CAPE TOWN, Sept 9 (NNN-SANEWS) — A group of manufacturers from the clothing, textile, footwear, leather and general goods sectors have received support from the Department of Trade, Industry and Competition (the dtic) to showcase their proudly South African products at the AllFashion Sourcing Exhibition.
The exhibition will take place at the Cape Town International Convention Centre (ICC) in Cape Town on Sept 10-12.
The Allfashion Sourcing Exhibition is a business-oriented marketplace for the textile and fashion industry, combining African creativity, design and manufacturing with international sourcing options.
The show will bring together an international community of manufacturers, designers, retailers, buyers, educational institutions, associations, financiers and service providers to the textile, apparel, footwear and fashion industry.
The primary objective of the event is to promote African clothing, textile, footwear, leather and general goods and to encourage interaction on a regional and international level.
Additionally, the event aims to boost investment into the region and ensure sustainable job creation within the sector.
Acting Deputy Director-General of Sectors at the dtic, Thandi Phele, said the department’s support is part of a strategy to strengthen the ability of manufacturing and other sectors of the economy to create decent jobs, promote inclusion and increase value addition and competitiveness, in both domestic and export markets.
“This will be a valuable opportunity for the manufacturers to showcase their products to the wider fashion community in South Africa and abroad. We are certain that this collaboration will deliver fantastic results and that the manufacturers will receive quality enquiries from prospective clients and generate trade leads.
“This sector has a long history, employs a significant number of people, and remains important to the manufacturing sector. However, the recent period, especially with COVID-19, has been characterised by serious structural and associated crises resulting in a decline in the sectors over the last number of years,” she said.
While the sector is stabilising, more interventions are required.
Importantly, government is determined to increase exports and promote locally produced products.
“The AllFashion Sourcing is a vehicle that the dtic is using to achieve an objective of ensuring sustainable job creation and increasing exports of locally manufactured products.
“The show will afford the dtic an ideal opportunity to engage with a select audience of textile, clothing, footwear, leather and fashion orientated exhibitors and visitors,” said Phele. — NNN-SANEWS