countries as well as discovering creative and professional designers,’ she said.
Most local producers sub-contract or outsource design deals with international partners in Hong Kong, South Korea among others, with great dependence on imported raw materials and accessories, designs as well as equipment.
Tran Tuyet Mai, a representative of the Vietnam Leather and Shoe Research Institute, said that active participation of Vietnamese designers would make a great contribution to the country's shoe industry as it still lacked qualified and professional players.
