The 2024 All China Leather Exhibition (ACLE) was successfully held at Shanghai New International Expo Center on September 3-5, 2024. Covering 8 halls in the Expo Centre, the exhibition occupied a total area of 92,000 square metres, with more than 1,000 exhibitors from 28 countries and regions. Present were 17 international and domestic pavilions. The pavilions represented Australia, Brazil, China (Fuxin, Haining, Ouhai, Pingyu, Wuji, Xinji, Zhaoyuan), France, Italy, Pakistan, Spain, Taiwan, Thailand, and the USA.
The three-day exhibition featured a range of professional and innovative activities. Various new product launching events and technology seminars highlighted the latest developments in the leather industry. Seminars included How to Use Cross-border Macro Analysis to Grasp Export Trends; REACH & POP Regulations, as well as other presentations dealing with related trade and industry issues. Participatory Leather workshops allowed the direct hands-on experience of creating leather products, generating an intuitive understanding of the manufacturing process. Moreover, one of the events, the International Tanning Industry Executive Summit, was streamed as a live broadcast for the first time, with translation into Mandarin, allowing the complete forum and its content to be seen internationally, and hence involve more online participants.
Exhibitors from all over the world, with the products on display covering the whole leather, footwear and leather products manufacturing supply chain, brought together a number of industry leaders, making the 24th All China Leather Exhibition a key meeting place for the industry, from East to West.
Attendance
For the second consecutive year, visitor numbers hit a record high. ACLE attracted more than 31,000 buyers and technicians,; compared with the 2023 edition, the number of buyers increased by 11%. The thousands of buyers included many shoes, bags, clothing, furniture and automotive interior manufacturers and related designers.
Backdrop to the Event
Despite weak consumption in the post-epidemic era, according to the China Leather Industry Association (CLIA), the China leather industry’s revenue still grew 5.2% year-on-year in the first half of 2024, which gave a boost the commercial interest at the fair. Compared with the first half of 2023, the Chinese leather industry has shown more positive results this year.
Comments from Participants
As a full attendance exhibitor of the two ACLE after the epidemic, Qiu Tingrun from Tong Hong Tannery (Bei Hai) Co. Ltd. in Taiwan, China, stated that this year’s customers were more than last year’s, and hoped that there would be more orders for the coming year.
Mr. Ismael Naves from Curtume Cubatão in Brazil described the fair as important, saying that it provided them with the opportunity to network with their customers. As the top event in the leather industry in China, the excellent performance of the ACLE 2024 fully demonstrates the strength of the leather industry and the consumer market’s confidence in it, he noted.
Mr. Chen Zhanguang, Vice Chairman of CLIA, said that at present, China’s leather industry is still in an important stage of reshuffling, and it is expected that the leather industry will continue to maintain a stable operation in the third quarter and throughout the year.
Mr. Marc Brunel, General Director of Alliance France Cuir, mentioned that according to their data survey for the past two years, the international consumer’s perception of leather is positive.
Speaking about the future of the leather industry, Mr. Muhammad Mehr Ali, Chairman of Pakistan Tanners Association, indicated that we must shift to sustainable products.
ACLE is not only a trade fair, but also a bridge for industry experts to gather and exchange ideas. Thailand Tactus Co. Ltd. ‘s Tanida told reporters that Tactus’ original main market is the United States. This time we came to ACLE in order to use this international platform to explore the Asian and European markets.
Felix Zhou, the CEO of Bader China Ltd., said: “Through a platform of such an exhibition, we can exchange the latest information and understand the development trends of the industry.”
As Mr. Li Yuzhong, Vice Chairman of China National Light Industry Council and Chairman of CLIA, said: “Leather is divided into types and regions. However, for the leather industry, we share the same vision, the same dream.” The leather industry is a global industry. ACLE, as a gathering of the global leather industry, shows the latest products and technologies, promotes the circulation of knowledge in various fields, helps practitioners around the world to establish business contacts, and effectively boosts the confidence and cohesion of the sector.
Looking towards ACLE 2025
The 2024 ACLE culminated in a resounding success, and the 25th ACLE will reconvene next year, from September 3rd to 5th, at the Shanghai New International Expo Centre. Mark your calendars, see you next year!