February 25, 2015

By Contributor

Madrid, Spain –  The fourth edition of MOMAD Metrópolis, the International Textile, Footwear and Accessories Fair, which was organised by IFEMA from 8 to 10 February, has drawn to a satisfactory close in terms of sales for many of the brands involved, and attracted a total of 21,829 buyers – 4% more than last February.

This edition took place from Sunday to Tuesday, with the first day of the event proving particularly successful as it drew in 40% more visitors than the first day of the February 2014 edition.

The regions of Madrid, the Valencian Community, Castile-La Mancha, Castile and León and Catalonia accounted for the bulk of the fair’s buyers, whilst Catalonia and the Canary Islands saw an increase in the number of professionals representing them. On an international scale, 9% of buyers were foreign and came from 63 different countries, especially Portugal, France, Italy and the UK. The most significant rise was seen in the number of professionals from the UK (140%); Italy (23%); France (8%) and the USA (7%), as well the Czech Republic, Ireland and Lithuania.

Overall, the firms exhibiting their products at Momad Metrópolis were satisfied with their involvement in the fair. All of the labels who were asked – including Tiffosi, Slang, Pons Quintana, Pura López, The Extreme Collection and Devota & Lomba – agreed that Sunday, the first day of the fair, was a great day for business, owing both to the many professionals attending and to the number of new contacts they were able to make, which allowed them to score a good number of sales throughout the day.

Furthermore, when questioned by the fair’s organisers at the end of the event, all of the firms who were asked acknowledged a slight improvement in the attitude shown by traders, though most buyers still remained cautious. “On the whole, traders did hold back but we also saw sales opportunities – gone is the catastrophic sensation that was felt in previous editions, but it is still early to talk about actual recovery,” explained Joseba Aguirre, the director at Solid. Sandra Ramos from Strena told organisers that “It has been a very difficult winter and our clients are still selling their winter stock, which means they’re not keen to start buying for the next season… It’s a psychological hurdle that is difficult to clear at this point in the year.”

All in all, this February 2015 edition of Momad Metrópolis has been particularly noteworthy in the sense that the fair broke a new record in the number of participants, which now includes a series of prestigious new firms from Spain and abroad. The fair attracted some 1,200 labels from the fields of textile, footwear, children’s fashion, leather goods, young urban wear, handbags, accessories and top-range brands, which represented a 14% increase on the number of exhibiting firms and covered 4.6% more floor space than the February 2014 edition. Also worthy of particular note was the number of new products on display at this recent event, with a total of 274 new brands, especially catering for young styles and top trends, which is exactly what today’s market is crying out for. All of this has helped turn the event into the most comprehensive and versatile edition of the fair so far.

The more knowledge-focused side of the fair, the Momad Retail Forum, also proved successful, with large audiences and a significant number of attendants at the various conferences and presentations, particularly during the presentation of the Platform for Suppliers from the fashion industry, which was organised by ASECOM, in addition to the presentation of trend forecasts for the coming Autumn/Winter 2015-16 season by the WGSN trend prediction portal.

Also on display at the fair was the “Daddy’s Shoes” exhibition, which offered visitors a glance back into the history of men’s footwear from the 18th century to the present day, including a series of special items, all courtesy of the Elda Footwear Museum’s collection. Another journey to the past was on display in the rest areas of halls 4, 12 and 14 entitled The Fashion Suitcase. Here, visitors were transported to the golden age of the 50s in the world’s top fashion cities: Paris, London and New York, thanks to a carefully designed, theatre-like setting.

The fair also included the fourth consecutive edition of the best stand competition. This time, the prize went to The Extreme Collection as the firm that best identified its brand with its products and put on the finest display for its customers at the fair.

Visitors at Momad Metrópolis were also able to take part in the #momadstyle contest, which offered prizes for the most stylish man and woman. Throughout all three days of the fair, a photographer took care of framing the show’s most impressive looks. Then, an expert jury was appointed to choose the winners in the men’s and women’s categories based on the outfit’s originality, daringness and elegance. The photos taken have been posted on the social networks under thehashtag #momadstyle. The winner in the women’s category was awarded an item by the firm Tifossi and a pair of shoes by Privata. The winner in the men’s category received an item by the firm Bonaventure and a pair of shoes by Coronel Tapioca.

The next edition of the show is set to take place from 11 to 13 September, from Friday to Sunday, and will once again run parallel with the fairs Bisutex, Intergift and Iberjoya, which will turn the Feria de Madrid into the vastest and most comprehensive display of fashion and trend in southern Europe.